I am a
designer by trade and my primary focus is kitchen design. So, it might not
come as a surprise to most people that when it comes to spending time looking
over design magazines, I devour kitchen photos,
traditional kitchen photos to be exact.
The other day I came across this beautiful
article in Architectural Digest (probably don’t need to use the word ‘beautiful’
if Architectural Digest is also in the sentence, right?) that grabbed me and wouldn't let go until I promised to would share it with you. So here you go... oh, and you're
welcome!
New trends come and go every day,
but investing in a traditional kitchen that unites timeless decorative details
and easy functionality is a no-brainer. The elegant aesthetic may look simple
but every element is carefully considered.
In a traditional kitchen, the
cabinets feature stylish glass fronts or touches of ornate molding, the pendant
lights are architectural statements, and the countertop is crafted of the most
luxurious stone or dark-stained wood. Together, these details create a warm,
cozy hub of the home that also happens to be sophisticated and streamlined.
Here are some of the photos that
Architectural Digest selected as top contenders for stunning traditional
kitchens.
Architect Robert A.M. Stern helped reconfigure his son's
19th-century Greenwich Village residence as an
exquisite family home. The kitchen features a Wolf cooktop and hood.
After replacing the linoleum
flooring and metal cabinets in the kitchen of an apartment in Manhattan's Pierre Hotel, designer Alexa
Hampton installed a cooktop and ovens by Gaggenau, Waterworks sink fittings,
and a Sub-Zero wine refrigerator.
At a Hamptons getaway decorated by
Matthew Patrick Smyth, black-granite counters and backsplashes offset white
cabinetry in the kitchen, which features a bespoke hood; the range is by Wolf,
and the dishwashers are by Miele.
Cox London light fixtures hang in
the kitchen and the breakfast area of a grand London townhouse transformed by
designer Hubert Zandberg.
In architect Jim Joseph and
musical theater composer Scott Frankel's historic Livingston, New York, house, the kitchen’s
glazed cabinets were fashioned from antique windows. Above the island hangs a
copper lantern, and the drop-leaf breakfast table is Federal.
In business executive David
Jimenez's Kansas City apartment, the kitchen is
outfitted with custom RH cabinetry; the lantern is by Williams-Sonoma Home, and
the sink fittings are by Grohe.
Designer Douglas Durkin
transformed this formal Bay Area house with soft colors
and subtle textures. An Ann-Morris light fixture presides over the island in
the kitchen, which also includes a Waterworks-tile backsplash, a Wolf range,
and Erika Brunson chairs upholstered in a Rose Tarlow Melrose House fabric.
The kitchen in late fashion
designer Vince Camuto’s Hamptons estate, painted in a
Benjamin Moore white, features custom-made holophane lights by Ann-Morris
Antiques and cabinetry by Eppley Building & Design; the oak bench and
ebonized bobbin chair are antique.
The cabinetry in designer Timothy
Corrigan’s Los Angeles kitchen is awash in Farrow
& Ball paint in shades of white and green; a set of antique Mexican
Talavera plates is arrayed against the backsplash.
The kitchen of a Philadelphia home by designer Thomas
Jayne features mahogany cabinetry inspired by 18th-century models and is
outfitted with Miele ovens, a Viking cooktop, and Rohl sinks with Dornbracht
fittings.
In the Houston home of decorator J.
Randall Powers, Knoll's Brno chairs surround an antique table in the kitchen,
where Powers paneled the ceiling and installed cabinets whose rich gray-green
hue gives the space a sense of intimacy; neolithic Chinese pottery is displayed
at the top of the upper cabinets, and the hood, ovens, and range are by
Thermador.
At the kitchen island of the
Regency-style Atlanta house of designer
Suzanne Kasler, the barstools are ones Kasler designed for Hickory Chair; the
cabinetry is by Downsview Kitchens, the sink fittings are by Michael S. Smith
for Kallista, and the tile is by Waterworks.
Architect Allan Greenberg devised
the kitchen cabinetry of this Houston home decorated by Elissa Cullman; the
light fixtures are by Ann-Morris Antiques, the range is from EuroChef USA, the
wall oven is by TurboChef, and the sink fittings are by Waterworks.
A bespoke Ann-Morris pot-rack
light fixture is suspended in the kitchen of a Hamptons retreat decorated by
Carrier and Co.; the backsplash tiles are by Country Floors, and the double
range is by BlueStar.
OK, I
think you are going to have to give me a minute here to catch my breath.
Which one would you choose as your favorite? I have a couple but my Number One would have to be Carrier and Company. Absolute perfection, in my opinion.
