>> BEFORE
Opening up your space can be as easy as 1-2-3.
What do I mean? Simply that before you start, you need to ask yourself three things: What can you do without? What can you reimagine? And what can you relocate?
My goal for our kitchen was to create an open space that would visually flow into the living room and tie in an informal dining area under the window with the rest of the kitchen.
Take a look at the before photo. The refrigerator, freezer and wine fridge are along the right wall, which separates the space from the living room. At the far end, under the picture window, you can’t even see the dining area behind the peninsula of drawers.
We definitely could do without that extra island. We took it out and voila! The informal dining space feels like part of the kitchen, and the window with its ocean view will become a focal point.
What could we reimagine? This went hand in hand with what we could relocate. After taking out the cabinet with wine fridge and relocating the freezer and refrigerator to the back wall, we reimagined the front wall with a window in it, creating a visual flow with the living room.
So before you tear down walls, consider this 1-2-3. And next time, I’ll share with you finishes that bring it all together.
Cathy Lee is a home style expert, speaker, president and designer of Cathy Lee Style. Her redesigns of residential and business spaces have been featured in local and national publications and on HGTV. For more info and inspiring photos of design projects, visit cathyleestyle.com. And keep up with Cathy’s dream home make-over at her photo blog, Homefront.