The kitchen will be a highlight of the show house that is being completely redecorated by area designers and artists. Proceeds from $15 per person tours will benefit Lancaster General Orthopedic Center.
In the corner of the kitchen, the oven and microwave still had to be installed Tuesday. The four columns on the island that would support the pot rack were still to come. The backsplashes, the closet doors, the furniture, the entertainment system, the artwork... the list seemed endless.
Only Linda Carol Webb and Robert W. Hogg, owners and interior designers at Classic Quarters, appeared unflustered by the time frame. Responsible for overseeing the kitchen's redesign with Thomas Hills Cook, they were confident that the kitchen would come together on time - a master showpiece of the latest in kitchen technology, design and furnishings.
The kitchen's redesign and the steps to make it happen are clearly delineated in their minds. Their plan began unfolding in January by tearing apart the old kitchen that Hogg described as "very tight and very dark."
The kitchen was functional, Webb said, but if someone were moving into the house they would probably say, "'OK, I can live with it, but I'm not sure how long,'" said Webb.
Instead the designers envisioned a bright, light, open room that was furnished with Jenn-Air appliances, practically situated to service a large household.
For starters, the dark cabinets installed in 1963 and retrofitted over the years to accommodate an addition had to go. A peninsula and its accordion partition that divided a sitting room from the kitchen were discarded to create a more open, lighter room. Several layers of suspended ceiling were dismantled.
After a public open house on March 14 when people could view the house prior to the improvements, the intense work began.
The ceiling was raised slightly and covered with Wood Haven, interlocking, laminate ceiling planks that look like wood. Armstrong donated the ceiling supplies and its newest flooring - Porto Alegre, laminate 16- by 47-inch floor tiles. The tiles' verde color and texture make the floor look like slate.
Webb chose a yellow-gold paint because it's a personal favorite, she admitted, but it fit with her desire to keep the room bright. Without even trying to coordinate colors, other designers used gold tones in the rooms they decorated too.
Brightness of the kitchen was assured with plenty of recessed lighting in the kitchen ceiling. "At night it's just as sunny as it is during the day," Hogg said.
Owner Dino DiPaolo said he likes the warmth of the lights, but the plentitude of them reminded some of his friends of a runway. "They joke that you can land a plane in the kitchen area," he said.
Webb and Hogg made sure that none of the lighting will be obstructed by the pot rack that will hover above the island, just below the ceiling. The pot rack will be supported by columns reminiscent of the stately ones in front of the house.
"We wanted to carry something of the rest of the house in the kitchen," Webb said.
The maple cabinets in the kitchen, custom designed by Plain and Fancy Custom Cabinetry, were painted a linen color, complementing the other light features of the room. The designers chose a beaded shaker-style cabinet, which, Hogg said, gives the kitchen "a today, neo-classical look."
Unique to this kitchen is a butler's pantry that changes the rectangular kitchen into an L-shape. It is attached to the main kitchen through two open doorways.
In the walk-through pantry, the designers placed a peninsula, topped with blue-gray Zodiaq Quartz, the same material that covers the rest of the kitchen counters. Made by DuPont, Zodiaq Quartz has all the advantages of popular granite without the hassle of sealing it regularly.
"You'll never have any bacteria get into the countertop at all," said installer Jeremy Nelson of Henry Ross and Sons.
Above the peninsula is a new, lighted see-through cupboard that holds decorative glass and party ware. A second dishwasher in the island makes the butler's area an ideal entertainment center, Hogg said.
DiPaolo's youngest daughter is graduating this spring, so he already has plans to use it, he said.
The designers expect that the technological component will be quickly used too. Matthew Early of Residential Media Systems will install a computer system in the butler's area and a flat screen TV in the sitting area of the kitchen.
To finish off the room, Lancaster artists Steven and Kim Cherry will add reproductions of Windsor furniture, Jerry Hershey and Lancaster Galleries will supply artwork and ceramic artist Kevin Lehman will add pottery. Housewares, donated by Boscov's, will make the kitchen look like home. Weinstein Supply furnished sinks and faucets and Stiegel Construction assisted with construction.
"We tried to combine the efforts of a lot of people showing what you can do," said Webb. She hopes people will come to see and touch and consider what they can do in their own kitchens."
Details
The 2004 Decorator Show House will be open for public viewing, May 1 through May 23, on Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. It is closed Monday. Cost is $15 per person, $12 per person for a group of 10 or more. For more information, log onto www.LancasterGeneral.org/sh...
or call 544-4661.