Here’s a trend-defiant budget kitchen with a white floor, walls, ceiling and appliances
Examine this kitchen in a New York firehouse (converted to a private residence) closely and a budget remodeling job story takes shape. Overall, it looks magazine-worthy – which it is – but pick it apart and you see ways to get a maximum look for minimum cost.
The key is simplicity: it’s a white kitchen with a white floor, walls and ceiling. Windows are large and high (the house has 15-foot ceilings) and basic blinds blend in.
Telltale signs of the modest budget include the slab-front cabinets, which are likely melamine from a big-box store, and a laminate backsplash. The 2 x 2” white tile for the floor has a good clean look without being anything fancy. Additionally, both the stove and small refrigerator are standard issue white vinyl – no prestige appliance brands here.
Perhaps more striking is the absence of many cabinets apart from the necessities on the single wall. Storage is consigned to four-tier industrial style wire shelving, an “island” is created from a length of butcher block installed on a wire cart with wheels, and the butcher block alongside the island is likely salvage. Note the microwave simply propped up on a shelf supported by exposed metal brackets. In the center of the room, a bar-height table lined up with a large window would serve well for breakfast or lunch. Its placement obviously has the view in mind.
So what makes this kitchen noteworthy? To me, it is welcoming and stylish in a low-key, trend-defiant way – my definition of original.
