The Burrow Kitchen Design Plan

This is a sponsored post by Lowe’s. All opinions are 100% my own.

It’s kitchen plan reveal day and I’m over here doing a happy dance! Things have started flying at the Burrow. We were over there last night checking on progress and I filmed a progress walkthrough! You can check that out here. It was so exciting to take all my paint samples and actually start envisioning how rooms are going to look now that sheetrock and trim has started! Above, I’m standing in the kitchen! I’m so excited to share what this room is going to look like.

I’ve said it so many times before, but kitchens are my very favorite room to design. I’ve fallen in love with cooking and baking over the last five years, so it’s somewhere the kids and I spend a lot of time. It’s a place that guests gather. The phrase, “the heart of the home,” rings so true in our house.

This process has been so fun, pulling from four kitchens we’ve designed and lived in in the past. We know things we loved and things we didn’t. And something about designing this particular space has felt therapeutic and so special to me, almost like it’s a glorious reward for all of the moving and challenge we’ve stepped through the last nine years. It was challenge with a purpose that we were all the way behind and excited for! The destination makes the journey beautiful and worthy, but it doesn’t make it easy. But reaching that resting place after a long journey of anticipating is oh so sweet.

So, let’s talk about our resting place after a long, purposeful journey today, shall we? The kitchen was the first design that came to me for this new house. And it came fast! Let’s start by talking about the design bases in the room.

As soon as I saw that initial inspiration image, the vision was born. If you missed the full inspiration post, check that out here.

I talked about all of the reasons this image was so striking to me in the inspiration post, so I won’t rehash it here. But as soon as I saw it, I was drawn to the sage cabinetry. I loved how it was neutral, but green. And I LOVED the classic blue and white paired with it. About a minute after seeing this photo, I knew the Burrow kitchen needed sage cabinets and blue and white patterned tile. And I haven’t wavered on it once ever since! The vision is so good in my mind.

I had that tangible base of sage, blue and white, and knew the aged, collected, and natural feel I wanted. So I started brainstorming and searching European kitchens for more ideas. In every kitchen I’ve ever designed, we’ve never done upper cabinets. We’ve always done base with upper open shelves. And I’ve always loved it. I knew I didn’t want traditional uppers in this kitchen either, but I did want something a little different than the standard shelves we’ve used.

I started tossing around the idea of some sort of built-in shelving unit above the cabinets. When I stumbled on this Belgian kitchen, it was exactly what I’d been picturing come to life.

I love that this is a built-in cabinet with so much character that still allows for open display. I loved the plank backs of the cabinet and that you can display beautiful dishes, but also jars of flour and functional items.

Y’all know how much I design for focal walls and views. I knew the kitchen needed to have a powerful focal point. Remember on our layout, we have a wall-sized cased opening to the living room. That view had to be good! Once I had the cabinet vision, I sat down and sketched out that main focal wall! I’m so giddy and excited about this. Here is what we’re going for, friends.

As much as I love old and collected, I also love symmetry in design. So, I’m loving these two built-in cabinets that will go from each side wall to the tile, and then counter to ceiling. They’ll be backed with vertical shiplap and will have shaker pegs under the bottom row of shelving. SHAKER PEGS! I’m so obsessed with shaker pegs, y’all. I love the classic feel they bring to a space and the function! We’re sourcing all of our other cabinets from Lowe’s and will build these built-ins ourselves. We’ll share some details on how we build them once they’re done!

And yes, WE ARE TILING THE HOOD. I think this is my very favorite part of the kitchen. I fell hard for that blue and white tile as soon as I found it and I wanted it to be a major player in this kitchen. I knew I wanted a tile back splash “panel” like we have in our current kitchen because I love the view and impact it has vs. just a back splash from counter to shelves. I first pictured it filling all the space between cabinets and hood to the ceiling, but wanted even more of it. And I didn’t want the hood breaking it up with either white or more sage. So, we’ll do a simple box for the hood that will be covered in that glorious tile. I am DYING to see this come to life.

I want to hang copper pots above the stove, have some lovely, homey sconces and then will fill those shelves and pegs with all of the beautiful, functional things we need in a kitchen: cutting boards, hot pads, trivets, scissors, wooden spoons, the list goes on and on and on.

I’ve searched and searched for the right paint color. I wanted a lovely neutral green that didn’t appear gray or tan, but also didn’t appear too green. I’ve seen colors like this in so many classic old homes and love it. Tall order, right? When I found the paint color (HGTV Home by Sherwin Williams Escape Gray), it was the exact color and shade I’d been picturing…the perfect blend of green and neutral. So, picture Escape Gray cabinets all around on the base and then continuing from counter to ceiling for the built-ins flanking that gorgeous tile. The rest of the walls in the kitchen will be vertical planks like you see behind the shelves, but they will be creamy white from counter to ceiling so that the color is only on the cabinet work.

