Currently coveting: Barber & Osgerby's new tabletop line for Royal Doulton. Consisting of 40 pieces (including a flatware set), the Olio line is meant to be mixed and matched. "The range is built from a combination of materials, including ceramic, wood, and stainless steel, as well as a range of surface finishes: glazed, unglazed, matte, shiny," according to the designers. "It's an idiosyncratic mix of shapes and materials and is not meant to be a 'set'; it's a collection, and because of that, the pieces will sit happily alongside other objects in the home." The line will be available in the UK in May; see more at Barber & Osgerby.

Above: The collection includes wooden serving pieces designed to coordinate with the ceramic pieces. 

Above: A mix of ceramics and wood.

Above: A tea set in white glazed ceramic.

Above: Small trays and platters.

Above: The matte black pieces were inspired by Royal Doulton's color-tinted Jasperware.

And to see our favorite ceramic kitchen tiles, including Barber & Osgerby's design for Mutina, go to Trend Alert: 5 Minimalist Graphic Ceramic Tiles.

More Stories from Remodelista

• 13 Strategies for Hiding the Microwave
• Devol's New Kitchen Showroom in London
• Steal This Look: A Stainless Kitchen Made from Ikea Components

Founded by two Loughborough University grads in 1989 as a humble handmade furniture shop, Devol has grown into a sizable bespoke kitchen maker. So much so that the company, based in Cotes Mill just outside Loughborough, recently opened a London showroom. "We are getting some top clients, really famous customers, seeing what we have here and placing big orders. Half our customers are based in London, typically places like Shoreditch, Dalston, and Kew," founder Paul O'Leary told the Leicester Mercury. 

Above: The new shop is located in a wedge-shaped brick building opposite Exmouth Market in Clerkenwell.

Above: The company's Laundry Maid (their interpretation of the Sheila Maid) serves as a pot rack.

Above: On display is the company's Real Shaker Line of kitchen cabinetry (for a full kitchen, prices range from £8,000 to £25,000); a Prep Table painted white anchors the space.

Above: The kitchen cabinets are painted in Devol's Pantry Blue with Bella Brass cup handles and catches.

Above: A selection of cabinet pulls.

Above: Scenes from the showroom.

Above: A white enameled Esse range contrasts with the dark cabinetry. 

Above: Glazed cabinets encourage "orderliness," according to the company's blog.

See all our posts on Devol here, and shop our favorite UK–made kitchen tools here.

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• 13 Strategies for Hiding the Microwave
• Young Turks: Barber Osgerby for Royal Doulton
• Steal This Look: A Stainless Kitchen Made from Ikea Components

When I embarked on a kitchen remodel a few years ago, one of my main obsessions was to hide the microwave (Jerome, remember?). My kitchen is tiny, and it proved a challenge to find an unoccupied niche. But we prevailed, and I'm happy to say I haven't had to come face to face with my microwave for the past decade. Here are 10 spaces where the microwave is tucked away from aesthetically appraising eyes.

Above: A Dumbo loft designed by Marco Pasanella and Rebecca Robertson features a microwave tucked inside the kitchen island; see the whole project at A Whimsical Family Loft in Brooklyn. Photograph by Matthew Williams for Remodelista.

Above: Alison Devlin of design firm Jute (a member of the Remodelista Architect/Designer Directory) tucked a microwave in a kitchen cabinet; see the whole project at Rehab Diary: A Small-Kitchen Makeover with Maximum Storage. Photo by Drew Kelly.

Above: A folding corner cabinet provides a niche for a microwave and other appliances (note the piano hinges; read more at Design Sleuth: Elegant Piano Hinges).

Above: For a Silverlake remodel, designers Project M+ tucked the microwave tucked under the kitchen counter; see the whole project at Before/After: A Cool and Confident Kitchen in LA by Project M+.

Above: A cabinet front conceals a microwave. Photograph via Decor Pad.

Above: A microwave and a toaster oven tucked under a countertop ingeniously solves two problems, via Gepetto.

Above: Barbara Bestor tucked a microwave in a side cabinet in A New England Kitchen by Way of LA. 

Above: A built-in Viking Microwave is a sleek, discreet (and expensive) option.

Above: The built-in BM 281 Gaggenau Microwave Oven features gas-pressurized springs for smooth opening and closing.

Above: Allison Bloom of Dehn Bloom Design tucked her microwave in a niche in her kitchen island (see Steal This Look: Mill Valley Loft-Style Kitchen). Photograph by John Merkl.

Above: Traditional cabinetry with a built-in microwave slot; via Heartwood Kitchens.

Above: Ikea cabinets with swing-up doors for countertop appliances; via Dwell.

Above: A clever slotted bookshelf, spice rack, and microwave niche, all hidden behind pocket doors; via This Old House.

Interested in more storage ideas for the kitchen? See 15 Ideas to Steal from High-End Kitchen Systems.

This post is an update; the original ran on April 9, 2013, in our Bring on the Spring issue.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Devol's New Kitchen Showroom in London
• Young Turks: Barber Osgerby for Royal Doulton
• Steal This Look: A Stainless Kitchen Made from Ikea Components

To begin my investigation into the world of compact countertop appliances, I thought I'd first measure my own countertop. The verdict: 18 inches wide with a depth of 15 inches. My kitchen is small—not suburbia small, but city small—with a tiny refrigerator, an oven that barely fits a small baking sheet, and flatware drawers of odd dimensions. Since I need every inch of the countertop as prep space, my kitchen cannot afford a single stationary countertop appliance; they all go back into cupboards and drawers and anywhere I can shove them.

To begin the discussion, here is our selection of countertop appliances, where no single dimension breaches my own 18-inch requirement. Have a favorite small countertop appliance to share? We want to hear your suggestions in the Comments section below.

