Yellow-and-Blue Kitchen Mixes Modern Amenities With Vintage Charm
A vintage stove, encaustic cement floor tiles and a breakfast banquette star in this cheerful Los Angeles space
These Los Angeles homeowners didn’t want your standard all-white kitchen. Instead they wanted a cheerful, colorful space that would mix vintage character with modern amenities. Utilizing the original floor plan, designer Alison Glen added bold new cement flooring, new cabinetry with retro hardware, new countertops and a new backsplash; updated a built-in breakfast banquette; and worked in vintage accessories to create a timeless look.
The homeowners considered replacing their original O’Keefe & Merritt gas stove with a new stainless steel one, but Glen encouraged them to keep it. “These stoves are like tanks,” the designer says. “And they’re much easier to fix than many of the new ones out there.”
A custom white refrigerator panel and upper cabinets with vintage-inspired latch hardware complement the classic white stove. The lower cabinets in a bold blue were selected to coordinate with the floor tiles.
Shop for cement floor tiles on Houzz
A custom white refrigerator panel and upper cabinets with vintage-inspired latch hardware complement the classic white stove. The lower cabinets in a bold blue were selected to coordinate with the floor tiles.
Shop for cement floor tiles on Houzz
The homeowners loved the original shade of yellow on the walls, so the designer had the color matched and added a fresh coat. “It’s a cheerful color that makes the space feel happy and bright,” Glen says.
The backsplash, with its new yellow subway tiles that complement the yellow walls, and its bold border of thin black tiles, adds another retro touch.
The backsplash, with its new yellow subway tiles that complement the yellow walls, and its bold border of thin black tiles, adds another retro touch.
Glen added a built-in microwave and a bookshelf to the lower cabinets. The countertops are an off-white quartz. One of the homeowners is an avid baker and uses the vintage hanging scale to measure flour and other baking ingredients.
The upper cabinet on the wall opposite the gas range has glass doors on the top shelf; it serves as a liquor cabinet. The built-in plate rack below has a beadboard backing painted the same blue as the lower cabinets.
The original built-in breakfast banquette received a new coat of paint that matches the lower cabinets and new upholstery that complements the floor tiles. A collection of vintage glass electrical insulators runs along the tops of the bench backs, and a retro pendant light adds a warm glow above the custom wood breakfast table that features antique Singer sewing machine legs.
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More on Houzz
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Look for a kitchen designer near you
Shop for vintage-inspired pendant lights
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple and their two dogs
Location: Los Angeles
Size: About 250 square feet (23 square meters)
Designer: Alison Glen of LA Dwelling
The original wood flooring used to run from the adjacent dining room into the kitchen, but the years, and the homeowners’ two Siberian huskies, had taken a toll on them. Therefore, the decision was made to add new encaustic cement tiles. “The floor tiles were the first material selected for the remodel,” Glen says. “The color and pattern helped to inform the rest of the design.”
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