HOME IMPROVEMENTS
Designer
Redo
C
raig and Michelle Heryford had always admired the 1912
carriage house located three doors down from their former
west suburban home. “I’d had my eye on it for years,” Michelle
admits. “What’s interesting is that every person who’s lived in it was
madly in love with it and did something to renovate it.”
Three years after Michelle and her husband, Craig, bought the
carriage house in 2008, they embarked on a renovation of the main
living space, kitchen and covered patio. “This all started with my
frustration with the existing electric cooktop,” Michelle recalls. The
project expanded to reimaging the entire kitchen, along with how
to integrate it into the rest of the interior and outdoor living space.
“It’s a great home but it had a very cramped, outdated kitchen and
living space,” explains the designer. The decision was made to gut the
kitchen and build a small addition to the rear of the house, allowing
us to create a beautiful, functional kitchen that directly opens to an
outdoor living room with large floor-to-ceiling windows and doors.
Initially, the Heryfords were anxious about the undertaking because
they didn’t want the home’s look and feel to be compromised. “The
addition had to be modern yet traditional,” Michelle says. “With
help from our designer, the renovation seamlessly integrates a
contemporary design with the century-old defining character of the
home.”
The most stunning aspect of the kitchen redesign is that it allows
for views across all rooms, lending a sense of openness that flows to
the outdoors. A bead-board coffered ceiling accentuates the kitchen
space, and a shifted, double island creates “zones” for efficient use
of space—whether for two people or a large party. White, furniturestyled cabinetry and marble countertops enhance both the home’s
modern aspect and its historic character. Large, custom steel
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windows and French doors connect the kitchen to the covered patio.
Complementing the home’s existing windows is a new large custom,
wood-arched window that serves as a focal point. “Other than that,
there aren’t a lot of embellishments,” Michelle comments. “It’s very
linear, clean, and integrated. That arched window, for example, exactly
matches the doors to the adjacent music room.”
The outdoor living room features a double-sided, gas start/woodburning fireplace, and a patio design that creates multiple gathering
spaces and gradually connects to the outdoor garden. “We love that
the fireplace can be seen from inside—it’s like having a fireplace in the
kitchen,” Michelle comments. “We use the patio year round. Even in
the winter, we swing open those 9-foot-tall doors, light the fireplace,
and the party moves in and out.”
The Heryfords give credit to their designer for designing a space
that perfectly suits the way they live. “Our designer brilliantly
articulated our lifestyle and envisioned how to increase flow while
keeping the intimacy of