Toasters & Toaster Ovens

Above: In a size as thick as an average cookbook, Japanese company Plus Minus Zero's 1-Slice Toaster in white is 6.6 by 8.8 by 3.1 inches; $67.79 at Amazon.

Above: The Breville Bit More 2-Slice Toaster is one of the smallest among two-slice toasters, measuring 7.75 by 11.25 by 8 inches. The electrical cord stores up inside the toaster from below, which could prove useful if it can't live on the counter full time; $79.95 at Williams-Sonoma.

Above: While difficult to source, the Plus Minus Zero Vertical Toaster Oven, from Naoto Fukasawa, is as slim as they come (8.8 by 9.5 by 11.7 inches). It can be found in both black and white (shown) through various dealers on eBay, somewhere in the range of $275 to $320.

Above: A great two-in-one appliance, especially for kitchens lacking a proper or functional oven, is Cuisinart's Compact Toaster Oven Broiler; it measures 8 by 15 by 13 inches and is $49.99 at Amazon.

Blenders & Juicers

Above: Available in as many colors as a Birkin handbag, the Cuisinart Mini-Prep Plus Food Processor has a three-cup capacity and measures 5.9 by 10.2 by 8.4 inches; $35.99 at Amazon.

Above: As someone whose large Vitamix is dissected into parts and stored in various cupboards (in the interest of space), I wish I had purchased the Vitamix S55 Personal Blender instead. It measures 6 by 9 by 16 inches and includes two containers (both a 20- and 40-fluid-ounce size); $449.95 at Williams-Sonoma.

Above: The L'Equip Mini Pulp Ejection Juicer has a funny, nostalgic look—like the juicer your great aunt passed down to your mother or the sort of kitchen appliance you'd see in a 1970s-era French film. Nonetheless, it measures 7.5 by 13.5 by 11.5 inches; small proportions for a decent juicer with a 480-watt motor; $109.99 at Sears. For more, see our post 10 Easy Pieces: Juicers.

Microwave Ovens

Above: The smallest microwave we're able to source is the iWavecube Personal Desktop Microwave Oven (10 by 10.5 by 12 inches) for $129.99 at Amazon.

Above: Whirlpool's 0.5 Cu. Ft. Countertop Microwave is a compact 13.75 by 15.38 by 14.13 inches and is available in black, silver, and white (shown) for $139 at Home Depot.

Above: LG's 0.7 Cu. Ft. Compact Microwave is a little wider than the largest MacBook Pro; it's 10.13 by 17.9 by 12.25 inches and costs $99.99 at Syn Mart.

Other Appliances

Above: The Zojirushi Micom Rice Warmer and Cooker has compact dimensions of 9.88 by 13.25 by 8.5 inches; $99.99 at Bed, Bath & Beyond.

Above: For the avid tea drinker, an electric kettle is a countertop essential. The Universal Expert Electric Kettle is an appealing option at 7.8 by 6.6 by 10.3 inches; $90 at West Elm.

Looking for major appliances for a small space? See 10 Easy Pieces: Favorite Appliances for Small Kitchens for a set of ranges, refrigerators, and more. For more functional inspiration, sift through all our Small-Space Living posts.

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• A Kitchen Inspired by Seaside Living
• 13 Strategies for Hiding the Microwave
• Devol's New Kitchen Showroom in London

Boston-based event planner and designer Kathryn Yee has always appreciated the beauty, feel, and eco-friendliness of cloth napkins. But she noticed that, for daily use at least, most people still reach for disposable paper products. Then, for one of her events, Kathryn designed a series of square serviettes made from recycled cloth. Somewhere in size between a cocktail and dinner napkin, these linens were small enough to lay out in a compact stack but generous enough for meals. Casual, yet elegant, they seemed ideal for daily use. Thus The Everyday Napkin was born.

Recently, I teamed up with Kathryn and several other Boston-area shops to create a springtime tablescape, perfect for Mother's Day or any special occasion.

Photography and styling by Justine Hand and Kathryn Yee of Bash Studio.

Above: For our setting, we paired Kathryn's Everyday Napkins with a selection of earthy ceramics in soft grays and springtime pastels. For a bit of festive sparkle, we added brushed gold Due Ice Oro flatware from Lekker Home; $115 for a five-piece set. Also from Lekker Home, the charcoal dinner plates are from the Ripple Collection by Urban Oasis; $58. The mint tea cup; ($82 with saucer), white carafe ($76), and gray jug ($26) are all by MUD Australia.

Above: Everyday Napkins are not only convenient and stylish, they're eco-friendly. Each reusable napkin is handmade by Kathryn and her mother from recycled designer fabrics. And because they are made from found textiles, the Everyday Napkin collections are always changing and can be mixed and matched; $28 for a set of seven.

Above: Measuring 6.5 inches square, the stackable Everyday Napkins are good for weddings and buffets. You can even leave a collection on the counter for on-the-go meals and snacks. Here we used selects from Kathryn's Spring Collection, made from prewashed white cotton linen with contrast herringbone stitching, as well as the Everyday Napkin Chambray Collection (both $28 for a set of seven).

Above: Our informal yet elegant table setting includes my set of vintage cordial glasses and an ironstone compote. In the corner, a tall vase by Morandi ($140 at Greentail Table) holds pink and white cherry blossoms.

Above: Originally designed for Höst restaurant in Copenhagen, Norm lunch plates provide another touch of pastel. We used Norm lunch plates in nude (pink), gray, and yellow, all available at Greentail Table; $26.

Above: Oji Masanori's brass sun trivet ($110) is paired with MUD's tiny, petal pink bowl, and a chambray Everyday Napkin with aqua trim. Other available trim colors include: citron, aqua, coral, black, tomato red, pink, gray. There's even a limited-edition pompom version. 

Above: Also from Greentail Table, Oslo Cake Server in Matte Gold; $26.

