Urban Farmhouse

Project Details

Project Description

Design
Grand, Kitchen In A Remodeled Home—Less Than 2,000 Square Feet

Architects Anni Tilt and David Arkin make a point of advocating the use of salvaged materials to their clients, so when they bought and rehabbed their own century-old farmhouse, they figured they’d better walk the walk. And did they ever. This homespun kitchen incorporates second-hand windows and sashes, a backsplash of Heath tile seconds, a vintage Wedgewood stove (which they discovered in the basement), a salvaged farm sink with an integral drainboard, and cabinet pulls made out of dashboard knobs from an old Buick (thank you, eBay). The countertops are made from reclaimed bowling alley lanes. To complement the stove’s backdrop of hot-rolled steel, the architects outfitted a small stretch of Chinese red cabinets with punched steel doors—a modern take on the old “pie safe” ventilated pantry. The striped floor, meanwhile, was a happy surprise the carpenter discovered upon stripping down to the subfloor. Tilt estimates the total cost of the makeover at about $40,000, noting that much of it was a balancing act between splurges and creative budget savers. “There are custom pieces we spent money on, such as the cabinets,” she says, “but then all of those old automobile knobs combined cost eleven dollars.”