On this blog, we show a lot of the work we do for others but today, I’d like to open the doors to some of our staff’s homes – in particular, the kitchen. Here’s what a few of our staff have at home on the stove.

During Bobby’s residency in Nashville (he now calls Atlanta home), he renovated and lived in three houses. The picture above is from the most contemporary of the trio; the following is from the most traditional. Both kitchens had a culinary laboratory-like feel and were featured in Veranda and House and Garden, respectively.

My wife, Mary Robin Jurkiewicz, and I have also renovated three houses here in Montgomery. Two of the projects featured a bold programmatic move -the relocation of the kitchen function into existing dining room spaces. In most older houses, the kitchen is usually relegated to a servant’s position in the rear of the house. Meanwhile the beautiful formal dining room usually languishes unused. Room reassignment suddenly allowed a vibrantly active social space to be placed in the least used real estate in the heart of these lovely old houses. Once situated, these “exposed” kitchens called for a new aesthetic – one of furnishing the room as opposed to lining it with cabinetry, A large island replaces the dining table and free standing appliances serve as buffets and armoires. I call these experiments in design the anti-suburban kitchens.

In the renovation of their Craftsman style cottage, partner Chris Tippett and his wife Anne decided to make their renovated kitchen look like an old Southern sleeping porch. Wood plank walls, barn door pantries and wrought iron touches compliment the humble nature of their simple, elegant kitchen.

In the renovation of a turn of the century neighborhood fire station, staff architect David Braly and his partner Mark Montoya turned their talented hands to the creation of their eclectic kitchen. This casual cook’s hearth, located at the end of their sunny living room, comes across quaintly European in nature. It’s evident in this design that David’s extensive travel experiences have marinated and were brought home to simmer. As a matter of fact, this kitchen was recently featured on another blog and can be found here.

Nicely composed and appointed spaces aren’t just delegated to our designers.  Our business manager Richard Norris and his partner, Mark Leslie, turned their small sunlit garden facing breakfast room into a brilliant example of restraint and elegance in kitchen design. A less-is-more exploration, their happy kitchen utilizes a few bold elements: an elliptical marble-topped island, a pier mirror backsplash, a ridiculously gangly gothic chandelier, all combined to create a harmonious chamber orchestra piece. This kitchen was also featured in House Beautiful’s book Kitchens.

I’ll wrap up with the smallest kitchen of the bunch – the kitchen in my Manhattan apartment. Due to the efficiency of New York real estate size, It became an editing exercise in juggling necessity and beauty. Basically a glorified contemporary buffet juxtaposed with a rustic rolling island table, it showed me what little you actually need to get cooking.

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