Refined, Not Replaced

Brentwood, California

SCOPE: Pull any drawer in this Brentwood kitchen, original or new, and it glides out to full extension and settles shut on its own. That’s the quiet trick of this remodel. Beth Soto kept much of the home’s existing cabinetry and familiar layout, then modified, refinished, and built around it so the room feels new where it counts. The biggest adjustment was making the existing cabinetry fit a professional-style 36-inch gas rangetop. The work carried into the adjoining family room, too, with new hardwood and a redesigned fireplace wall.

This remodel included modifying and refinishing the existing cabinetry; a new full-height wall-oven cabinet; new storage where the old trash compactor used to be; a redesigned appliance wall with dedicated wine and beverage refrigeration; Arizona Tile Sonata Honed quartz countertops; a new tile backsplash; new plumbing fixtures, lighting, and paint; hardwood flooring in the kitchen and family room; and a new fireplace surround. The existing full-size refrigerator stayed, and its cabinet was retained and reinstalled.

FEATURES: Beth designed the island to read like a piece of furniture rather than another bank of cabinets: four substantial square posts hold up a 2-inch-thick slab of honed quartz. Above it hang two Bellevue Moselle four-light chandeliers in Midnight Black, dark metal against light stone. At the sink wall, a white Kohler Whitehaven cast-iron apron-front sink meets a Signature Hardware Ridgway pull-down faucet in gunmetal: farmhouse, with a slightly industrial edge. The appliance lineup comes from GE Monogram and Zephyr, including a 30-inch wall oven, a 30-inch speed oven, a 15-inch beverage refrigerator, and a 24-inch wine refrigerator, so drinks have a home outside the main fridge and nobody has to reach past the cook to grab one. A two-tier half-moon system pulls the back of the corner cabinet out where you can reach it. Floating shelves replace some upper cabinets, with LED strips tucked beneath the lower shelf for a soft glow at the end of the day. Then Beth turned to the family room. The fireplace insert and stone hearth stayed, the old recess above was framed flush, and the wall was finished with painted V-groove paneling, new stone veneer, and a natural walnut mantel beam. From the kitchen, that walnut picks up the warmth of the gray cabinetry across the room, and two spaces finally feel like one.

Fixture & Finish: