Why is it a big deal to have a chef’s kitchen?  Because the right tools make all the difference.  Have you ever tried to remove a Phillips head screw with a flat-bladed screwdriver?  While you might be able to do it, it won’t be as easy as if you’d had the right tool.  And cooking in a well-designed and well-equipped kitchen is like having the perfect tool for the job.

Before:  a Dark and Dated Kitchen

Our 4-bedroom house in northern Virginia is a nice, modest, 1970’s-era split level.  It’s got a lot to offer.  It’s located in a quiet, suburban neighborhood with well-kept homes and friendly families.  The community includes spacious meadows and forested trails for walking our dogs.  And my husband has a long history with this house.  He bought it from his parents when they moved to Arizona.

Over the years, my husband and/or his parents had remodeled various parts of the house.   But until a few months ago we were using the original kitchen.  Sure, some of the kitchen appliances had been replaced with newer models. Still, the “bones” of the kitchen had remained the same.  The kitchen felt dark and dated.  And the process of cooking meals in the old kitchen was less than efficient.  So when I began to spend more time in the kitchen as a culinary student, I started to wish that we could remodel the space to better suit our needs.  Thank goodness, my husband agreed.  I think he had also grown weary of the de-laminating countertops, cluttered pantry, dark cabinets, and scuffed linoleum floor!