What began with a broken oven needing replacement evolved into something much more exciting: a kitchen transformation, centered on a botanical breakfast nook.

Homeowners Heather Thompson, a literary specialist in Lake Oswego School District, and Sam Gaty, executive director at a nonprofit that supports documentary filmmakers, loved almost everything about their spacious, light-filled 1965 ranch house in Portland, Oregon’s West Haven neighborhood. But the one pain point was the kitchen, a cramped, dark space with a bad layout.

To make the space more functional, Portland’s Sill design recommended, first, eliminating an unnecessary second stairway to the basement, freeing up space for a wall of built-in cabinetry that provides storage for food and wine (including a series of custom bottle-size slots) and a concealed file cabinet for important documents, An adjacent family room, previously blocked from the kitchen by a row of hanging cabinets, was reclaimed for a breakfast nook, featuring a custom table and wraparound banquette seating that has turned the kitchen into the heart of the home: a place for their five-year old daughter, Marjorie, to draw and play, for the grownups to get paperwork done, and for the whole family (including Heather’s college-age daughter, Nora) to dine and hang out.

$18,000 Site Prep/Demolition	$25,000 Framing & Drywall	$10,000 Plumbing
$14,000 Electrical	$3,000 HVAC	$43,000 Cabinetry
$12,000 Countertops	$8,000 Tile	$11,000 Flooring
$17,000 Finish Carpentry	$10,000 Paint/Stain	$6,000 Custom Table & Nook Upholstery
$5,000 Appliances	$60,000 Contractor Fees
Grand Total: $242,000

To add energy and a sense of fun to the space, it features a lush new wallpaper (Reverie - Jungle by Little Greene) patterned with tropical plants and flowers, popping with saturated color. The designers would “bring us a few design options, including what they called a wild card,” Sam remembers. “I feel like we took their wild-card option almost every time.” That included a new circular window that looks out to the backyard and brings a burst of natural light into the breakfast nook.

Heather and Sam kept their rattan dining chairs (which were reupholstered), the dishwasher, and a ceiling fan—although that broken stove still had to go. Sill’s team sought out bargains, like the island’s marble countertop slab, discounted due to a defect that, thanks to their design’s relative slenderness, could be trimmed away. These choices enabled investments like the custom cabinetry and dining table.

Much of the kitchen was clad with soft, earthy tones and an emphasis on sustainable materials, including handcrafted ceramic tile backsplashes (a nod to Heather’s love of pottery), Silestone terracotta-colored countertops, made partially from recycled materials, and recycled rubber-cork flooring. “They were pretty comparable in price to other choices,” says Sill Design’s Greer Shively. “I think this project really shows that choosing sustainable materials can be achievable.” There’s a good lesson to learn, here: sustainable materials don’t have to add a premium.

Project Credits:

Interior Design: Sill Design Co.

Builder: Durham Construction

Structural Engineering: Bridge City Engineering

Cabinetry: Olson Brothers Woodworks

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