Kitchen of the Week: Salvage Meets High End in Vancouver
A flood proved to be a blessing for Dave and Karen Hayley; water damage became an opportunity to give their compact galley kitchen more personality and space. The Hayleys designed their kitchen with the help of contractor David Babakaiff, who opened it to the dining room, giving it an extra 40 square feet.
Demolition revealed a triangular gap underneath an adjacent staircase, and Babakaiff got creative, turning the space into a wine bar and an appliance garage. In the rest of the kitchen bamboo countertops, glass tile, a 140-year-old wrought iron gate, salvaged fir flooring and the original white Ikea cabinets have a sophisticated, contemporary look.
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: Dave and Karen Hayley
Location: Fairview, Vancouver
Contractor: David Babakaiff, Alair Homes
Size: 120 square feet
Cost: $55,000, including labor, materials and appliances
The new kitchen has many of the original kitchen's Ikea cabinets. Babakaiff complemented the existing cabinetry with custom details and additional cabinets for a seamless look with plenty of storage. Glass-front uppers give the galley kitchen a more open look.
Using the existing cabinets allowed Dave and Karen to spend more on high-quality appliances, such as a built-in Liebherr fridge.
Cabinetry: Ädel, Ikea; hardware: Lansa, Ikea; fridge: Liebherr; oven, hood: LG
A laminated bamboo countertop extends to the floor like a waterfall at the end of the kitchen. This particular vertical-grain bamboo has a stripe of dark chestnut running through the core; the dark line runs all the way around the sink and refrigerators. Reclaimed fir flooring, refinished and hand carved for texture, contrasts with the sleek bamboo.
Countertops: Teragren; backsplash: Julian Tile
Dave and Karen each wanted to incorporate something special and fun into their new kitchen. Dave is a fan of fine whiskey, so he designed a spot to keep his best bottles on display.
Sink: Fireclay; faucet: Delta; dishwasher: Miele
They found the old wrought iron gate at a nearby salvage yard to fit an empty slice of wall next to the kitchen. Babakaiff built slightly curved shelves to accommodate the gate's shape and up to 30 bottles.
Microwave, warming lamp: LG
Karen prefers wine, so Babakaiff reserved a slot at the end of the kitchen for a wine bar. Thirty bottles of white can fit in the wine refrigerator, while a 3-foot-deep pullout keeps reds at room temperature.
A staircase on the other side of the far kitchen wall creates the triangular nook above the wine bar.
Wine cooler: Marvel
Here's a shot of the gap with the drywall removed.
The original kitchen design simply covered up the 3-foot-deep gap, wasting potential storage space.
AFTER: Babakaiff took advantage of the gap with this new design. Now wine racks fill the bottom of it, and an above-counter appliance garage takes up a portion of the top.
See more contemporary kitchens on Houzz
