- Denver Highlands Rehab -

That time I had to fix a developer-built home…again. 

This 1880’s bungalow in Denver, CO had been modernized by a developer with a completely new interior renovation and addition. While the renovation brought a breath of fresh air and additional square footage to suit modern living, it lacked warmth and there were glaring layout mistakes that didn’t quite hit the mark. 

I had been working with these clients off and on for about 3 years in what started as multiple Designer-for-a-Day services where we tackled their primary bedroom, dining and living rooms. But when it came time to renovate their kitchen, they said, “ Kate, we want you to do this and we want the full experience.” 

Before

Our favorite feature is the spice storage hidden behind the backsplash made of quartzite. “Opening it is our favorite party trick”, says our client. 


Before

Before

Sadly, the developer used cheap stock finishes that were dated before they were ever installed. At first glance the kitchen seemed “fine”, but upon further investigation, there were many problems with the layout including cabinets and refrigerator doors that couldn’t fully open.

The kitchen had a whopping 7 feet of clearance between the island and perimeter cabinets. “We have dance parties in here” my clients joked. 

We lovingly salvaged the cabinets for donation and sold off the appliances which were all in good condition to go to a new home. 

We reconfigured the kitchen layout by demoing a cramped walk-in storage closet to make space for the new column refrigerator/freezer with a broom closet. We replaced the oversized pantry door with smaller French doors sourced from an architectural salvage yard.

In the rest of the open-concept main floor, we made a few small but impactful design moves to add warmth and character.

We replaced the very loud porcelain tile on the fireplace surround with a softer stone tile.

The addition of white oak beams provide visual interest to the ceiling.

We replaced and added lighting for a soft glow, and designed custom drapery, curated art, and wallcovering to soften the space.

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Berkeley Charmer