When Rob and Jamie Kinelski picked up the keys to this 1954 home in Burbank, California, they loved everything about it—except the dated and cramped kitchen and bathrooms. “The house has this warm feeling—it immediately felt like the ideal place to raise our family, but the bathrooms and the kitchen were lacking storage and counter space,” Jamie says. “Mornings with small children and dogs are chaotic—we needed a functional kitchen and bathrooms to help us get a head start each day.”

Before: Kitchen

Rob and Jamie both work in the music industry—Jamie is a music publishing executive, and Rob is a Grammy Award–winning mix engineer who’s worked with Billie Eilish—and their toddler-age daughters Ruby and Pepper, and their dogs Penny and Chop Chop, were patient while their beloved midcentury home was readied for move-in. They had the interior painted, the floors stripped and stained, the den paneling replaced with drywall, a new HVAC system installed, and recessed lighting wired.

After: Kitchen

However, when it came to more time-intensive projects, like remodeling the kitchen and the bathrooms, the family decided they’d have to wait. “We just didn't have the time before we needed to move in,” Rob says.

According to Rob and Jamie, the primary bathroom was in desperate need of an overhaul. “Half of the space was taken up by a giant Jacuzzi tub that didn’t work, and there was an oddly shaped standalone shower,” Jamie says. “The color scheme was tan-on-tan, with more tan, and there was no storage at all.”

Before: Breakfast Nook

The kitchen, which includes a breakfast nook and a laundry area, was small, narrow, disconnected from the rest of the home, and dripping with beige tones. The kids’ bathroom featured only gray hues and felt drab and confined, with limited storage for bath toys and necessities.

After: Breakfast Nook

Tired of the dysfunctional kitchen and bathrooms, Rob and Jamie called on Karen Harautuneian of Hub of the House Studio to reimagine the rooms as practical and lively spaces for family life. “Karen was referred to us by a friend, who worked with her in the past,” Jamie says. “She and her team design with so much intention and functionality in mind—they think about what knife will go in what drawer, and where the blender or toaster should go.”

Before: Laundry Room

Inspired by the home’s midcentury architecture and the California landscape, Harautuneian whipped up new floor plans, more storage, and a fresh aesthetic for the kitchen and the bathrooms. “I relocated everything and generously used both warm and cool colors,” the designer says. “These clients were not afraid of bold color and pattern.”

After: Laundry Room

Harautuneian outfitted the kitchen with new appliances, additional counter space, deep-green cabinetry, custom white concrete counters, and white Marmoreal flooring with spots of green, orange, and gold.

“Traditional terrazzo floors were not dynamic enough for us,” Harautuneian says. “Marmoreal is a modern interpretation of terrazzo with large segments of warm and cool toned Italian marble set into a black or white field. Rob favors warm tones, and Jamie favors cool tones, so the Marmoreal is a great balance of both.”

The designer chose white zellige tile for the kitchen backsplash. “It’s the same value as the custom white concrete counters, but has a different texture and sheen,” she says. “The counters are poured concrete with a smooth, but slightly irregular or organic feel, and the zellige tile adds shine, sparkle, and subtle variation to the palette.”

Before: Primary Bathroom

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She wrapped the walls of the breakfast nook with gold-and-white geometric-patterned vinyl wallpaper by Pierre Frey and a pale green shade of Farrow & Ball paint, and arranged a custom table with a rift-cut white oak top and an Eero Saarinen–inspired base, a Louis Poulsen pendant, and a corner bench upholstered with green Kravet vinyl. “The vinyl wallpaper and seat upholstery add a kid-friendly layer to the space,” Harautuneian says.

Harautuneian’s reconfiguration of the kitchen allowed for the addition of upper cabinetry and a counter in the laundry area. “It’s so nice to have, especially with two kids who are constantly staining clothes,” Jamie says.

After: Primary Bathroom

Harautuneian used the same Marmoreal flooring in the primary bathroom, where she installed a walk-in shower and a built-in teak bench that serves as seating for the kids while Rob and Jamie get ready for work in the mornings. “It’s also incredible to be able to sit there and apply lotions and oils after a shower,” Jamie says.

Harautuneian hung large-scale geometric paper with earth tones on a wall in the toilet room and dressed the shower walls with handmade marigold Zellige tile. “The bathroom is long and narrow, so we needed strong elements to stop the eye at each end,” the designer says. “The space also has very little natural light, so the tile’s warm and translucent marigold glaze adds sunny sparkle and shine to the room.”

Before: Kids’ Bathroom

In the kids’ bathroom, Harautuneian placed more Marmoreal flooring—but with a black background and splashes of green, orange, and gold—a custom vanity with plenty of storage, and a concealed laundry bin. She hung wood hooks for towels and robes and designed open niches and cubbies for the walls. “It's incredible to know where things are,” Jamie says. “We’ve so much space for everything we could possibly ever want or need.”

After: Kids’ Bathroom

In Harautuneian’s opinion, the best aspect of the remodel is the way it has improved Rob and Jamie’s lives. “The new kitchen feels like the center of the house, and we love our breakfast nook—we eat there almost every morning as a family,” Jamie says. “And before, we had almost no storage. When you’ve kids and pets, you accumulate a lot of stuff. Now, everything has its place, which is amazing and a real first for us as a family.”

Related Reading:

10 Stunning “Before & After” Midcentury Renovations in Los Angeles

Material Guide: Everything You Need to Know About Terrazzo

Project Credits:

Design: Karen Harautuneian, Hub of the House Studio / @hubofthehousestudio

Construction: Jack Levine, Trans-National Builders

“After” Photography: Meghan Beierle-O'Brien / @meghanbob

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