Genius Details Take Center Stage in This Lovingly Renovated 1890s Kitchen

Lauren Gardner of Canyon Collected Design had envisioned one as a traditional workspace, the other as a large, antique dairy table—a collected, character-driven piece that would bring warmth and patina to the newly built space. “I was very set on that idea,” she says. But as the gut renovation took shape, the layout revealed its limits.

The flow between the sink, stove, and refrigerator—what designers often call the kitchen triangle—was compromised by the original two-island plan. “The sink under the bifold window was too far from the fridge and stove,” Gardner explains, “and it just wasn’t going to function the way we needed it to.”

Rather than abandon the vision entirely, she got creative. To bring her dream to life—at least partially—she extended the quartzite island with a custom butcher block table, allowing the piece to read as two distinct zones while maintaining a clean footprint.

Open shelving beneath the wood portion helps it feel more like furniture than built-in cabinetry, softening the transition between kitchen and the adjacent living room “A brass strip connects the seam where they meet, turning what could’ve been an awkward transition into a standout detail,” Gardner says.

That kind of design precision fills the room, from the oil-rubbed bronze and antiqued mirror light fixtures, to the glass-fronted hutches—all chosen, she says, “to stay true to the era of the architecture.” Those hutches offer a glimpse of Gardner’s antique tableware collection, a nod to her love of flea markets and estate sales. “I wanted something that felt collected and lived-in, not overly new,” she says.

Custom wood drawers with food-grade mesh fronts were stained to match the hutches and are used to store fresh produce. “They’re one of my favorite parts of the kitchen,” Gardner says. “Everything has a place—and it all feels intentional.”

With a focus on functionality, Gardner designed the kitchen with zones for prep, storage, and baking—each with its own dedicated organization systems. Just steps from the fridge, a bank of drawers is stocked with food containers and Ziploc bags, ideal for school lunch prep. Near the range, knife storage and a pull-out cutting board with a hole for scraps over the trash bin make produce prep, and cleanup, a breeze.

In the dining nook, Gardner carved out space for a dedicated coffee bar, outfitted with a marble countertop, floating shelves, and a hidden appliance garage to keep small essentials out of sight. A deep, compact sink by Ruvati features a removable tray insert, allowing the surface to double as additional counter space—ideal for serving extra guests or simply streamlining the morning coffee routine.

At the far end of the kitchen, fourteen-foot bifold windows swing open to an outdoor bar, continuing the same quartzite used inside. “My husband really wanted a big bifold door that opened out into the garden, and while I loved the idea, we just didn’t have the wall space—we needed it for cabinetry and storage,” says Gardner. Instead, they opted for a bifold window which is now one of her favorite features. “It’s such a lovely way to connect the indoors and outdoors,” she says. It serves as a natural gathering point, embodying the relaxed, refined spirit that defines her home.