N.B. Looking for more casually elegant table inspirations? Visit:

• Fabrics and Linens: MyDrap Napkins, disposed cotton napkins on a roll
• 10 Easy Pieces: Handmade Dinnerware from Ceramic Studios
• 10 Easy Pieces: Basic Drinking Glass
• Steal This Look: Parisian Oyster Party
• A Season Celebration, Creatives Included

More Stories from Remodelista

• DIY: Painted Pastel Knobs
• Remodeling 101: Lava Stone Countertops
• Steal This Look: An Artful Bedroom at the Hotel Tivoli

Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola's first modular kitchen system is called Salinas, named for a beach town in Spain where her grandfather had a summer house. "We would go there on the weekend and there would be lots of aunts, uncles, cousins," she told Icon magazine, "with someone always cooking and my father out fishing for dinner.”

Urquiola recalls a busy kitchen full of chopping blocks, stone and copper surfaces, and open shelving. That is the inspiration for her Salinas kitchen for Italian manufacturer Boffi, which was revealed at Salone del Mobile in 2014. This year Boffi updated the collection with new surface materials and a series of full-height storage cabinets. Unlike Boffi's usual made-to-measure approach—perfectly custom to any space but a costly way to manufacture—Salinas is compiled of a few modular pieces, requiring far less energy in manufacturing and in tailoring the design to any one space.

Photographs via Boffi, except where noted. 

Above: Urquiola's finishes allow customers to create several different looks: a monochromatic kitchen, a kitchen made of a single material, or a whimsical collection of many materials, like the one shown here.  

Above: Urquiola set out to design a kitchen for small spaces, but in the end her more expansive design was a better fit with the rest of the Boffi catalog.

Above: One or more solid wood "peninsula" slabs available in ash or walnut can be fixed to the countertop or configured to slide in and out. The peninsula functions as an additional workspace, or—with a set of stools—as a dining table. For Urquiola, the wood's rounded edges give the counters a timeworn look. 

Above: The standard apron-front sink is available in natural stone, absolute black granite, or quartzite silver. The kitchen framework is made from black matte tubular steel, with LED lights integrated into the shelving. Photograph via H+K. 

Above: To achieve the look of tile countertops without the additional expense of tile installation, Urquiola used large sheets of ceramic or Sicilian lava and designed a geometric pattern of inlaid recycled glass. Photograph via Le Fil Rouge. 

Above: Options for cabinet door facings include wood, lacquer, brass, copper, zinc, and more. Countertops can be made of ceramic, marble, lava stone, or recycled PaperStone.  

Above: A glimpse of the finishes available for countertops and cabinet fronts. Photograph via H+K. 

For more Italian kitchens, see: 

• Bella Cucina: 8 Italian Kitchen Systems
• 11 Italian Kitchens, Dolce Vita Edition
• A Movable Feast: A Modular Kitchen by an Italian Architect
• 16 Made-in-Italy Kitchen Essentials

More Stories from Remodelista

• 10 Easy Pieces: Kitchen Countertop Appliances, Small-Space Living Edition
• 13 Strategies for Hiding the Microwave
• Devol's New Kitchen Showroom in London

Commissioned to remodel an 1840s Brooklyn brownstone for a Swedish-American family of four—Jakob Trollbäck and Lisa Smith Trollbäck and their children, August and Stina—architects Solveig Fernlund and Neil Logan transformed the first floor into the beating heart of the house. Wanting to create an open, loft-like space that contrasts with the rest of the structure's hallways and rooms, the architects took inspiration from Mies van der Rohe's use of built-in storage cabinets as an alternative to walls. Fernlund and Logan also solved the trickiest riddle of the room—where to place the staircase—by turning tradition on its head and building an open-tread stair at the back end of the space; their stair design, like the first floor itself, is at once low key and undeniably grand.

N.B.: The architects ran the firm Fernlund + Logan when they worked on the remodel in close collaboration with Jakob Trollbäck—it was their fourth residential project for him. They have since opened their own offices: Solveig Fernlund Design and Neil Logan Architect.

Photography by Matthew Williams for Remodelista.

Above: The wide-open kitchen revolves around a modernist picnic table and mobile-like Ingo Maurer light, the Zettel'z 5 Chandelier, clipped with pieces of paper decorated with drawings and notes. The combination of white walls, modernist wood furniture, and pale floors lend the design a Scandinavian feel.

For another indoor picnic table we're coveting, see Architect David Chipperfield's New Designs for e15.

Above: The table's bench seating is inset with shaggy seating cushions. It was purchased at ABC Carpet & Home in New York.

Above: The kitchen work area features cabinets of Douglas fir laminated to multi-ply birch plywood and an elegant, wafer-thin stainless steel counter that's also laminated to the ply. The range and hood are both Viking designs. The sink is from Italian company Alpes Inox—see our post Race-Car-Style Appliances for Compact Kitchens—and the faucet is by Bulthaup. 

Above: A detail of the stainless steel countertop. A signature of the architects is to leave the striped edges of the plywood exposed. 

Above: A large custom cabinet of Douglas fir laminated onto birch multi-ply sections off the kitchen from a small living room area by the entry. The kitchen side of the cabinet conceals the refrigerator and freezer as well as storage shelves behind closed doors.

Above: The cabinet knobs are custom made of Douglas fir.

Above: A Sub Zero refrigerator is tucked into the end closest to the sink.

Above: Shallow shelving designed for glassware.

Above: The other side of the cabinet is divided into open shelves that section off the living area, which functions as a casual parlor.

Above: The front entry presents another built-in divider, a coat closet made of Douglas fir. The armchair is Hans Wegner's 1951 classic Papa Bear Chair.

Above: The living area is used for practicing and playing music.

Above: The staircase has open risers that are made from old floor joists removed from the house and glued together to get the desired width. The open riser design allows the whole space to be light filled and oriented to the French doors. The down staircase, meanwhile, connects the first floor with the garden level of the house. The floor itself is newly installed oak that's painted in Benjamin Moore Platinum Gray enamel. It has radiant heat and is made from best-grade wood to prevent it from warping due to the heat. For more on the subject, see Remodeling 101: Things to Know About Radiant Floor Heating.