Now that we’ve covered the base, let’s talk other details and finishes we’ll layer in. I want you guys to see the whole plan together at once and then I’ll break down all the individual elements.

And I’m in kitchen Heaven. I’ve been dreaming up parts of this kitchen for years.

Taking a closer look at our base here, doesn’t it just feel so classic and aged, but still filled with personality? I’m going to break down a lot of these design elements further in future posts, but will chat just a bit more about the choices we’ve made.

I’m still choosing the creamy paint color, but I love the age that cream vs. white white brings. We’ve used granite for three kitchens and always liked it. But on our last kitchen, we went with a white quartz and it’s by far my favorite we’ve done. It is super durable and has lovely marble-like veining, but it is a bit of a cleaner palette than the speckles of granite. I love bringing in pattern through tile and other elements, so going a bit more streamlined with the countertop is good. We chose this Allen & Roth “Peaceful” Quartz because it was more cream than stark white and I love it mixed in with the other elements.

For flooring, I’ve always been drawn to the old brick floors seen in many kitchens. We haven’t done tile in a kitchen before and that was something we really wanted to do in this house. Chris and I both have dreamed about brick tile floors for several houses now, so it felt like the perfect time. And I love how it serves as an anchor in this mainly-light space. We ordered some different samples and loved how this ceramic brick looked like aged brick, but was smooth and comfortable to walk on.

APPLIANCES, Y’ALL. I have a whole post about these appliances and why we chose them planned, but have to touch on it here. I first saw GE’s “Cafe” line probably four or so years ago…right when it launched. Back then, I’d just fallen in love with cooking, but I’d been designing kitchens for years. I was first drawn to these cabinets purely because of aesthetics. THEY’RE GORGEOUS. They come in a lot of different finishes, but back then, I picked out the matte white and said “One day….one day, I’ll design a kitchen around those.” And when we started talking about building, the first thing I knew I wanted was this line of appliances.

As I’ve grown more and more as the “chef” in our house who is so passionate about cooking and experimenting in the kitchen, I fell in love with the quality and gourmet capabilities of these. Not to say you can’t cook a great meal on any stove, but most passionate cooks have their dream stove…and this is mine, y’all.

You can really customize these by choosing different color knobs and we’re going to go with the brushed copper to play well with the other copper accents in the space. Matte white (and super finger print and stain resistant!!!) with brushed copper? YES PLEASE.

These are pricier than appliances we’ve purchased in the past, so we’re making decisions elsewhere to save and allow room for these in the budget. For example, the choice not to do any upper cabinets…while I love the look and function of that, it’s also always been a budget decision. That cuts our kitchen cabinet budget literally in half and saves us as much as these appliances cost! It’s all a trade-off where you have to prioritize what’s most important to you when renovating or building. But that’s a post for another day (more budget breakdowns and discussions to come!).

And now those details!

Like I said above, I’ll talk more about these specific choices in dedicated posts. But for now, isn’t all the copper glorious? Can’t you just see it layered over the cream and sage-y goodness?

We’ve had apron-front farmhouse sinks in every kitchen we’ve designed, but they’ve always been white. I love a good classic white farmhouse sink. And that was the plan here because that’s always my default. But one image I stumbled upon (of course of a centuries-old European kitchen) had a hammered copper sink. And I was done for. I researched and learned that most old European kitchens had metal sinks like this or stone. THIS COPPER SINK, you guys. I can’t take how pretty it is. It’s hammered, huge double bowl, and apron front, so you’ll see that gorgeous copper sitting on top of the green cabinets. I wanted to bring in just a touch of dark to really anchor this space, so an oil-rubbed bronze faucet with classic lines really spoke to me.

I love mixing metals and finishes, but decided to go with all copper lighting in here since there are so many other mixed elements. We’re going to use these lovely sconces over our built-ins, so they’ll shine down on the shelves. Cozy views, friends! I loooooved the antique feel of the copper pendants and wanted to really make a statement with those. We’re going to hang two of them over the sink (one over each bowl) in front of that big triple window.

And the rug!!! I think this is the runner we’re going to use, but am leaving the door open to change my mind. Rugs are “my thing,” as you guys know. I was blown away by the amazing vintage-feeling rugs Lowe’s has and filled up a Pinterest board with rug choices! From pictures, this is my favorite with our tile and other elements, but I may order a few and choose the best fit in person. But this is the feel it’ll have!

Y’all, I am seriously so happy as I write this! This is my most exciting project to date and I can’t wait to share how it all develops with y’all as we move closer and closer to move-in date (looking like early February). I’m going to talk about laying out the space in the next kitchen post, so you’ll be able to get a real picture for where things will go then. Stay tuned, friends! And let me know what you think about this kitchen vision! I’ve been so excited to share it with y’all.