Kitchen Design
Kitchen of the Week
Before and Afters
Kitchen of the Week: Modern Farmhouse Style With Dual Islands
A California designer creates a bright black-and-white kitchen with lots of workspace and thoughtful storage
When Ronnie and Jenn Mafrici and their two young daughters moved from the San Francisco Bay Area to the town of Woodland just outside Sacramento, California, they were attracted to the community’s family-friendly lifestyle and the large lot of their sprawling 1995 ranch home. But they knew they wanted to make changes to the existing kitchen’s wood veneer cabinets and two awkwardly placed islands that dominated the room and made traffic flow difficult.
Their designer, Lori Brazier, worked with the couple to create a hardworking family kitchen with an attractive modern farmhouse style that includes two strategically placed islands and a bright, crisp black-and-white color scheme.
Their designer, Lori Brazier, worked with the couple to create a hardworking family kitchen with an attractive modern farmhouse style that includes two strategically placed islands and a bright, crisp black-and-white color scheme.
After: Brazier replaced the two awkward islands with two new rectangular islands for better workspace and flow. The island in the foreground is a designated dining spot. Mahogany barstools with woven rope backrests provide comfortable seating and add a touch of natural texture to the modern farmhouse style.
The island in front of the range area serves as a working island with handy drawer storage. “This way people can be hanging out at the eating island without being on top of the person cooking,” Brazier says.
She had the base of both islands painted a true crisp black (Tricorn Black by Sherwin-Williams), which offers dramatic contrast to the white walls and white-painted Shaker-style custom cabinets (Snowbound by Sherwin-Williams) with matte black hardware.
Shrinking the former walk-in pantry to a corner space through the frosted glass door on the left and extending the kitchen into the former breakfast nook on the right helped add 75 square feet to the kitchen and significantly increase functional storage. “We pushed the wall back and utilized that corner more, which helped the kitchen counters not be so choppy,” Jenn says.
The updated refrigerator wall includes a new paneled refrigerator and tall cabinets for storing small appliances, to help keep the counters clean.
Cabinet hardware: Top Knobs; Wicker Loom bar stools: Orient Express
The island in front of the range area serves as a working island with handy drawer storage. “This way people can be hanging out at the eating island without being on top of the person cooking,” Brazier says.
She had the base of both islands painted a true crisp black (Tricorn Black by Sherwin-Williams), which offers dramatic contrast to the white walls and white-painted Shaker-style custom cabinets (Snowbound by Sherwin-Williams) with matte black hardware.
Shrinking the former walk-in pantry to a corner space through the frosted glass door on the left and extending the kitchen into the former breakfast nook on the right helped add 75 square feet to the kitchen and significantly increase functional storage. “We pushed the wall back and utilized that corner more, which helped the kitchen counters not be so choppy,” Jenn says.
The updated refrigerator wall includes a new paneled refrigerator and tall cabinets for storing small appliances, to help keep the counters clean.
Cabinet hardware: Top Knobs; Wicker Loom bar stools: Orient Express
Two-inch-thick quartz countertops that mimic Calacatta marble on the island and perimeters keep things looking fresh and light. “With the two small kids and the entertaining they do, they needed something durable,” Brazier says of the quartz. “It was a no-brainer.”
The kitchen lost the windows on the back wall, but Brazier added new ones along the sink wall, as well as a glass door that leads to a patio with an outdoor dining area and pool. The black door and window frames complement the other matte black details in the kitchen.
Four bronze, antiqued brass and white globe pendants provide illumination above the islands. “I like to do two lights over each island when I do double islands,” Brazier says. “They’re beautiful and they give you that symmetry you need.”
Hicks 2 pendants: Visual Comfort
The kitchen lost the windows on the back wall, but Brazier added new ones along the sink wall, as well as a glass door that leads to a patio with an outdoor dining area and pool. The black door and window frames complement the other matte black details in the kitchen.
Four bronze, antiqued brass and white globe pendants provide illumination above the islands. “I like to do two lights over each island when I do double islands,” Brazier says. “They’re beautiful and they give you that symmetry you need.”
Hicks 2 pendants: Visual Comfort
Before: This view from between the two existing islands shows the tight traffic lanes.
