Homeowners may choose open-kitchen plans for many reasons: ease of movement while preparing food or hosting friends, a wish to make the kitchen the welcoming center of a family household, or simply because an open kitchen is, by now, a trademark component of a modern home. But it never hurts when one’s spacious kitchen also affords stunning mountain views in three directions.
Such is the case with the Town Mountain home of Fred and Marianne Weaver, created by the design team at Samsel Architects. Sleek, white-painted cabinetry is paired with dark, gleaming granite countertops, a material echoed in the top of the striking walnut kitchen island: a curved polygon that softens linear lines elsewhere. The artsy chairs around it emit an almost industrial-scholastic vibe, their wood and steel subtly warmed by the stone fireplace surround in the adjacent living area — what the Weavers call “The Keeping Room.”
Designing a kitchen with a view on three sides “was a challenge, given the amount of wall space needed for cabinets, appliances, and storage,” admits Duncan McPherson, lead project manager. “One way we addressed this was by locating the cooktop in front of the eastern set of windows. There were some code clearances to open flame we needed to incorporate, but the end result is a view out to the courtyard and terrace, as well as wonderful morning daylight.”
Quarter-sawn white-oak floors create a crisp contrast to the lighter interior palette, while also anchoring the spaces. “We then decided the main outdoor terrace needed to be directly connected to the Keeping [room] and kitchen to create easy connectivity and flow from the inside and outside,” notes McPherson.
Carefully uplit niches in the upper reaches of the cabinets highlight the couple’s collection of Italian ceramics. The figurative pieces seem to gaze down on the scene below with an approval as serene as the rooms themselves.
RESOURCES
Architect: Samsel Architects, with Lead Project Manager Duncan McPherson
Cabinetry, Interior Trim, and Paneling: Rob Kleber
Countertops: Mountain Marble *