Above: The picnic dining table is used for kids' art projects as well as for family meals and dinner parties. French doors open the kitchen to a terrace and ground floor garden.

Above: Rising from the back of the kitchen, the stair presents a dramatic V-shaped profile.

Above: The stair has a rail that's wrapped in Spinneybeck leather. It's stitched in place and the seam runs on the underside where fingers are placed. It took two tries for the fabricators to get the design right.

Above: A new kitchen terrace extends over a ground floor garden patio. The long weathered table is surrounded by French Tolix chairs.  

Above: A floorplan of the newly opened-up first floor shows the use of built-in cabinets as room dividers. The brownstone is 24.5 feet wide and the first floor is 980 square feet.

To see the brownstone's attic bathroom, turn to pages 238-241 of the Remodelista book. Also check out another Fernlund + Logan project at Architect Visit: Fernlund + Logan in New York. And for more inspiration, browse our photo gallery of Scandinavian design. 

Looking for more kitchen ideas? See our past Kitchen of the Week posts.

This post is an update. It originally ran on November 21, 2013, as part of our Crowd Control issue.

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• 6 Stylish Wood Knife Racks for the Kitchen
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Are knives from obscure sources (or handmade by bearded artisans) the new status symbols of the kitchen? It's starting to seem like that. Here are six ideas for putting your kitchen arsenal on full display.

Above: Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks commissioned the 20-inch-long Jacob May Knife Strip in bleached maple for her SF offices; it's $180 from her online shop, Quitokeeto. The boxwood-handled, carbon-steel knives are the Pallarès Solsona Kitchen Knives; $44 each at Quitokeeto (and also available at March in SF and Le Marché St. George in Vancouver). 

Above: The 450-millimeter-long IF4000 Knife Rack, manufactured by Sheffield company Taylor's Eye Witness, is made from a simple strip of solid oak wood embedded with eight high-strength magnets; £35 ($53.94) from Retail Facility. 

Above: Designed by Geoffrey Lilge for On Our Table, the 24-inch-long 9.2.2 Box Knife Rack XL is made in Canada of solid American black walnut; $85 from Lumens.

Above: The 17.5-inch-long Walnut Knife Rack is made in Western Montana; $60. The similar Schmidt Brothers Acacia 18-Inch Magnet Wall Bar is $49.95, and the Schmidt Brothers Acacia 24-Inch Magnet Wall Bar is $59.95; both from Crate & Barrel.

Above: The 18-inch-long Puukko Knife Rack from Uusi is made from reclaimed old-growth cypress or redwood; $135.

Make your own knife display: See DIY: A Wall-Mounted Leather Knife Rack. 

For more ideas, take a look at:

• Expert Advice: 7 Ways to Corral Your Kitchen Knives
• Mise en Place: Kitchen Tool Drawer Organizers
• Expert Advice: 15 Things to Know About Knives
• 10 Easy Pieces: Editors' Favorite Chef's Knives

More Stories from Remodelista

• Remodeling 101: The Ins and Outs of French-Door Wall Ovens
• Kitchen of the Week: A Scandi Design in Brooklyn
• A Kitchen Inspired by Seaside Living

We're holding our first Remodelista & Gardenista Market of the year on May 9 at the Marin Country Mart in Larkspur, California, a 30-minute drive from San Francisco over the Golden Gate Bridge. (Or take the Golden Gate Ferry for a scenic trip past Alcatraz Island.)

More than 40 of our favorite local designers and creators will be there, and in anticipation, we've started making our shopping lists. Here's what each of us hopes to come away with.

Go to our Markets page for more details, and find the full list of vendors below. Hope to see you on May 9!  

Above: Dalilah is set on an Adrien Shirt from children's wear line Les Petits Carreaux for her nephew's fourth birthday; $50. See the apartment of the company's co-founder in A Grand but Understated Flat in Paris. 

For her daughter's birthday, Michelle has her eye on Pink Light Botanicals' skin-care range from Homestead Apothecary of Oakland. Above L: Crystal Rose Toner combines rosewater and aloe vera to freshen the skin; $24. Above R: Floral Facial Scrub gently exfoliates with oatmeal and the dried petals of four kinds of flowers; $32. See more in Shopper's Diary: Homestead Apothecary in SF's East Bay.

Above: Julie is planning to pick up an exotic arrangement from The Petaler. Read about the homegrown floral venture in Trend Alert: San Francisco's Favorite Flower Truck on Gardenista.

Above: Margot could use an apron update and loves Studiopatró's new ocean-blue linen Kitchen Apron, cut and sewn in California; $68. For more on Studiopatró, see Domestic Science: Studiopatró Tea Towels.

Above: I've been a longtime fan of SF jewelry designer Julia Turner's eight-foot-long Sweep Necklace; this one, made of Japanese glass beads in pumpkin, is $160. 

At the May 9 Market, shop from these Remodelista and Gardenista sellers: 

Browse our market picks for Mother's Day from Remodelista and Gardenista. (And if you can't make it to the May 9 Marin market, note that most gifts are available for purchase online.)

More Stories from Remodelista

• Table of Contents: The Organized Kitchen
• Current Obsessions: May Market
• Mother's Day Gift Guide: Picks from the Remodelista Market on May 9

Meet the latest development in the trend to bring the professional kitchen home. We predict the French-door wall oven is the next must-have design. 

Above: In an LA kitchen, architect Jeff Troyer of JWT Associates installed the American Range Legacy Series 30-Inch AROFFE230 double French-door oven; it's $7,999 at AJ Madison.

