Empty nesters Jim and Debbie love their 2005 manufactured home in a wonderful, gated community. Windmill Village is a 55+ resident-owned adult community located in beautiful historic Punta Gorda, in southwest Florida. Each manufactured home has a spacious lot and is well maintained. There are two marinas with access to Charlotte Harbor, the Gulf Islands, and the Gulf of Mexico, which is absolutely ideal for Jim and Debbie. They both love boating and enjoy fishing. But they had a lot less love for their kitchen.
For years, Jim and Debbie lived with the dated kitchen, which was outfitted with all the hallmarks of a lackluster builder-grade manufactured home. The former kitchen had thermofoil cabinets, dated mauve-colored laminate countertops (yes, I said it — “mauve”), a peninsula with a suspended table height countertop, a café curtain above the refrigerator, and lacking adequate storage.
After nine years of living in this home, our clients decided it was time to update the kitchen and eat-in dining room area. They carefully researched before they declared themselves ready to embark on a home improvement journey—one that turned out better than they could have ever expected.
Jim and Debbie were looking for improvements that would help them give their kitchen style and personality. They wanted their kitchen to serve as a gathering place to be enjoyed by family, friends, and neighbors. And they also wanted more improved storage capacity. So, the couple turned to me for help.
The first time I visited the wonderful couple, I saw that while the cook space was technically still functional and the layout actually worked, the kitchen peninsula felt out of place with the drop-down counter. I also saw the typical problems of thermofoil cabinets: delamination and peeling at the edges of some of the doors and drawer fronts.
While designing Jim’s and Debbie’s new kitchen, I wanted it to be a wonderful new coastal-inspired kitchen for them to come home to. I also wanted to keep the project on-time and on-budget. Although cabinets come in a wide range of prices, they can account for a large part of the overall budget. With that in mind, I designed the new kitchen with Aspect Cabinetry. This cabinet manufacturer makes durable and stylish cabinets that won’t consume Jim’s and Debbie’s kitchen remodel budget. The crisp white cabinets look fabulous with the homeowner’s white appliances.
In this spacious kitchen, I used painted white Shaker cabinets with traditional crown molding. This combination complements, but does not compete with, the home’s traditional style. The timeless style will outlast trends. For her countertops, Debbie chose Fantasy Brown. Technically, it is a combination of marble and quartzite. It is quite a unique piece of natural stone with an inspiration to the coastlines. The colors ooze freshness, subtle tones of water, sand, driftwood, and airy white clouds. And Debbie’s choice of tile backsplash was the perfect accompaniment to the countertops and cabinetry.
In order to make the eat-in dining room area feel bigger, floor-to-ceiling pantries were incorporated, which help to draw the eye up, towards the ceiling. The pantries provide plenty of much-needed storage.
The closet to the left of the refrigerator has a return vent inside it. Just Counter’s talented installer Ben Hanson replaced the closet door with two Shaker style doors. He joined them together to open as a single door. The pantry to the right of the refrigerator has four adjustable rollout trays. We replaced the café curtain and rod with a refrigerator wall cabinet. Ben installed all the cabinets and trim mouldings. He has a strong work ethic, and a great eye for details.
Unlike fine wine, a kitchen does not get better over time. Our client had an old, worn-out kitchen that had served its purpose well, but was begging for a facelift. After months of talking to friends, reading blogs, and browsing pictures, they were ready for a full-scale kitchen remodel. The results? A beautiful, brand-new kitchen with twice as much storage space as before.
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