SubscribeSign In
All Photos/kitchen/appliances : range/sinks : drop in/backsplashes : concrete

Kitchen Range Drop In Sinks Concrete Backsplashes Design Photos and Ideas

The focus of the renovation was the kitchen, where the textures of tiles and brickwork play backdrop to considered, bespoke carpentry.
The entry of the home leads to a fully open-plan living/dining/kitchen space with full width sliding doors that open to the garden. This part of the home was completed by the owners prior to adding the extension.
Whereas others might look at a board-formed cement wall in a basement and see, well, a concrete wall, Jess and Jonathan Taylor, the design duo behind the L.A.-based firm Taylor + Taylor, were inspired. The couple had purchased a virtually untouched 1952 house in east L.A. and that concrete wall became the backdrop for a new guest kitchen in the basement. "It was really the starting point of the whole design," says Jess Taylor. "As designers, our goal is to always try to incorporate the existing surroundings whenever possible, utilize them in practical ways, and be inspired by them."
Open shelves balance out the hard-working wall of cabinetry opposite. "In a space like this, every fraction of an inch matters," says Jonathan, and making room for display and a sense of openness is also important.
The designers developed the preliminary schematic for the tile, then refined the layout on site. "We wanted to bring in six or seven different tiles that were all geometric and make it such that there's no pattern, there's no repeat. Everything is unique," says Jonathan. "Once we had the tiles, [we] laid things out and confirmed and made some adjustments. Everything is just a little different when you get it in real space."
The couple installed a window over the sink to brighten up the dark basement space. The counters are stainless steel, so as to cede nicely into the concrete wall rather than compete with it.
"The wonderful thing about this line of tile from Fireclay is that there's no order minimums," says Jonathan. Considering that the designers were dealing with such a small footprint, this meant that they didn’t have to order more tile than what was needed.
"We started to piece together this idea of a floor that's all just geometry and chaos, but that still honors the monochromatic elements of the space and highlights the bluish-gray-green tones of the original cement walls," says Jonathan.
Inserting a mix of texture, raw materials and functional elements, SHED Architecture & Design was able to artfully marry the new additions with the original industrial construction in Capitol Hill Loft by using a palette of concrete brick, stainless steel plate, blackened steel, and mirror.
Inside, concrete is used as both a finish and a building material for integrated furnishings.
The kitchen is now part of the large open living space. The 1960s Hygena formica cabinets in Polyester Pumpkin were a vintage find. The white pendants are from IKEA and the blue is from Habitat.
The warm industrial kitchen celebrates views of Rocky Mountain National Park beyond. A see-through, steel fireplace becomes a glowing beacon that warms the kitchen and living room at the heart of the home.
Level 3 kitchen