Troyer tells us, "We chose the French door model because my client loves to cook but has a serious shoulder injury, which limits raising her arms. She wanted double ovens but thought it would be impossible for her to open the upper oven if it had a conventional door." The French door style also helped to maximize space: There's only 36 inches from oven wall to kitchen island, and the French doors allow room for users to stand in front of the oven with the doors open. 

What is a French-door wall oven?

Relatively rare in private homes but common in commercial kitchens, French-door wall ovens have two doors that open outward simultaneously: Pull on one handle and both doors open, which means your other hand is free to hold whatever's going inside. 

Above: A Viking VDOF730SS 30-Inch Double Oven with French doors on top and conventional doors below is $6,849 from Amazon.

What are the advantages of a French-door wall oven?

• A French-door oven can be safer to use than an oven with a conventional fold-down door since you don't have to reach over a hot oven door to get to the oven's interior.
• The opening action of the French doors helps people with back or shoulder problems avoid the awkward motion of opening a conventional pull-down door.
• As with all wall ovens, you never have to bend down into the oven to put in or take out something heavy.
• You can stand closer to the oven when the doors are open, making it easier to keep an eye on what you're cooking and test for doneness. 
• For kitchens in which every inch counts, the French-door style requires less space in front of the oven than the conventional pull-down door. For example, the American Range French-door oven is 39.5 inches deep when the doors are open, while the pull-down version is 45.25 inches deep. It's a modest savings, but don't forget that you also have to fit yourself in front of the oven. 
• Because most of these ovens are new to the market—the exception is the BlueStar range, which came out in 2008—they're likely to feature the latest oven technologies. The GE Monogram version, for example, can be controlled remotely from a smartphone. (We featured the BlueStar ranges when they arrived in 2008; see Appliances: BlueStar Wall Ovens.)

Above: The 30-inch BlueStar Electric Wall Oven is available in 190 colors and is $4,099 from AJ Madison.

How much do French-door wall ovens cost? 

On the whole, ovens with French doors are more expensive than their conventional counterparts. The GE Monogram Professional French-door oven retails at $4,699, while its equal with a pull-down door is $3,799. The American Range Legacy Series French door oven is $3,899 at AJ Madison, while its standard-door counterpart is $3,499. 

BlueStar's pricing is equal opportunity. Both the French door and pull-down versions of its Electric Wall Oven (above) are $4,099 at AJ Madison. 

Viking's version isn't easy to compare because its French-door offering comes only as a double oven with French doors on top and a standard door on bottom. It starts at $6,849 on Amazon.

Any drawbacks to be aware of (other than price)?

• The space-saving pros of French-door wall ovens need careful consideration based on your space. While the French doors may not require as much room in front of them, they do require room on both sides in order to open. For example, the Viking French doors require a minimum of 18 inches of clearance on both sides.
• If you're after a flush-mount European look to your kitchen appliances, you're out of luck: French door ovens can't be flush—again because the doors need room to open. 
• Though French-door wall ovens save users from having to reach over hot oven doors, we wonder if two hot oven doors open at waist or shoulder height is equally risky.
• Note that the Viking model doesn't offer the same space savings as the others, because its French-door oven is stacked on top of a conventional-door oven. When the top French doors are open, the unit's total depth is 39 5/8 inches. But when the bottom door is open, the total depth is 46 inches (and you'll also need room to stand in front of the open oven door).

Above: The GE Monogram 30-Inch Professional French Door Convection Oven was released in February 2015 and is $4,699.

The verdict?  

Base your decision on your space and needs. Because of the room required to open the doors on both sides of the oven, French-door wall ovens aren't exactly small-space appliances, but they can offer real space savings in some layouts. And for people with physical restrictions, they can be a godsend.

Keep in mind that many manufacturers, including Bosch, also make wall ovens with single side-opening doors: a development we reported on back in 2008. These swing-door ovens require more opening space in front than French-door models but only need room on one side for the door to open. And they offer the same one-handed ease of use as French doors. 

Have experience with any of these ovens? Fill us in in the Comments section below.

Designing a new kitchen or upgrading? See more of our Remodeling 101 appliance primers: 

• Remodeling 101: The Viking vs. Wolf Range
• Beyond the Microwave: Speed Ovens
• Remodeling 101: How to Choose Your Refrigerator
• Remodeling 101: How to Select a Dishwasher

Considering classic French doors? See Remodeling 101: The Ins and Outs of French Doors.

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• 6 Stylish Wood Knife Racks for the Kitchen
• Kitchen of the Week: A Scandi Design in Brooklyn
• A Kitchen Inspired by Seaside Living

The other day I found myself in a Twitter conversation with UK industrial designer Sebastian Conran (yes, of that Conran family; he's the son of Sir Terence Conran and older brother of fashion designer Jasper Conran and interior designer Sophie Conran). Sebastian has been hosting a Twitter debate on the subject of #beautility, the merging of functionality and style, a concept he is championing.

He got his start stocking shelves at Habitat and currently runs his own firm, Sebastian Conran Associates, which specializes in "user-centric" design, from products to packaging. Last year the company launched Universal Expert, Sebastian's line of cookware, storage accessories, and other housewares (available in the US through West Elm, and now through the London West Elm as well).

The upshot of our Twitter conversation? I asked Sebastian to sit down and answer some questions about designing a small kitchen based on the principles of beautility. Here's his take.

Above: A tiny kitchen by Oakland architect Christi Azevedo (see more at A California Carriage House Transformed).

How do we achieve beautility in a small kitchen?

In most small houses, the kitchen is the central focus for activity. It has to work as a place to entertain friends and catch up on the Sunday news while also being set up for serious cooking. Small kitchens are particularly challenging not only to design but also to work in—designing galleys in boats and aircraft is something I have done in the past, so I know this all too well. Thankfully, with a home you don’t have to worry about rolling seas or air turbulence. To operate efficiently in a small kitchen, you have to consider a lot of functional demands; here are some pointers on each.

