The Farmer Kitchen

We recently completed a lovely kitchen located in Drexel Hill. It was the finishing touch to a larger home renovation headed by Buzz Sichel of Sichel Construction and designed by Philip Ivory Architects.

The 100 year old, Tudor-style, stone home begged for a kitchen with a classic design. The warmth that the house exuded and the happy family inside it required a functional and fun space.

The main kitchen area consisted of white cabinets with a Shaker style door and foot. The green glass bin pulls and cast iron farm sink spoke of a bygone era. The family chose an old drafting table for the island, the perfect compliment. We added a spice drawer and bread drawer insert, as well as a smooth functioning, pullout shelf system to maximize usability in the corner cabinet.

An integral part of the vision was the floor to ceiling hutch, which separates the dining room and kitchen. The marble hutch counter was set low at 30" off the floor to make it easier to knead dough for bread and other baked treats. I can attest to the baking prowess of the lady of the house and I’ve been told that it has spurred more help from the kids since the counter is closer tokid height (a happy, albeit unanticipated result).

The highlights for me were definitely the hutch and butler's pantry - essentially another small kitchen. We utilized wonderful, old growth redwood, salvaged from the old Schmidt's Brewery, formerly located in Northern Liberties. This redwood holds somewhat of a mythical status among woodworkers of the city. The salvaged wood made its way into the hands of many and is coveted by those still sitting on their personal stashes. We used all of ours in this project, but I'm glad to say that it couldn'thave gone to a nicer family.

Check out the slideshow for more pictures!