Boston Home
One Chestnut Hill interior designer's solution is to add three feet to create a contemporary gutter.
Architect: Design Crossover Architecture and Interiors. Builder: Opus Master Builders. Interior Designer: Liz Caan & Co. / Photography: Eric Roth
problem
Liz Kahn had lived with her family in their 1920s Chestnut Hill home for 17 years. They loved their compact Georgian Colonial-style home, but the kitchen was in need of a makeover. “The kitchen was really small, there was no room for an island, and it didn't fit in with the rest of the house,” says Kahn, an interior designer. With small windows, the kitchen was dark and had no connection to the outdoors.
solution
By extending the kitchen three feet into the backyard, the room was made large enough to add an island, and the extension included a wall of windows and two doors that opened to the garden. “It connects the room to the outside much better,” says Kahn. In addition to expanding the space, the kitchen “had to feel appropriate for a 1920s home,” she adds. To that end, the cabinetry was made by deVOL, a British-born brand with a classic aesthetic. The heated floors were made from reclaimed bluestone with a patina that matches the home's lineage, and the walnut-topped island, painted in Farrow & Ball's “Inchara Blue,” has a door with a brass latch to store the dishes. “I no longer have china that I save for special occasions. Everything I have can be used every day,” Kahn says, which touches on a larger point. “Before I went back into the kitchen, I pared it down quite a bit. Once you know what's important to you, you can do it. Sometimes you don't need as much space as you think you do.”
It first appeared in the June 2024 print edition under the headline “The Kitchen Rules.”