• Layout: A logical layout helps maximize the use of space. And it should make cleaning and maintenance easier, especially in heavy-use areas. From my days designing boats and airplanes, I learned that the galley kitchen with prep/cook/wash and serve counters on either side of a narrow walkway is a very space-efficient layout.

Above: See Remodeling 101: The Urban Galley Kitchen for ideas on laying out a galley kitchen. Photograph by Matthew Williams for Remodelista.

• Storage: A well-considered storage strategy is also a must for an efficiently run kitchen. Make sure that everything has its place and that no space is wasted.  

• Materials and finishes: The quality of your materials and finishes are a fundamental consideration to the concept of “beautility.” By using honest materials that age gracefully, such as wood, stone, ceramic, glass, and stainless, your environment can gain character over time. I tend to steer clear of plastics and laminates as they might unpleasantly degrade with time and can harbor bacteria. 

Above: A soapstone countertop in a kitchen in Maine; see more at Remodeling 101: Soapstone Countertops. Photograph by Justine Hand.

Beautility kitchen must-haves?

• Open shelves: Personally, I prefer to keep regular-use items in open shelves rather than cabinets because in small spaces doors can get in the way; this not only means that it’s easier to get at stuff with one hand but also it forces you to keep only the really loved products that you actually use and to edit out all the junk. A well-organized system of cabinets is the preserve of more occasional items and foods. 

• Walls with hooks: It is good to utilize wall space as much as possible; I like utensils and pans hanging on the walls and use cooking equipment almost as decoration. 

Above: Open shelves and hooks on walls—see Steal This Look: Toronto Kitchen by Jennifer Hannotte.

• Deep and wide drawers with dividers: These store more efficiently and offer easier accessibility. An added bonus is that their handles can be used as tea towel and oven-glove hooks.

• Built-in units: To provide a clean, uncluttered aesthetic for appliances and recycling bins.

Above: Built-ins can hide a lot of clutter and unify appliances and equipment. Photograph via Alvhem. 

Beautility on a Budget?

• Go for quality rather than quantity: The quality is long remembered after the price is forgotten. Investing in time-proved materials and methods that suit their purpose, rather than opting for fashionable alternatives. It’s very much about choosing the right tools for the job. Funnily enough, cooking itself is actually all about form follows fabrication—the quality of the materials (produce) and the expertise of the maker (cook) totally affect the outcome—probably more so than any other process.

• Consider multifunctionality: Try to buy equipment that can be used for lots of jobs. You can cook and serve from a beautiful pan, and wooden spoons make wonderful salad servers. Flea markets are a good source for previously loved good quality cookware (the cheap stuff doesn’t last long enough to make it to the rummage sale).

Above: Designers Jersey Ice Cream Co. transformed Justine Hand's New England kitchen within a strict budget. See Rehab Diary: Dream Kitchen for Under $3,000.

Interested in seeing more small-space kitchens? Go to 10 Ingenious Space-Efficient Kitchens. More Small-Space Living tips can be found in 10 Easy Pieces: Desks for Small Spaces.

And on Gardenista, we explore the world of small with Hardscaping 101: Garden Sheds. 

This post is an update. It originally ran on September 23, 2014, as part of our Kitchens Around the World issue.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Editors' Picks: 5 Spring Favorites from the May 9 Remodelista Market
• Table of Contents: The Organized Kitchen
• Current Obsessions: May Market

Sure sign of spring: It's Color Stories week at Gardenista. Here are some bright moments not to miss, private gardens of Paris included.

Above: Lady in Red: A Woodland Chicken Coop with Charm to Spare. Alert: Also don't miss 11 Gardens Ideas to Steal to Add a Touch of Red. 

Above: 10 Easy Pieces: Straw Hats.

Above: Wedding Season: Gift Picks from the Remodelista & Gardenista Market on May 9.

Above: On the Road: For $75K, a Tiny Luxe House on Wheels.

Above: Required Reading: Private Gardens of Paris.

Above: Garden Designer Visit: A Burst of Color in the Green Mountains.

For much more, head to Gardenista and peruse the all the back issues.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Trending on Gardenista: Zero-Waste Gardening, Aussie-Style
• Trending on Gardenista: Bring on the Spring with Michelle Obama (and Ikea's Latest, Too)
• 5 Favorites: The Best Folding Canvas Deck Chairs

Like us, San Francisco blogger Caitlin Long of The Shingled House regularly turns to Commune Design of Los Angeles for a dose of inspiration. Perusing images on Pinterest from the firm's recent book, Commune: Designed in California, Long noticed window treatments that looked exactly like the upgrade her light-blasted bathroom needed. The hands-on remodeler—Long is a RISD grad in furniture design who blogs about family life and household improvements—whipped up her own burlap version.

Start to finish time for three panels: five hours. Total cost per panel: less than $20. And Long assured us, "Anyone could do this project: Burlap is surprisingly easy to sew. It takes a seam very easily  (although you will be covered in lint by the time you finish)."  We're ready to give it go.

Photography by Caitlin Long via The Shingled House.

Above: The (nearly) finished trio of panels hang from hardware store tension rods. They cover bathroom windows in Long's Cole Valley, SF, house, which she and her husband built with Thompson Studio Architects. For privacy the shades are mostly left stationary, but can be raised at the corners. They're shown here temporarily pinned up (see below for final rigging).

Intrigued by Long's teak tub? Go to DIY Household Teak, our post about how she refinished her bathroom.

