This Old House Magazine: Cabinet Decision

Theresa hoped to include an island for food prep and serving in the new layout, but even when the kitchen was widened to the max, finding enough space for one was a challenge. Bensley and cabinetmaker Chuck Bischoff, of Whippany, New Jersey, devised a clever cabinetry solution that would allow for the island Theresa desired: By building in a hutch on the wall abutting the fridge and designing it 6 inches shallower than the usual cabinet depth of 24 inches, they would gain the needed space for passage around a central work zone. Now Theresa has her 3-by-6-foot island, and a handsome 8-foot-wide cupboard that looks like the antique storage pieces it is meant to emulate.

The hutch, or huche, as it was called in France, originated in medieval Europe as a sideboard, or buffet. In colonial American houses, where the kitchen, or "keeping room," functioned as both the cooking and social center of the home, this rugged, freestanding cupboard, made of a readily available wood such as pine, served a variety of purposes. Like Welsh dressers and other European prototypes, it often featured open shelving on top and a two-door cabinet (and, occasionally, drawers) beneath, so that it could showcase and store a household’s dinnerware and offer a convenient surface for serving food. With today’s trend toward having kitchen cabinetry assume the look of furniture, the hutch is making a comeback—as a built-in. Constructed by a cabinetmaker and attached to the wall, such a piece is more stable than its freestanding counterparts, which allows it to be built taller; it also tends to echo or match other cabinetry elements and thus lend a sense of unity to a room, while adding variety and visual interest. Built-ins range from space-saving two -door models that closely resemble their forebears to complex wall systems like the poplar-and-maple cabinet that’s Theresa Cook’s "pride and joy."
Bischoff designed Theresa’s hutch in three bays, each backed with beadboard. The center section, with closed cabinets above and below a mahogany-stained counter, measures 42 inches wide by 87 high by 18 deep. Twin side bays, fitted with leaded-glass doors on top, are each 27 inches wide by 80 high and 12 inches deep. "The depth difference and the glass help offset the hutch’s massive size and prevent it from overpowering the room," says Theresa.

The hutch was built as six independent units—three upper and three lower—in Bischoff’s cabinet shop. One-inch-thick frame-and-panel doors, some accented with thin quarter-round moldings and others with leaded glass, and drawer boxes built to principles of dovetail construction follow time-honored patterns. The interiors of the cabinets are equally well thought out. Shelves grooved down their length near the back edge stabilize plates stood on end for display. To give the hutch an antique look, Bischoff applied two coats of green milk paint (see "Milk Made," below), a finish popular in colonial times, then added depth to it with a black glaze on top. The effect echoes the handcrafted look of the piece itself. "With milk paint, you can see the brush strokes," says architect Bensley.

Once the units were ready, Bischoff drove them to the site in his van, then screwed them to wall studs and to each other. Leveling and stabilizing the assembly required 14 adjustable feet on the base pieces; Bischoff hid these with baseboard molding and furniture-like feet, instead of with standard toekicks.

The fine woodwork not only allows for plenty of storage and easy passage around the island but also totally transformed the look and feel of Theresa’s culinary space. Now, she says, when party guests wander into the kitchen to see what’s going on, "I don’t mind anymore, because the room looks so good."

—Dan DiClerico