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The renovation updated a pair of staircases—one to the basement, one to the upper level—from their steep, unsafe angle to one that is now up to code. In the dining room, the pendant by Hans-Agne Jakobsson is from Karoline’s family cabin in Germany.

Homeowner Isaac Hase installed custom cabinetry from Wisconsin cabinetmaker Woodcraft Specialties.

The breakfast area sits directly beneath the clerestory window pop-up, or scoop.

One renovation request, homeowner Isaac Hase says, “was having a place to drop your shoes.” At the mudroom end of a run of kitchen cabinets, you’ll find another feature the couple asked for. “We wanted to have a dedicated, visible place for our little stash of cookbooks,” Karoline says.

Keep founders Austin and Kotono Watanabe revived a compact home in Minneapolis with a dazzling kitchen, an all-electric upgrade, and a clerestory “scoop.”

In their query letter, Ben and Sarah were clear that they wanted a home that could accommodate all of life’s messes. “We don't want a white display kitchen that only looks good when it's clean and not in use. We want our kitchen to be able to work hard. We love to cook and when we do, there are usually lots of things on the go and a mess being made.”

Next to a wood-burning fireplace is a setup for the family’s record player and albums. Instead of a standard television set, they use a projector.