Soapstone Countertops are Tops

We're wrapping up some client projects this month and next that I'm super excited to share with you! In two of the projects, we've gone with black soapstone for the countertops. I love the dramatic contrast of dark counters with light/white cabinetry!

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I was going for a similar look with the black concrete counters we DIYed for our kitchen in an attempt to save some cash. The truth is though that soapstone is actually a pretty affordable countertop choice. It costs about the same as a standard granite option (about $75-100/sq ft installed) and it wears about as well as a granite too! When we change the layout of our kitchen some day, I'd love to install real soapstone.

I love that there is still some soft veining and movement in the stone. It's not a solid or flecked black, which is the case with Jet Black granite. Soapstone also has a super high heat threshold (you can put hot pans right on the surface!) and it is scratch and stain resistant. Any little problems can usually be buffed right out using a little mineral oil (this one is my favorite for natural stone and butcher blocks). But I think the best thing about soapstone is the feel - that smooth, buttery surface!! There's nothing like it.

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Here's a progress shot from a home we're working on locally. This is from a couple of weeks ago - I'm so excited to share this space with you guys! It's going to be beautiful! We've got some gorgeous satin brass plumbing fixtures going in that will look amazing against the black soapstone we installed on the perimeter cabinets!

And how great is the soapstone paired with the white marble on the island?! I feel like the black and white combo is so timeless! Even once we get all the finishes, lighting, hardware, rugs and accessories in here, I know the stone will still be the star of the show!

What's your dream countertop material? Or what do you have now? The pro/con list for natural stone countertops is a long one, but I feel like soapstone is a pretty smart option!

Tips of the Trade: Kitchen Styling

A big kitchen with a lot of counter space can present a styling challenge. Too many things and the space will look cluttered quickly, but not enough accessories in a big space looks sparse and unfinished. It's a fine line! 


For the most part, I like countertops to be pretty clear but I think it's fun to add color and layers to open shelving. We had some extra quartzite from the counters in my parents kitchen and decided to use it for the open shelves in the dead space above the sink. When it was time to get my parent's more settled in their new kitchen, I brought up a ton of accessories to play with and we also used a lot of family heirlooms that my mom has had for years.

Sometimes an empty shelf can feel like the most daunting thing. Where to start with the styling?? I have listed out the most basic of steps below, but I will say that one helpful tip is to know your shelf height before you start collecting styling items. You obviously don't want items that are too tall to fit, but also be careful to not have too many too-small accessories. Sure, you can stack items to create height, but you want there to be several hero pieces that fill at least 2/3 of the height of your shelves. Paying attention to scale this way helps keep the shelves from getting too busy.

Big, white dishes are the perfect foundation pieces for kitchen shelf styling. I like a few oversized platters (these are from Target and Homegoods), a cake plate or two and a stack of mixing bowls.

After the big white pieces, I like to add in a few colorful, larger items, like a ginger jar, a flow blue platter and this special Lynne Millar painting I had framed in a pretty burlwood.

The next step is to fill in the layers with neutral pieces in interesting shapes. This helps things to not get too crazy with color. I added a vintage fluted bowl and a stack of my great grandmother's off-white wedding china here.

Then we added a few smaller items - like marble candle holders and pink tapers, a little blue and white sugar bowl, and a pair of silver salt and pepper shakers. And we added the counter top accessories too. Bread boards are always a great idea (and look so pretty against stone counters) and a little bit of greenery is perfect for every room, including kitchens and bathrooms.
      

       
The best part of all is everything can be changed around easily! One of my favorite post-Sunday-dinner-clean-up activities is a good kitchen styling session! :) Here are some of my go-to pieces:

Mercer Platter, Bone China PlatterMixing Bowl,  CB2 Basket Bowl, Marble Cake StandsBlue Tea Container, Jade Beater Bowl, Lynne Millar- Yellow Rose 1Marble Salt and Pepper, Salt Cellar, Wood CandlesticksHeritage Bread Board,  Iona Cheese BoardsLinen Market Dishtowels, Morandi PitcherWhat am I missing in this list? Do you have a favorite oversized white platter or bread board source?

My Parents' Kitchen Remodel

I'm so excited to share photos of my parents' new kitchen with you today! This was an extra fun project to work on and not only because I really love the clients. ;) We got to completely reconfigure the way this space feels and functions.

