Colleen Healey Architecture devised this light-filled jewel box of a kitchen as part of an extensive renovation of a historic American Foursquare home in Washington, DC, for a young family who had recently returned after six years living in Japan. The family wanted a space that prioritized kid-friendly functionality and unfettered access to the outdoors — with an expressive mix of
materials inspired by their experience living abroad.

A mix of materials — warm pine ceiling planks, dramatic quartzite counters, rich walnut cabinets and hand-made tiles — creates a layered and inviting backdrop for busy family life.

As with many historical renovations, this one came with its fair share of challenges, most notably the original upper-storey sleeping porches that had to be retained, per regulations. Positioned directly above the kitchen (itself a 1980s addition that architect Colleen Healey and her team expanded to 4.2 by 5.4 metres), the architectural feature dipped down below the ceiling line, creating a visual and physical impediment. To fix this, Healey first inserted an open steel frame to support the elevated structures and allow the back facade to be removed and replaced by walls of full-height, pine-framed windows. A sinuous cove-like ceiling installation (made from moulded foam covered in plaster) elegantly conceals the irregular transition; a different plaster on the walls extends to envelop the separate fridge and freezer and brightly contrasts the pine-plank ceiling.

Complementing that warm pinewood and textural plaster is a material palette informed by the owners’ favourite bar in Japan, one that mixes rustic wood tones with light and warmth. Walnut lower cabinets from Boffi wrap the kitchen’s work zone and are clad in a natural quartzite with dramatic veining, while a counter-to-ceiling wall of handmade Moroccan zellige tiles in shimmering blue-green tones with putty-brown grout adds character and depth. Open walnut shelves stand in for upper cabinets, a choice whose rationale was twofold: “The lack of upper cabinets enables their three kids to reach everything and allows for the counter-to-ceiling windows,” says Healey, who also installed two skylights to introduce even more natural light.

Just steps from the kitchen and accessed by a full wall of sliders in the dining room is a “meadow” garden where the homeowners grow a lot of their own herbs and vegetables.

Managing to be both sophisticated and hardworking, the new kitchen is the perfect backdrop for the family’s life — one that nods to their time in Japan while providing a space for them to comfortably grow into the future.