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Collection by Diana Budds

Inviting Kitchen Built on a Tight Budget

In Austin, Texas, architect Sean Guess forges an inventive industrial kitchen for a cost-conscious couple.

Architect Sean Guess makes a sport of devising novel ways to use inexpensive materials. “It’s a creative opportunity, without a doubt,” he says. When Austin residents Kristin and Lowell Galindo approached Guess to create a low-cost and livable house with a raw aesthetic, their desires dovetailed with his proclivity for rough-hewn materials. “The project was about keeping a simple, modern approach,” Kristin says. In the kitchen, Guess designed a poured-in-place concrete island and concrete countertops, and he created bookcases and a surround for the refrigerator from unfinished pine. To form a strong connection to the patio, Guess extended the exposed floor joists beyond the Western Window Systems sliding glass doors, creating a cantilevered porch roof. “One of my main tenets from a design standpoint is rhythm,” he says. “I like being in the kitchen and sensing the rhythm and extension to the outside.”

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Guess used inexpensive graded pine plywood so that he would get heavy grain patterns on the surfaces. One of the main goals in the kitchen was simplicity. To that end, he opted for a poured-in-place concrete island. "We didn’t know if we could afford to do that, but we found a great subcontractor [Nate Francis of Countertop Creations] here who had never really built anything like that," Guess says. "Because he was interested in giving it a shot and adding it to his portfolio, he didn’t charge an exorbitant amount of money because it was sort of an experiment for him as well." The kitchen features a GE Profile refrigerator and KitchenAid range, microwave, and dishwasher. The sink and faucet are from Kohler. The project's builder was Joe Doherty with Custom Homecrafters of Austin.
Guess used inexpensive graded pine plywood so that he would get heavy grain patterns on the surfaces. One of the main goals in the kitchen was simplicity. To that end, he opted for a poured-in-place concrete island. "We didn’t know if we could afford to do that, but we found a great subcontractor [Nate Francis of Countertop Creations] here who had never really built anything like that," Guess says. "Because he was interested in giving it a shot and adding it to his portfolio, he didn’t charge an exorbitant amount of money because it was sort of an experiment for him as well." The kitchen features a GE Profile refrigerator and KitchenAid range, microwave, and dishwasher. The sink and faucet are from Kohler. The project's builder was Joe Doherty with Custom Homecrafters of Austin.
"One thing that is highlighted by this project—and what I’m most interested in—is creating great architecture for limited means," Guess says. "When someone comes to me with constraints, I always feel like there's a better outcome in the end." The pouf, side table, and bookshelf are from CB2.
"One thing that is highlighted by this project—and what I’m most interested in—is creating great architecture for limited means," Guess says. "When someone comes to me with constraints, I always feel like there's a better outcome in the end." The pouf, side table, and bookshelf are from CB2.
In the playroom, built-in casework offers storage for toys. The yellow table was custom-built by the Kristin's father. The clear pendant lights are by Muuto. The "toy zone" is adjacent to the kitchen so that Lowell and Kristin can prepare meals and keep an eye on their yound children, aged three and five. "The residents wanted as little freestanding furniture as possible," Guess says. 'We did a lot of benches, which are made out of plywood so they're fairly inexpensive."
In the playroom, built-in casework offers storage for toys. The yellow table was custom-built by the Kristin's father. The clear pendant lights are by Muuto. The "toy zone" is adjacent to the kitchen so that Lowell and Kristin can prepare meals and keep an eye on their yound children, aged three and five. "The residents wanted as little freestanding furniture as possible," Guess says. 'We did a lot of benches, which are made out of plywood so they're fairly inexpensive."