For before photos, here is a very old post to check out, and here is a post from when we were in the middle of the remodel.

The shaker style cabinets are custom full overlay, painted in Swiss Coffee. The pulls and knobs are Restoration Hardware and the countertops are macaubus quartzite from Arizona Tile. The backsplash tile is from Floor & Decor. The long runner was an eBay find.

It was fun to be able to customize the drawer components (especially in the island) and the appliance garage area in the pantry wall.

Both of the polished nickel faucets are from Signature Hardware. The smaller single hole faucet on the prep sink is actually from their bathroom line. :)

The wood floors are by Provenza from their Heirloom collection. The barstools are from Overstock and the island pendants are from Rejuvenation.

I loved working on this project, but I love getting to use the kitchen even more! The new layout makes it so our whole family can be in here cooking and hanging out - two of our favorite things. :)

PS I've expanded the team and we're taking on design projects in Arizona and California! Email me if you're interested in working together!

Brass Plating

Some of you sharp-eyed readers noticed I changed out the hardware on our PAX wardrobes.

I used these 15" Varnhem pulls from IKEA. I loved the long, thin lines and the great price, so I snatched up six and sprayed them gold!

Another (albeit more expensive) route would have been to get these pulls plated in brass. I have used a local company called Papago Plating before with good results!

I had them strip the lacquer off my kitchen faucet so that the finish would be "living" and have a more natural, subtle patina.

I also used them to plate the hardware I bought for my clawfoot tub.

It's a great option for when you're trying to make plumbing from different lines look cohesive together. We're doing this with a client's bathroom fixtures now, trying to match the really bright satin brass finish of their new faucets on the drain pieces of their free-standing tub.

A few tips for a successful plating experience - Always ask for samples of the finishes! Also, it's a really good idea to only bring the parts of the faucet that need to be plated with you to the plating company. And be sure to photograph all the parts you are dropping off! You don't want to lose any of the pieces! :)

Progress With My Parents' Remodel

One of the big projects I've been working on for the past few months is my parents' home remodel. We added on a new carriage house and a huge ramada on the back and then totally gutted about half of their house. Just this week the kitchen installation process started and my mom and I are so happy to see our vision come to life! She leans toward more traditional style, but really appreciates clean lines. This kitchen, featured on Domaine Home was one of our inspirations. Bright, clean and airy.

The cabinets started to get installed this week and my mom's been texting me photos along the way.

This image was also an inspiration, though we had nothing even close to this ceiling height. That was one of the two big challenges in the space. We had hoped to be able to open up the ceiling a little more and maybe do a coffered treatment, but it was prohibitively expensive to gain what would only be a few inches in the end.

We loved the large glass globes in the above image and thought they would be perfect for over the 8' long island.

These globes are 18" each and I think they'll really make a statement without making the ceilings feel lower or obstructing any views in the kitchen.

We used a local cabinet maker and I love the job he did here with our simple shaker style full overlay cabinets. There's going to be another row of cabinets here to the right over the prep sink area that will be the appliance garage. The electrician installed the lights too close to the cabinets, so we're waiting on that fix to happen first. :)

The kitchen is sort of landlocked in the center of the house, so there are no windows (which was the other big challenge of the room). We did add a couple of french doors just behind and to the left of this photo, but because the kitchen's not just completely flooded with natural light we went with a really soft white on all the cabinetry (Benjamin Moore's Swiss Coffee). We thought about doing the island a different color, but we wanted to keep the base colors very simple so we could add lots of color in accessories and other furniture. There will be a built-in banquette area to the right of this photo and we wanted some flexibility with color and pattern options with the upholstery and the finish on the table and chairs.

The appliances and counter tops will be installed in the next couple days. We went with a Macaubus quartzite for the counter tops and backsplash.

It's mostly a soft gray color and has the beautiful veining that we all love, but it wears much harder than a marble - more like a granite.

We're doing extra long polished nickel bin pulls on the drawers and small button knobs on the cabinets and top drawers. Some of the hardware was backordered, but everything should be in later this week, so in just a few days we'll have all the pieces of the puzzle in place!

The floors will be installed last. We went with an oiled French oak (thanks again for your input and reassurance!). I think it's all going to be so pretty together! Stay tuned for after photos...