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Historical kitchen

15 years ago

My house was built in 1914. I want to maintain a historical look in my kitchen. I won't be replacing appliances, but ideas and pics re: flooring, countertops, lighting and hardware would be appreciated. I like the look on inset cabinets, but the ones I've priced are a bit out of my budget. Any alternatives??

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Comments (6)

donka
15 years ago
Hi singingmama,

What colour cabinets are you thinking? My house was also built in 1914 and I'm in the planning stages for my kitchen reno too. I've amassed a huge number of links and pics of white/cream coloured kitchens in particular that I've been using for inspiration. Let me know and I can post some. Also, have you checked the Finished Kitchens blog? I've trolled it for many hours for ideas.

Here is a link that might be useful: Finished Kitchens Blog
prettykitty1971
15 years ago
singingmama,

get a couple of quotes from local cabinet makers, we found that they are less expensive than prefab. Also, if you can't go that route, full overlay doors - where the doors all meet and you don't see the cabinet box - it can gives sort of a similar look of inset doors. For flooring, wood obviously, for old houses, stained or painted, or similar to what is in the rest of your house for continuity - it really makes the kitchen feel like the rest of the house if the flooring is similar. Check out my posting: prettykitty's classic vintage white victorian kitchen you probably find it helpful if you are just getting started.

Here is a link that might be useful: Prettykitty's Kitchen and House photos
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I LOVE the way your kitchen sounds! Totally ideal -- recognizing it's a twenty-first century remodel while respecting the Victorian heritage. Caveat: I'm a big fan of a cool (as in cool colors) kitchen: my kitchen is white perimeter, white marble countertops / backsplash, (some) stainless appliances and grey walls / ceiling. What you're describing is totally up my alley! So I live in a ten year-old house -- nothing special to respect (design-wise) here! And while I wanted a traditional kitchen (which makes sense with the remodel we did throughout the house), I also didn't want it to look ridiculous or twee. We have a stainless apron front sink and a commercial style faucet, and if just for those two pieces I think it elevates our kitchen to a "makes sense" standard. I'm not sure that sentence makes sense, but what I mean is: it's clear the remodel was recent (as in earlier this year), and we're not trying to fool anyone. But really, our goal was to have a kitchen which yes, looks pretty but which really works like a dream. For us, the big stainless apron front sink does just that. For us, the commercial style faucet does just that. I happen to love stainless countertops. They are insanely practical and gorgeous. I also happen to love soapstone. I mean, what's not to love? But there are pros and cons for both (and many threads addressing those pros and cons already exist here on GW, so I won't attempt to summarize them here), and only you can know what you're willing / able to live with. For example, most people oil their soapstone. That can be a laborious process -- are you up to it? Stainless is known for scratching and can be irritating for some in the beginning, when the scratching process is just starting. After a while, the scratching tends to be uniform so it's no longer visible. (I think someone here with stainless countertops had them abraded before installation.) We have polished nickel bin pulls (and appliance handles) and glass knobs and I love them. I think they're beautiful and sparkly, but other hardware can be and is gorgeous as well. Is this something on which you need to decide right now? I wonder if the longer your new plan can gestate the more the hardware choice will make itself known to you .... I'm about to turn into a pumpkin but I had to pipe in because I am crazy about your proposed kitchen!
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I am not sure that this house ever got a recent paint analysis, so the paint colors may be inaccurate. The picture below is from Mount Pleasant, which is an earlier house, Georgian, but similar. Upsala, above, is technically Federal period, but it's not Federal like Lemon Hill is Federal, I think Upsala has a lot of Georgian elements. But this is the result of the latest paint analysis at Mount Pleasant: the thing to notice here is that the "whites" aren't really white and that there is a brown stripe of paint painted across the entire perimeter, that lines up with the base board but it is painted straight across the bottom of the doors and across other trim at a horizon line that cuts through various elements so that it lines up with the baseboard (But ignores the other details arbitrarily). The floor still is not correct in Mt Pleasant as shown, it should have No finish on it. These rooms were mopped and also sand was thrown on the floors and the rooms were swept out using the sand as a medium to dry up mud and such. The dark band was camouflage. As I understand it, they felt that taking the finish back off the floor for accuracy would be be more detrimental than leaving the finish on. I believe there are even some modern stains, paint can rings and such that they've left rather than touch the floor. The floor in Upsala, below, is probably more accurate, but the paint is probably not. The white on the walls is Very white, for one thing. The lack of overdoors and dentil molding below, and a plaster cornice, are the things that poin to this house being more "modern" than the one above. However, I would consider this house a little transitional, compared to a house like Lemon Hill
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We live in a climate with four seasons and have a lot of gray days. The one thing that I am grateful for is that the back of my house gets the beautiful morning light. I love walking into a bright kitchen in the morning and that is one reason why I have always had white cabinets as well. Our house is a Georgian and we have four skylights, and in two of those places they make a huge difference in lighting the space. I personally wouldn't hesitate to do it, especially in a spot where you likely spend a lot of time. Once it is in, I do not think that you will even think about it being up there. Years ago a friend told me when I was struggling over picking just the right fixture for a bath vanity that no one would even notice what it looked like. They just wanted to hit a switch and have the light come on.
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I’d consider an oval table. It will get you the space you want but a slightly more narrow footprint. Room and board makes some customizable options. We are also working on a rowhome; I totally understand your space and layout constraints. Like the comments about powder rooms on the living levels. It is just how it is. I’d love to have my powder room not directly across from the kitchen. But short of putting it on the street there isn’t anywhere else for it to go! I’m just happy to have powder room on the main floor. I like the peninsula if you are the type of family that likes to hang or eat there. We are the same. Yes your walkway might get crowded, but in these types of situations...there is no “perfect”, there are always compromises. You just have to consider what is most important to you and how you live.
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User
15 years ago
Also, get a copy of the book Bungalow Kitchens by Jane Powell. While you may not have a bungalow, there are great pictures of vintage kitchens in her book. There are other bungalow books with kitchen pictures. All should be in a library, as well as bookstores. We also went with custom cabinets that were built by an Amish man in Indiana. We have inset doors. They were less costly than the cheapest offerring at Home Depot.

Marmoleum or wood are good choices for flooring.
VanDykes.com is a good source for hardware.
Rejuvenation.com is a good lighting source, as is Schoolhouse Electric.
ccoombs1
15 years ago
OT....prettykitty, where did you get those cabinet latches from? I need one for an antique cabinet my dad gave me. thanks!

Also...LOVE your kitchen!!
mom2lilenj
15 years ago
Partial overlay with exposed hinges can also give you a historic look and is probably rather appropriate for 1914. Many cabinet makers can do a simple flat recessed panel cabient door and you can pick up the hardware from vandykes.com, or houseofantiquehardware.com/. That's probably your cheapest route. But I wouldn't rule out inset yet, typically if you can find a good local cabinet maker they will be cheaper for inset cabinets than going with larger manufacturers. But not always.

You got lots of good advice on flooring and lighting. Countertops, IMHO, are more open to interpretation, because continuous runs of countertop weren't really used back then. I believe in the 20's some smaller continuous runs of countertops were starting to be used. They were often metal or wood. However not entirely historically accurate, I think soapstone would be nice too. Some richer homes might have a marble topped baking table/cabinet.

Here is a link that might be useful: historic offset hinges
sayde
15 years ago
Just wanted to add that the book The New Bungalow Kitchen was even more helpful to me than the earlier one --

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