“Don’t get me wrong, the old kitchen wasn’t terrible but what you don’t see is how the drawers were falling apart, the lack of functionality in the pantry, and how dark it was. And don’t even get me started on the beige!” says Melbourne interiors and lifestyle blogger Krystal Giardina of House of Harvee. She recently updated her circa 2011 kitchen, elevating it from a rather pedestrian affair to something much more beautiful. The result is one of the best ‘before and afters’ we’ve seen which is saying something as we’ve seen plenty!
The new kitchen marries a gorgeous array of materials including white shaker style doors, pink marble kit kat tiles and plenty of fresh white in the form of Dulux Lexicon Quarter. The result certainly seems to fit Krystal’s design brief – she wanted a light, bright and modern farmhouse feel. “I wanted a wow factor too,” says Krystal who worked on the design herself creating seven sketches and a moodboard in the process.
“I really wanted more natural light and was hoping to live out my ‘skylight in the kitchen dream,’ however because of the way the home was built it wasn’t a possibility,” says Krystal. One fairly simple solution to the claustrophobic and dark feel was the removal of the bulkhead in the kitchen – it was brought up to normal ceiling height which made a huge difference to the amount of light that permeates the space.
“The minute we took the bulkhead off I knew it was going to be amazing! It automatically felt like a bigger, brighter and much more grand space,” says Krystal.
The kitchen cabinetry was built by MKR kitchen renovations and features internal hardware from Hettich including soft close doors and drawers. Arguably a standout within the space, the pink marble tiles that clad the island bench were sourced from Perini Tiles. Another unique feature is the pot filler above the cook top. “I sourced it through Beckar Studios and I knew my kitchen just had to have one,” says Krystal.
“I’m so proud of how beautiful it looks and how the new kitchen flows perfectly with the whole style and design of the home. Before the the colours were dull and didn’t scream ‘me’ at all. Now, the space is ‘Krystal’ in a kitchen!”
Photography: Krystal Giardina
