Rural Kitchen Remodel—Catching up to life in 2024
What do you do when you realize the honeymoon with your home is over? You could walk away and find a new love, or you could get honest with what is no longer working and fix it. That's what this couple did in this main floor remodel.
Lead Carpenter Shawn Ilstrup
Carpenter Allen Carpentier, Jon Enfield
Painter Dave Christenson
Project Summary
The funny thing about designing and then building your own house, as this couple did, is the assumption that it will outlive you. And it will, to a degree. But a home is more than its structural bones. You love it on day one because it’s fresh and new. It serves all your purposes. But how will you like it in 7,304 days, or 20 years, when it no longer works?
So what do you do when the honeymoon is over? Move? Or stay and improve? More and more people are making their home into their last home.
Let's face it. Design is only as timeless as the people who live in it. When our families grow or shrink, or our knees give out, the design of our home needs to catch up to us—to accommodate the current us, as well as the future us.
In the case of these homeowners, it became clear that nothing really worked anymore or looked aesthetically pleasing. Their lives at home had changed in many ways and their home needed to catch up.
So, we redesigned the entire layout with longevity in mind. We upgraded all the surfaces, solved the unsightly aspects, and gave them functionality balanced properly with a modern, uplifting aesthetic.
More and more homeowners are considering the possibility of a “forever home” instead of the move-up approach, which usually includes elements of universal design and/or aging-in-place remodeling.
It is estimated that by 2025 one-third of all home improvements will be made by homeowners age 65 and older. According to ProRemodeler, “Homeowners are choosing to renovate their homes to fit their needs rather than move to an expensive assisted living facility or be subjected to soaring interest rates that come with purchasing a new home.”
Before
Before the remodel, the functionality layout of the kitchen presented issues. For example, the maple cabinets, once striking in contrasting hues, had grown dull with a natural patina from exposure to sunlight. And the drawers were too shallow and short to hold all cookery and grant full access. Other spaces in the kitchen, intended for future development, had remained unused with minimal utility while other areas were designed with too much utility. The sink, microwave, garbage disposal, dishwasher, and a tiny bar countertop all in a 12-foot square area only looked efficient—and mostly on paper.
After
