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Above: The old kitchen looked dated, so the Foersters splashed a light green on the walls to liven it up. Below: The new kitchen includes greater storage space, including a new pantry, and a more efficient configuration.
When buying any existing home — cabin or otherwise — not everything will always be the way you want it, necessitating some upgrades here and there. In the case of Larry and Dana Foerster’s cabin in Waynesville, North Carolina, the entire kitchen needed to be redone to better suit the aesthetic and functional needs of its new owners.
“It had red-and-tan checkered wallpaper — yuck! — before I had it painted green,” Dana observes.
Working within the existing footprint of the kitchen, the Foersters reconfigured the layout by placing the refrigerator in the back corner, which had previously held a microwave, to open up the space. The washing machine is directly behind the refrigerator’s new location, so the builder was able to tap into that existing waterline for the refrigerator’s icemaker.
Extra storage also aids the functionality of the kitchen. Local contractor Larry Reinhold of Tara-Nova Construction Co. installed new log cabin kitchen cabinets by Waynesville-based Mountaineer Cabinetry that extend to the ceiling to better utilize space.
Instead of the casual seating originally placed against the interior wall, Dana measured out and sketched her concept for a pantry that she had custom-built by B & L Custom Cabinets of Waynesville for both decorative and storage purposes.
The addition of a peninsula to the original L-shaped counter configuration allows for casual bar seating as well, with 5 feet of travel space between it and the pantry so as not to deter the flow of traffic.
“The function of having a bar with stools and the kitchen pendant lights over it is a big change,” Dana notes. “We can serve buffet-style meals, then eat in the dining area adjacent to the kitchen.”
And Dana and Larry aren’t the only ones who’ve noticed the change. “My friends are all amazed at the transformation,” Dana states. “One of them said, ‘It’s like the crowning jewel of the cabin.’”
Before:
After:
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I love the appliances in this kitchen, do you know what brand
they are?
The fridge is an LG, range is Kitchen Aid (was in the old kitchen….good condition so kept it), the micro-wave is GE.