Kitchen & Bath
Shades of Blue
A couple unnecessary walls weren’t going to keep the Hilleary family from attaining their dream kitchen: an open, functional space in a breezy color palette.
BY
Brooke Pearl
PHOTOGRAPHY
Matt Kocourek

Click Images to View at Full-Size

Sherry Hilleary always wanted a blue kitchen with more space. But the one she had was so functionally inadequate, it left little room for creativity and entertainment.

In April 2007 Sherry and her husband, Tom, hired Perry Quick, AIA, architect with Metzler Remodeling, to overhaul their “small, enclosed and dark” 1940s kitchen. With three entry points — including a small kitchenette/dining area with a wet bar separated from the kitchen by a wall and countertop, with another wall separating the kitchen from the dining room — some walls had to go. “The load-bearing wall was a real challenge,” says Tom, who has a background in engineering, design and development. “But it was replaced with a structural beam in the ceiling with no interference.”

After tearing down the walls, the couple had a wide-open canvas. Sherry envisioned a big center island that would act as a gathering space as well as provide additional seating. She also wanted a sink by the original windows that look out to the backyard. Perry fit in everything she wanted and much more.

When making product selections, the first thing Sherry picked out was Silestone countertops; the second was a tumbled slate tile backsplash, bringing a blue-gray palette to the drawing board. The island was to be the focal point of the room, with granite countertops that sparkle under pendant lights, a built-in wine rack and wicker basket shelves, as well as an interactive space for four with accessibility to the “communications area,” which contains a TV and computer.

Taking the place of a door and window that looked out into the garage, custom white cabinets with a blue-gray glaze enhance colors in the backsplash, match the existing trim and showcase a reverse finish and color palette than what’s displayed on the island, just one of Perry’s intricate details. “I wanted to create interest in the room, so I put open-shelf cabinetry by the sink, more traditional cabinets by the stove, and the cherry-stained alder cabinets by the microwave, refrigerator and computer desk,” he explains. The original awkward entry off the garage was resituated on the other side of the formal living room.

Enveloping the remodeled kitchen, along with the dining room and formal living room, are new red oak floors (the Hillearys were unable to keep the originals because the kitchenette floor was at a different level) and a blanket of blue from Benjamin Moore on the walls. Soft Chinchilla on the kitchen walls, Province Blue in the dining room and a matching faux paint on the fireplace in the living room brought the spaces and gave Sherry the blue hue she’d always wanted.

The Hillearys’ updated kitchen is a breath of fresh air — open and extremely functional. “When you remove a wall, you can somewhat envision [the space], but this [remodel] transformed the whole first level,” Sherry says.