The kitchen in the Fromkes’ home felt a bit small and disconnected from the dining room. And, with two steps leading into the kitchen, the flow between the rooms just wasn’t right.
The client loves to cook and to accommodate his family’s growing needs, so he knew the kitchen needed a serious redesign.
“The client told me that he wanted his kitchen to curve around him like a command center,” John Nicholson, architect for Nicholson Builders, says. “He had met with a couple other companies prior to meeting me and they said it couldn’t be done. I told him that absolutely, I can do it.”
The traditional home in Upper Arlington has a full dimensional cut stone exterior. Instead of modifying the exterior, Nicholson raised the floor level of the entire dining area and eliminated one step into the kitchen.
“What that does is make it feel like you had done an addition because it creates so much more floor area of the kitchen,” Nicholson says. “It works very well architecturally with the existing half round window wall elevation in the dining area.”
To incorporate the original features of the house into the kitchen, cherry-colored wood details and doors were installed. Lighting was also added above the cabinets to give a warm feeling to the space.
“The ceiling details are very important. I used a double-coffered system. I actually personally did it,” Nicholson says. “We custom milled the lighting mounts and the drops for these fixtures that hang, which creates a really dynamic lighting solution and you cannot see how the power is fed to them.”
Ultimately, a ton of work was put into integrating the curvilinear form of the kitchen. It’s not only aesthetically pleasing, it’s also functional.
“Our client is a very serious cook and so there were a lot of very specific requirements for the appliances and cooking functions. Those requirements included a deep fryer and a television, which comes up out of the countertop,” he says. “The TV has granite on top, so it creates a seamless countertop appearance. The stone is incredible, it’s actually mined from the bottom of the sea off the coast of India.”
The project won a 2020 CotY award from the National Association of Remodelers Central Ohio for a residential kitchen over $150,000.
To Nicholson, however, the purpose of creating these new spaces isn’t for the awards — it’s to bring joy back into clients’ homes.
“There are so many positive things that come out of this kitchen,” Nicholson says. “A lot of it's having family over. It has increased the amount of time he and his wife spend together. It's amazing.”
NARI of Central Ohio offers a network of trusted remodeling companies and individuals. It recognizes outstanding projects completed throughout the year with CotY Awards to members. They are also featured in NARI Renovations Magazine.
Gillian Janicki is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
