A Dramatic Kitchen Design Updates a Historic Home With Fresh, Contemporary Details

An Extensive Kitchen Overhaul Offers Room to Work and a 21st Century Redo

After 24 years in the same home, an HGTV editor and her film producer husband decided it might be time to do an overhaul of the cute, but cramped, retro kitchen in their 1930 Atlanta bungalow. As soon as they mentioned the project, friends bemoaned the loss of the "vintage" kitchen. But truth be told, all the old school elements in the kitchen (except the grubby wood cabinets) were installed when the couple moved in. And tastes change. The cramped, long, narrow kitchen lacked modern-day essentials like a dishwasher, a garbage disposal and a vented range hood. A narrow hallway and swinging door also closed the space off from the dining room and the rest of the house, making entertaining challenging.

Enter Atlanta-based designer Gabriela Eisenheart of Silo Studios and her team of skilled contractors including Alex Bodgan and custom woodworker Elmer Van Der Klei to save the day.

The CB2 Perch Round Mirror With Shelf and a vintage circus poster play into the vintage feel of the room, which Gabriela was able to maintain in keeping with the rest of the home.

Clean Lines and an On-Trend Color

Farrow & Ball Green Smoke paint paired with brass accents and a white Corian countertop gives this kitchen a timeless-meets-trending look.

Before: A Kitchen Leaning Hard Into Retro

An antique green sink found at an Atlanta salvage lot was the centerpiece of this pre-makeover kitchen. Interior designer Gabriela Eisenheart kept that showpiece sink and integrated it into the new kitchen plan. Her new design for the space reduced the clutter, enhanced the flow and maintained the couple's interest in a classic, timeless-feeling space.

A Bespoke Kitchen Island Offers Work and Dining Space

Inspired by the beautiful bespoke kitchens created by the British kitchen company deVOL, this kitchen features a custom island with turned legs, four generous drawers and a lower open shelf for even more storage. The simple wooden counter-height chairs for the island are from West Elm.

Before: A Vintage Diner-Style Table Was Used As a Workspace and for Dining

In order to make room for the kitchen island, this wall with the refrigerator and door leading to a small office was demolished and moved 3 feet back, gaining valuable space in the main kitchen. The former office was converted to a walk-in pantry and the wooden door replaced with one featuring a textured glass window to allow more light to flow into the kitchen.

Practical Updates Make This Kitchen More Functional

The renovation of this kitchen, which had not been updated in over 20 years, was not just about an aesthetic upgrade, replacing old wooden cabinets and a not-great floor plan. Silo Studios also added important elements like a dishwasher, wine fridge, garbage disposal, vented range hood and a five-burner Bertazzoni range, improvements that have made the kitchen safer, cleaner and work better. The copper Mauviel pots and pans from Williams Sonoma suit the old world vibe of this kitchen.

The Necessity of a Vented Range Hood

As more studies come to light showing the dangers of indoor air pollution from unvented gas and electric stoves, it has become imperative to use a vented (and not just recirculating) range hood when you cook. Vented range hoods remove grease, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and other harmful pollutants from the air. The hammered copper measuring cups are from Magnolia.

A New Take on Subway Tile

Interior designer Gabriela Eisenheart updated classic subway tile with a more contemporary, textured zellige tile that adds dimension. A brass task light above the sink helps create a brighter kitchen and complements other brass features like the bridge faucet and globe lights. A Facette vase by Athena Calderone for Crate + Barrel and a jute and wool rug from Armadillo rugs also bring a more contemporary touch to the kitchen.

Custom Cabinets

Because this remodel was done in a 1930-era kitchen with all of its irregularities, uneven floors and ceilings and other quirks, custom-made cabinets made the most sense. To take advantage of the room's high ceiling and to maximize storage space, the cabinets extend to the ceiling.

A Minimalist Coffee Station

A Stagg electric kettle, Breville espresso machine and microwave are hidden behind retractable doors to conceal this coffee station when not in use.

An Ad Hoc Pantry Carved From a Former Office Space

Taking advantage of some preexisting furniture, including a vintage Hoosier cabinet, this pantry is separated from the main kitchen with a door featuring a textured glass window. The pantry is also the perfect place to hide pet bowls for the family's three dogs.

