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Like other homeowners in Melrose, a young couple fell in love with their 1938 house because it was chock full of charm from floor to ceiling. However, after living in the home for awhile the kitchen quickly lost any charm it may have had and quickly fell into the “we’ve got to update this!” category.
The biggest problem was that the major appliances—the refrigerator and the stove—seemed to have been added as afterthoughts. As with most older homes, the kitchen was built without any regard to working in it!
The refrigerator was located in a back hallway and the stove stood by itself against a wall in the kitchen, without any countertops on either side. Needless to say, navigating between the refrigerator, stove, sink, and minimal countertop space was not easy.
On top of the clumsy layout of the kitchen, the back hallway with the refrigerator was a poor use of space. The homeowners felt that the back entry hall space leading to the kitchen cried out for a mudroom. In addition, they longed for a half bath, but had been continuously told that one could not fit, so they had given up on this idea. They also weren’t sure exactly how to add these elements while also renovating the kitchen. After all, it seemed like there was only so much space to work with.
However, the solution became fairly simple with some good design sense, starting with moving the fridge into the kitchen where it belonged at the end of the countertop near the sink. The window behind the sink was in a good location, so it was kept in place but we updated the cabinets and countertops.
By removing a back wall window that contributed little to the view, we created space for extra cabinet storage and countertops on both sides of the range.
The amazing thing is that even though we moved the fridge into the same square-footage of kitchen space and added cabinets and countertops, the whole kitchen feels bigger and brighter. This is due to the streamlined layout and the simple Shaker style with white painted cabinets and quartz countertops along with a Carrara marble backsplash.
The homeowners chose to refinish the wood floors, which also helped to freshen up the look of the kitchen.
Increasing Property Value
By moving the refrigerator into the kitchen we opened up the back entry area of the house which made room for a mudroom and a half-bath. Aside from the huge convenience factor, adding the half-bath particularly pays off for the property value of their home.
According to the National Association of Home Builders, adding a half-bath increases the value of an average home by just over 10%. The value increases beyond that if the home has more bedrooms than bathrooms.
Adding the half-bath, mudroom, and renovating the kitchen will also make their home more competitive with similar-sized homes in Melrose, making it easier to sell in a tight market should they choose to move elsewhere.
For now, however, the homeowners have no plans to leave their charming home, and are relishing the modernized feel and function of their kitchen, mudroom, and half-bath.
If you’re curious about what the possibilities might look like with renovating your kitchen or adding a bath or mudroom space, come talk to us!
Edesia Kitchen & Bath Studio is a Best Of Houzz award winner for client satisfaction in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Take advantage of our free consultation and estimate by contacting us online, or by calling 781.238.8800.
