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Miller's Kitchen Sourcebook:
Range:
Jenn-Air.
Refrigerator: Sub-Zero.
Dishwasher: Bosch.
Sink: Jameco.
Faucet: KWC.
Countertop: Corian.
File boxes: IKEA.
Italian espresso
maker: La Pavoni, Europiccola, available at Williams-Sonoma.
Dishwasher: Bosch.
Faucet: KWC.
Countertop: Corian.
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Text by Susan Fadem. Styling by Kathy Curotto
When Laura Miller and her husband, Paul, bought a
house built in 1891, they were determined to keep its original
character intact. Sure, things like the too-formal wallpaper in the kitchen had
to go, the sooner the better. But Laura, a design consultant, saw past the
dinginess, the darkness, and what turned out to be a seven-layer pileup of
linoleum on the kitchen floor.
Although some buyers might have ripped out the
house’s innards and started over, Laura held down costs while remaining true to
her design ethic. For decades she’d gone to estate and garage sales, eager for
bargains on everything from etched glassware to serving platters and maps of the
world. These objects, along with personal, sentimental treasures, allowed her to
enhance the natural character of her surroundings. Treasured family photos were
a perfect fit in antique frames—and if the glass inside happened to be old and
wavy, so much the better. Laura likes a hefty dose of vintage character along
with her contemporary appliances.
Laura never considered removing the “darkly depressing”
pine cabinets. (a) White paint, however, did
wonders for their appearance. Even the brass hardware got an uplift—it’s now
nickel-plated. Old family photos and brown-and-white transferware offset the new
appliances, fulfilling Laura’s wish for a kitchen both homey and
state-of-the-art.
(b) A pile of wine corks
is a remembrance of good times past. above right: (c) The
framed maps commemorate Laura and Paul’s lineage. She’s Russian, English, and
Scottish; he’s Scandinavian. The glass vase, adorned with their shared monogram,
celebrates their history together. A new oak floor extends into the adjoining
butler’s pantry. (d) Some of Laura’s etched
glassware came from her mother.
Appearances can be deceiving. (e) Atop the cabinets and
ready for retrieval with a ladder, silver-plated and
ironstone platters are casually strewn. (f) The slightly shabby French bistro
chair looks as if it just happens to be
sitting near the marble-topped,
antique garden table.
Don’t expect a
computer in Laura’s breakfast nook/home office. A “pen-and-paper person,” she
prefers file boxes and a 1920s chrome bakers’ rack, the latter found in an
antiques shop. The framed aerial map shows St. Louis, Missouri, where Laura
lives. (g) The original architect, Theodore Link, used
similar stones when he designed St. Louis’ Union Station, a railway hub that’s
now a shopping and restaurant complex. (h) An
artful setting.
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