Materials 

• Sewing machine
• Upholstery-grade, all-cotton burlap, such as Light Natural Burlap from Fabric.com; $5.98 per yard. Long used approximately one yard (from a 40-inch wide bolt) per window and bought hers from Discount Fabrics in SF for $2.75 per yard)
• Spring-loaded curtain rod (one per window). Levelor 18- to 28-Inch Spring Tension Rods are $4.99 to $6.99, and are similar to what Long used. A more elegant version, she points out, is the Concealed-Mount Cafe Rod Set; $45 from Rejuvenation.  
• 3/8-inch wooden dowel (one per window). Home Depot sells Four-Foot-Long Hardwood Dowels for 98 cents each
• 1 1/2-inch brass rings (one per window), such as Lowe's Solid Brass Rings; $1.78 each
• Topstitching thread for attaching the brass rings. Gutterman Heavy-Duty Polyester Thread is $1.48 for 33 yards
• Solid Brass Rope Cleats (one per window) are $5.91 for two via Amazon

Above: "It's important that the burlap be heavyweight and 100 percent cotton," Long says. She also advises ordering a color swatch "because there are a bunch of variations in colors from more tan/brown to tan/gray. I used the most humble version of fabric I could find."

Before

Above: The burlap panels replaced thin muslin shades that, writes Long, "were (like me) looking a little tired. The muslin had torn in a few places and recently got a little blue marker on them (who even knows how that happened). And they had shrunk so much from washing that they didn't even fit the windows anymore." Long wanted to replace them with sun-filtering panels that would cast a more flattering light when she looks in the mirror. "The brightness of the sun from those windows is really unforgiving. Yes, I changed those curtains because of vanity!"

The Inspiration

Above: Commune Design's Elsinore Street project in Echo Park, Los Angeles, has simple shades that can be draped to the side. See more of the firm's work in Expert Advice: Breaking the Rules with Commune Design and An Exotic Tiled Kitchen in LA.

The Details

Above: "The weave is very open in this burlap, so instead of a zigzag stitch on the edge to prevent fraying, I used a fairly tight straight stitch, and I used a one-inch seam instead of a standard half inch." Go to The Shingled House for more details.

Above: Long initially planned to install a hook as a way to suspend the panels; instead, as a final touch, she added a brass rope cleat. 

Above: She weighed down each shade by inserting a wooden dowel in a sleeve along the bottom, and sewed on a brass ring in the bottom middle using turquoise topstitching thread.

The Results

Above: The panels can be suspended in different ways, including this rakish angle.

Above: Long's verdict: "I'm very happy with the results: This room still has plenty of light, and boy am I looking better."

There's more to see: Long won the 2014 Remodelista Considered Design Award for the Best Amateur-Designed Office Space. Take a look at her Backyard Shed-Turned-Home Office and go to Design Sleuth to learn about the room's portable camp stove.

Inspired by Long's industriousness? See our catalog of DIY Projects for more ideas, including DIY Copper Pipe Curtain Rods for $35.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Tablescapes: A Mother's Day Setting with Bash Studio
• DIY: Painted Pastel Knobs
• Remodeling 101: Lava Stone Countertops

It makes so much sense: kitchens concealed behind accordion doors, sliding doors, cabinet doors—anything it takes to keep the clutter out of sight when space is tight. Here are five we've been admiring recently.

Above: The Tivali Kitchen from Dada in Italy is tucked behind folding doors.

Above: A minimalist kitchen in an apartment in Cadaques, Spain, designed by Fracesc Rifé Studio.

Above: A concealed white kitchen by Boffi.

Above: All appliances are concealed behind full-length oak cabinet doors in this kitchen by Danish company Kobenhavns Mobelsnedkeri.

Above: Vertical folding doors in a kitchen by Poliform Varenna.

Above: Kitchen appliances and necessities are hidden behind a series of doors in this apartment in Australia by Jason Gibney of Tobias Partners.

Above: A kitchen tucked in an Ikea unit via Masseria Alchimia.

Above: A small kitchen concealed behind slatted doors in a musician's apartment in Basel, Switzerland, designed by Buol & Zund. Photograph by Michael Fritschi via Arch Daily.

Above: French architect Olivier Chabbaud concealed an entire kitchen behind folding doors in this country house.

Above: The Hidden Kitchen by German company Warendorf has an electronic panel that lifts at the push of a button. 

Above: A Sao Paolo kitchen concealed behind doors via Casa de Valentina.

Above: A small kitchen concealed behind folding doors in a project by Gray Organschi Architecture. Photograph by Mark Mahaney via Dwell.

For more inspiration, go to Kitchens and Small-Space Living. Getting ready to redo your kitchen? Read our Remodeling 101 posts.

And don't miss Michelle's Domestic Dispatches on Gardenista, including 10 Mistakes to Avoid When You Remodel and My Dirty Secret, or How I Learned to Live with a Marble Backsplash.

This post is an update. It originally ran on October 22, 2012, as part of our Small Living issue.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Remodeling 101: The Ins and Outs of French-Door Wall Ovens
• 6 Stylish Wood Knife Racks for the Kitchen
• Kitchen of the Week: A Scandi Design in Brooklyn

When a young family happened upon a neoclassical 1910 Brooklyn brownstone in unusually good shape four years ago, they knew they had found something special. "Even more unusual," says the owner, "it had scarcely been altered in its first 100 years."

The brownstone's previous owner purchased the property in 1964 before passing it on to her son, a stenographer who lived in the house until his death in 2011. He entrusted the sale to a neighbor of 25 years, who declared that the ideal inhabitants "would be interested in maintaining or restoring the house as opposed to gut renovating it." The young family that purchased the 4,100-square-foot home "felt a real pressure to maintain the sensibility and weight of the house as we found it." (Take a look at this Slideshow of the house before its renovation, via WSJ.)

Though they loved the home's "intactness," it presented some challenges —"vividly illustrated the day we moved in, when we found one of our three children handily turning on a gas light fixture."

They turned to close friend and architect Gerry Smith—a member of the Remodelista Architect/Designer Directory—to lead the charge. Their brief? A modern kitchen with a wet bar for entertaining (the couple are avid entertainers). A fully equipped laundry room for a family of five (plus dog). A utility room for yard work. An extra powder room in proximity to all the action. But most importantly, said the client, "We wanted these new areas—while not in any sense historically accurate—to remain in keeping with the rest of the house."

