A One-of-a-Kind 1970s Kitchen Renovation

Just a few years ago Peggy and Buck Barnhart downsized to a charming cottage. However, they had to admit there was one area they didn’t consider charming: the original 1970s kitchen.

Brown floors, brown cabinets, beige walls—Peggy Barnhart thought these were the makings for kitchen drudgery. And as an artist and lover of color, Peggy’s color choices are anything but dull. So her designing mind began planning and plotting how to create a one-of-a-kind kitchen.

As the remodel began, everything but the floor was removed. That included a washer and dryer that had been behind bi-fold doors. Peggy used the former laundry space for custom cabinets that house the refrigerator and double ovens. The sink was kept in front of the window, and a cooktop was installed on the counter to the left.

Style Idea

The clock above the sink is an example of Peggy’s ingenuity. She framed the face of an old clock, creating a unique piece of art. When redecorating follow Peggy’s lead and consider shopping your house and using items in an unexpected way.

To keep the room open and create a cottagey look Peggy decided not to have wall-to-wall upper cabinets installed. Instead, only three enclosed cupboards hang on the walls. An open shelf to the left of the cooktop keeps cookbooks within reach, and a decorative glassfront cabinet holds special serving pieces.

In looking for a wall color, Peggy explains, “I am a lover of anything with green in it.” So she found this paint color that is mustard yellow with a hint of green. “It just makes me happy,” she says. “I love coming back home to it.” She also loves how versatile the shade is and how well it mixes with other colors.

“I like to use stuff where it’s not supposed to go,” Peggy says. So when decorating the kitchen she put this concept to work. She found an architectural wooden piece at an antiques shop and thought it might have been from an old church. With the help of her cabinetmaker they were able to repurpose it as the cooktop’s hood, making it the focal point of her new kitchen. Peggy attached casters to a worn and well-loved farm table, making it an island. The colorful kilim rug used in a living area in their old house seemed new again as the kitchen rug. The beautiful glass light fixture above the island is a cloche Peggy bought at Anthropologie. When it came time to hang it she decided it looked better upside down.

As Peggy said, she likes using things in unexpected ways, and that may just explain what is so enticing about this one-of-a-kind kitchen.