Fox
Kitchen Restoration
Project Scope: Kitchen
Year home built: 1886
Victorian Home
This Victorian home had at one time been condemned and might have likely ended up being torn down. But it was saved by a couple who fell in love with it and meticulously restored it over the course of time. Accurate historic detail was extremely important throughout this project.
THE CHALLENGE — The last of the restoration/renovation frontiers was the kitchen. These clients wanted a proper Victorian kitchen, but it was very difficult to get designers to suggest anything other than contemporary designs. This tends to be due to a lack of knowledge or understanding of historic kitchens. The clients were not willing to give up on their dream of a beautiful, yet functional Victorian kitchen! Then they found Restoring History…..
The existing kitchen dated to the 1980’s, maybe even a tad earlier. As the home evolved with its restoration, the kitchen became even more out of place. The clients needed guidance and resources on how to bring their kitchen space into compatibility with the rest of their home. Once Karla proved herself to these serious restorationists, a synergistic collaboration began to emerge.
The Vision
The typical Victorian kitchen generally had a stove room, a butler’s pantry, a dry goods pantry, and sometimes a cold room. Sometimes the cold room was out on the delivery porch off the kitchen. Once the clients understood how a Victorian kitchen was typically laid out, then the kitchen started to take shape. The stove room was separate from the butler’s pantry, the dry goods pantry was incorporated into a deep closet space in the stove room. More storage was available in the basement, which was accessed off the stove room.
The stove was a restored antique, the plumbing, hardware, and lighting were also antique, which helped pull the project into the Victorian Era.
The refrigerator was a fully integrated, panel ready modern appliance that was skinned in panels made to look like a large Victorian icebox. Old icebox hardware was incorporated to complete the transformation.
The Results
The kitchen transformed into an absolutely beautiful, but functional Victorian non-fitted kitchen. It has all the elements that someone from the Victorian Era would immediately recognize and appreciate.
The Team:
Karla Pearlstein: Restoring History
Matthew Roman: Roman Design
Stove: David Erickson of Erickson’s Stoves
Plumbing: Walter Parker of Old School Plumbing
