Moving across the country undoubtedly comes with its fair share of surprises. For interior designer Leonora Mahle and her family, who struck out for Los Angeles from Brooklyn, the unexpected came in the form of where they ultimately landed. “We originally thought we would end up somewhere on the Eastside of L.A., like many Brooklyn transplants,” says Leonora, who founded Mahle Design.

$950 Demolition	$1,170 New Framing & Soffit	$900 Plumbing
$2,000 Electrical	$2,500 Tiling	$2,250 Floor Tiling
$3,400 Skim Coating & Painting	$17,136 Cabinets & Shelving	$8,724 Counters & Backsplash
$14,788 Appliances	$1,077 Sink, Faucet & Water Dispenser	$495 Stainless Steel Toe Kick
$354 Kitchen Knobs	$84 Kitchen Pulls	$979 Kitchen Ceiling Light
$446 Kitchen Fan
Grand Total: $57,253

But with a pool and proximity to the coast on the mind, Leonora, her husband, and their 11-year-old child ended up in the peaceful, leafy neighborhood of Woodland Hills. When the couple stumbled upon a midcentury home designed by architect Charles Du Bois—known from his A-frame homes in Palm Springs—they decided to take the plunge.

were taken by the neighborhood’s architecture. “The area we are in has many cool, midcentury homes and a harmonious feel,” she says." layout="" credit="Courtesy of Zillow" photoUserId=""/>

“The house had a functional layout and a nice indoor/outdoor flow,” says Leonora. Plus, the family loved the vaulted ceilings, exposed beams, and sense of openness. The kitchen, however, “had not been touched in a long time” and needed a facelift: The tile countertops were challenging to clean, and the cabinets were white laminate. The appliances were old, and the space generally felt dated and bland.

For the kitchen remodel, Leonora and her husband envisioned “something fun—and a little quirky—that felt open and airy.” The pool, which is visible from most rooms in the house, inspired the cabinets’ light blue hue and dark blue borders. They decided to keep the taller cabinets and fridge panels white to avoid overwhelming with the color.

On top of the basic palette of blue and white, Leonora brought in accents of natural oak and brushed aluminum in the cabinet hardware and toe kicks. The oak adds a sense of texture and warmth, while the aluminum harkens back to the windows and doors of the midcentury house—typical of the period. It’s also easy to clean, which is practical for a family with children and pets.

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Leonora opted for waterfall countertops. “While the waterfall look may not be considered ‘in’ at the moment, I feel that with pets and kids, the sides of the base kitchen cabinets can take a beating, and the slabs are easy to wipe clean,” she says.

She chose Qortstone countertops and simple, slab doors for the cabinets to save on cost since the kitchen was just one part of a larger home renovation, and the pair needed to reallocate funds for asbestos abatement, new sewer and gas lines, and a new roof with solar panels.

The existing layout was functional and effective, so minimal changes were made in that regard. Leonora enlarged the opening to the dining room and removed the soffit above the upper cabinets to make the space feel taller, and she swapped the traditional upper shelves by the window for open shelving that felt lighter and allowed more daylight in.

A new range hood replaced the existing traditional fan with fluorescent lighting that hung previously. Leonora also replaced an existing HVAC diffuser grille in the ceiling.

More Budget Breakdown:

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A $134K Laneway House in Toronto Puts a Couple’s DIY Skills to the Test

Project Credits:

Interior Designer: Leonora Mahle of Mahle Design

General Contractor: Jose A. Prada

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Budget Breakdown: An Interior Designer Livens Up Her Dated Kitchen for $57K