A Mix of Contemporary and Vintage Artwork in the Pantry

While hanging art in the pantry might seem like an unconventional move, in a relatively small bungalow with limited wall space, sometimes unexpected sites for gallery walls are a necessity.

The Way Back

A vintage dinette set and kitchen cupboard, classic movie poster, linoleum flooring and a rotary dial phone keep things pretty old school in the home's pre-renovation kitchen.

A Cohesive Color Palette Helps Old Meet New in This Kitchen Remodel

Existing furniture and decor from the homeowners' collection were incorporated into this kitchen renovation with interior designer Gabriela Eisenheart offering guidance about what elements would vibe with the new design. The blueprint of Oscar Madison and Felix Unger's home from the TV show The Odd Couple was created by Chattanooga-based artist Mark Bennett. The Devon rechargeable LED lamp is available at Ballard Designs.

Before: A Narrow Hall Between Dining Room and Kitchen Inhibits Flow

A swinging wooden door between the dining room and kitchen means what happens in the kitchen stays in the kitchen. But removing that door and opening up the space to the kitchen makes entertaining easier and gives the entire home a more updated, open feel.

Any Renovation Should Make a Space Work Harder

In order to create better flow between the dining room and the kitchen, interior designer Gabriela Eisenheart suggested removing a small, cramped pantry in order to widen the doorway. That decision makes the entire social space of the home feel more open without creating an entirely open kitchen that would feel out of character with this 1930 home. This wider door frame also makes for better entertaining and allows for this buffet to be used for serving food when needed.

Better Flow Pays Off In Many Ways

This wider door frame makes guests' movement between the dining room and kitchen easier. In addition to creating a new floorplan and making all the design decisions for this kitchen renovation, Gabriela Eisenheart also made suggestions about how to use the homeowners' existing furniture and art in the new space.

Some Extraordinary Wallpaper Brings Drama to This Guest Bathroom

In addition to the kitchen renovation, Silo Studios took a guest bathroom down to the studs, replacing a difficult to access clawfoot tub and a dark, outdated bathroom with a space that feels bright and open without losing sight of the home's historic character. The Turkish towels are from Amazon and the pastoral mural wallpaper is from the stylish British wallpaper company House of Hackney.

A Light-Filled New Guest Bathroom

A large window with a privacy film lets light flood into this bathroom and through the frameless shower. Green, oversized penny tile blends with the dramatic green House of Hackney Plantasia wallpaper and is accented with brushed brass touches throughout, including a grab bar in the shower for extra safety.

Before: A Dangerously Cramped Clawfoot Tub

In the right bathroom, a clawfoot tub can be stunning, but this one was compact and in such a small bathroom proved challenging for older guests to get in and out of. The vintage sink, clawfoot tub and medicine cabinet were donated to the Atlanta nonprofit salvage company Lifecycle Building Center. LBC removed those items — saving on demolition costs — and allowed the fixtures to be used again rather than end up in a landfill. Before you begin a renovation project, find out if your city or town has a salvage yard or upcycling center like Habitat for Humanity's ReStore where you can donate unwanted items.

Before: A Cramped, Dark Bathroom

With its weathered porcelain sink, built-in medicine cabinet, clawfoot tub and tile that had seen better days, this guest bathroom needed an overhaul to make it a more pleasant experience for guests.

Brushed Brass Hardware and a Black Metal Mirror Meld Vintage and Contemporary in This Bathroom

Mixed metals lend a more eclectic, vintage look to this small guest bathroom and lend an air of boutique hotel luxury.

A Mini-Redo in the Powder Room Off the Kitchen

The matte black floor tile chosen for the kitchen needed to flow into the adjacent guest bathroom. So what started with simply replacing that floor tile set up a minor overhaul to swap out a toilet, vanity and mirror. Part of that mini-renovation was adding wallpaper from the female-owned wallpaper company Fine and Dandy, whose charmingly macabre Skeletoile wallpaper becomes a conversation piece for visitors. Also added: a new vanity from Wayfair, a CB2 mirror and a fresh coat of paint on the wainscotting.

Family Portraits Combine With Quirky Wallpaper in This Powder Room

A Gallery Wall System from Ballard Designs allows vintage family photos to be hung and occasionally swapped out in this powder room next to the renovated kitchen. A cafe curtain allows the light in while maintaining privacy.

Tour a Game-Changing Kitchen Remodel

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