Photography by Elizabeth Haynes
When Saratoga homeowners Kate and Ted Martin decided to remodel their kitchen, they dreamed of a space with two distinct zones—one for cooking and one for entertaining. After a few failed attempts at making it happen, they found just the duo for the job.
“The first time I met Kate and Ted, they had already worked with a few different kitchen companies trying to figure out the design, layout, and finishes, but weren’t happy with the limitations of the cabinetry that was being presented to them,” says Justin Steinberger of Argyle-based Steinberger Woodworks and one half of the Martins’ dream team. “Those kind of words are music to my ears. We design and build everything in house, and really have no limitations. And I always enjoy a challenge.”
The challenge at hand: Turn a closed-off kitchen and dining room—with a gorgeous bay window that just so happened to hinder many potential cabinetry layouts—into one big, open-concept kitchen with two (!) islands. The layout, Steinberger took care of. The design choices are where Andrea Zappone came in.
“I’m pretty sure I said no the first two times Kate asked me to help out with the design, but she won me over with two margaritas at Cantina,” says Zappone, a non-designer who just so happens to have exquisite interior design taste. “One of the first things I wanted to do was give the two islands different personalities. The ‘utility’ island has a stone top, bead board on the sides, curved traditional legs, and three feminine crystal pendants hanging above where their daughters would eat breakfast. The other—more of a bar for entertaining—has a sleek stone waterfall edge and sits beneath an ultra-modern gold linear chandelier. The juxtaposition of the traditional elements of the utility bar with the sleek design of the entertaining bar makes my heart sing.”
There’s also a juxtaposition when it comes to the cabinets themselves. Some are painted in a neutral tone (Benjamin Moore’s Alaskan Skies), and some are wood tone rift-sawn white oak with a specialty finish on them that preserves their color. The gold hardware just so happens to work on both.
To bring it all together, Zappone and Kate agreed on a stone backsplash to match the islands. And while the stone looks a whole lot like marble, it’s actually a more affordable option. “Porcelain fabricators essentially print porcelain slabs to look like natural stone,” Zappone says. “The slabs are much easier to affix to walls, given that they are much thinner and weigh less than marble. And, porcelain doesn’t stain or etch like marble, making it considerably more durable.” Kate selected Calacatta Macchia Vecchia stone, which has browns and tans that run through it, and chocolate brown stools to bring in the colors—an homage to her mom, who always decorated with chocolate brown and had passed away less than a year prior.
“With the help of Andrea and Justin, we transformed this home into an open, functional space that perfectly fits our family,” Kate says. “Now, our home feels inviting, intentional, and exactly how we envisioned—a place to gather, cook, and make memories.”