After: The elimination of the breakfast nook allowed room for a spacious cooking zone, with lots of drawers and cabinets to the left and right of the new range.
The white farmhouse sink enjoys plenty of natural light on the new window wall. The matte-black-and-brass curved faucet brings a touch of modern style to the classic sink. The pair of floating shelves visible at the right of the photo gives the family a space for displaying favorite cookbooks and decorative items.
Brazier had the existing white oak floor sanded down to a natural state and then refinished, a last-minute change to the design plan. “We had a different, darker stain and finish in mind, but when it was sanded down, it looked so beautiful we decided to keep it,” she says.
The white farmhouse sink enjoys plenty of natural light on the new window wall. The matte-black-and-brass curved faucet brings a touch of modern style to the classic sink. The pair of floating shelves visible at the right of the photo gives the family a space for displaying favorite cookbooks and decorative items.
Brazier had the existing white oak floor sanded down to a natural state and then refinished, a last-minute change to the design plan. “We had a different, darker stain and finish in mind, but when it was sanded down, it looked so beautiful we decided to keep it,” she says.
A tall glass countertop cabinet adds lightness to the corner. The glass-fronted upper cabinets have lights inside for highlighting collectibles.
The backsplash is white-glazed hand-shaped ceramic subway tiles that show variation and texture. “Adding that charcoal-colored grout gives it character and a bit more dimension with all the white in this kitchen,” Brazier says.
This photo also shows the brushed brass hardware on the black drawers of the working island, which contrast with the matte black hardware used for the white perimeter cabinets and drawers. The ends of the working island include an X detail that gives the piece a furniture-style look.
The backsplash is white-glazed hand-shaped ceramic subway tiles that show variation and texture. “Adding that charcoal-colored grout gives it character and a bit more dimension with all the white in this kitchen,” Brazier says.
This photo also shows the brushed brass hardware on the black drawers of the working island, which contrast with the matte black hardware used for the white perimeter cabinets and drawers. The ends of the working island include an X detail that gives the piece a furniture-style look.
The new pro-style 48-inch range with double ovens has pullout storage cabinets on either side, one for cookie sheets and trays and another for cutting boards. Drawers in the working island across from the range offer easy-access storage for pots and pans.
The couple debated what to do about the range hood and in the end decided on casework that keeps it concealed. “We love this decision,” Jenn says. “We feel it was the right way to go for this modern farmhouse kitchen.”
The couple debated what to do about the range hood and in the end decided on casework that keeps it concealed. “We love this decision,” Jenn says. “We feel it was the right way to go for this modern farmhouse kitchen.”
With the angled island gone, the kitchen now opens more comfortably to the great room, which features a similar black-and-white palette, a modern fireplace, a bar area and a vaulted ceiling with shiplap detail.
Before: This floor plan of the kitchen prior to the renovation shows how the awkwardly placed double islands acted more like barriers than spaces for eating and working. Also notice how the appliances felt spread out, which also made the space difficult to maneuver through.
After: Replacing the angled islands with rectangular ones encourages good flow around the kitchen. Reconfiguring the appliances and incorporating the former pantry and breakfast nook helped expand the layout. “We just really enjoy the usable space and how everything flows,” Jenn says. “It’s just a well-thought-out kitchen that we enjoy.”
More on Houzz
Tour more kitchens
Find a local kitchen designer
Hire a cabinet pro
Shop for kitchen products
More on Houzz
Tour more kitchens
Find a local kitchen designer
Hire a cabinet pro
Shop for kitchen products
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: Ronnie and Jenn Mafrici and their two young daughters
Location: Woodland, California
Size: 450 square feet (42 square meters)
Designer: Lori Brazier of House of Brazier
Before: The existing kitchen featured leftovers from the 1990s, including midtone wood veneer cabinets and light-colored laminate countertops.
Meanwhile, an angled island with a raised bar area wrapped around a secondary island in the middle of the space, creating an awkward flow. There was also an excessive amount of recessed lighting in the ceiling, and a giant vent hood that loomed over the island cooktop. A walk-in pantry behind the wall ovens and a breakfast nook, seen on the right, took up valuable space that could be used for storage.