Luckily, the existing layout worked well, so dramatic functional overhauls were not needed. Instead, said Smith, the question became: "How do we provide a more modernized kitchen and utility room that still feels like an appropriate extension of the rest of turn-of-the-century house?"

Gerry Smith is available for the next 48 hours to answer any and all questions about the project. Use the commenting tool below and ask away!

Photography by Samuel Morgan Photography. 

Above: One of Smith's priorities was to transform the dark parlor floor by adding light—"physically and metaphorically," in the words of his clients. He added a skylight directly above the kitchen to open it up to views of the sky. This opening, along with several others (see below), are "each oriented in different cardinal directions so the natural light in the kitchen changes constantly. On many days, the owners can work in the kitchen without any artificial light until well into the twilight hours."

Above: Smith enlarged an existing window opening to accommodate a new pair of steel French doors sourced from A&S Window Associates, based in Glendale, New York. The wall lights above the single-slab black walnut countertop are Navire Jib Sconces from LA-based Atelier de Troupe. The pantry door, with existing brass hardware, was original to the house.

Above: Smith consulted with color expert Eve Ashcraft on the interior paint colors; she chose Deep Silver from Benjamin Moore for the custom wood cabinets. Except for the pantry handle mentioned above, all kitchen hardware is new. The floor tile is Ann Sacks Luxor Grey, and the range hood was custom fabricated by Superstrata and installed with custom unlacquered brass brackets. The hood is coated in colored plaster to match the kitchen walls, in a very light gray with mica flakes added for shimmer. "We limited ourselves to materials that could plausibly have been in use when the house was built," said the client. 

Above: Ashcraft's paint-picking prowess extended to the kitchen drawer interiors, which are painted in Benjamin Moore Teal. Photograph by Jonas Everets.  

Above: The kitchen counter and backsplash is Bianco Carrara marble. The chalkboard wall is a 3/4-inch slate stone slab with a chalk rail made of unlacquered brass. "The weekly family dinner menu, chosen by democratic voting methods, is usually displayed on the chalkboard," says Smith.  

Above: The shelving above the bar is blackened steel, and the bar counter and integral sink are made of zinc. The stairwell off to the right gave Smith another opportunity to bring light into the space. He replaced a solid wall and door with new glazing, which abuts a bay window in the dining room. "This new opening has a nice dialogue with the dining room," he says.

Above: Smith swapped in steel windows and a door for a solid wall on the basement level. "This was probably the most transformative change; we opened up one of the darkest, most cramped spaces in the house and flooded that space with natural light," he says. 

Above: A secondary wall oven is slotted into the lower half of the staircase, which is made almost entirely of cabinetry. The basement level can quickly become catering headquarters for large parties; the cabinetry surrounding the oven is filled with extra wine glasses, silverware, and other overflow entertaining essentials. 

Above: The new stairwell glazing brings ample light into the laundry and utility rooms, so there's rarely the need for artificial light during the daytime. The utility room sink is made of marine black phyllite, which is similar in appearance to soapstone. The custom wood cabinets are painted in Kendall Charcoal by Benjamin Moore, and the flooring is French terracotta tile by Ann Sacks in Antique Dark. All the hardware in the basement utility and laundry rooms is new.

Above: The powder room door and hardware is original to the house. The wallpaper is a custom colorway from Brooklyn-based GrowHouseGrow, in a pattern called That Highly Intelligent Clam. The floor is a single slab of Bianco Dolomiti stone from Italy.

Above: The former kitchen, looking onto the backyard. (The blue tape on the floor shows the design mockup before the renovation began.)

Above: A view from the former utility room into the kitchen. 

Above: The former kitchen looking into the utility room. 

Above: The basement laundry room before the renovation. 

Above: The original staircase from the kitchen to the basement.

Above: The transformation of the first floor. 

Architect Gerry Smith is available for the next 48 hours to answer your questions about the project. Using the Disqus commenting tool below, ask away!

Keep exploring kitchens, including: 

• American Gothic: A Hudson Valley Home Reborn
• The One-Month Makeover: Beth Kirby's Star-Is-Born Kitchen
• Steal This Look: A Retro English Kitchen in Hampshire, England
• Steal This Look: The Ultimate Outdoor Kitchen

More Stories from Remodelista

• A Bespoke Parlor and Kitchen in Boerum Hill
• The Architect Is In: Daniel Piechota Talks Kitchen Overhaul
• The Power of Pastels: A Color-Blocked Family Loft in France

Here's a look at what we loved this week. 

• Above: Next week we're headed to Berlin. First stop: Typography legend Erik Spiekermann's apartment. Photograph by Robbie Lawrence. 
• DIY leather pendant lamp. 
• Rental report: San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts is looking for a new tenant. 

• Above: Handmade and hand-dipped. 
• Bright white kitchen makeover. 
• Rental cottage in the woods.
  

• Above: The most stylish nursery we've seen. Photograph courtesy of Smitten Studio. 
• How has the American home evolved since the 1970s? 
• It's hard to go wrong when gifting vases for Mother's Day. 

Instagram and Pinterest Picks of the Week 

• Above: The first Remodelista Market of the year is next weekend so we're catching up with one of our favorite sellers, Scout Regalia (@scoutregalia). 

• Above: Remodelista Market vendor TW Workshop's Spaces board on Pinterest is a guide to rusticity. 

Catch up on posts from this week in our Organized Kitchen issue, and don't miss Gardenista's week of Color Stories.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Expert Advice: Sebastian Conran's 11 Tips for Designing a Small Kitchen
• Editors' Picks: 5 Spring Favorites from the May 9 Remodelista Market
• Table of Contents: The Organized Kitchen

We're kicking off NYCxDesign week as a media sponsor of Bklyn Designs, May 8-10, a juried show of furniture, lighting, textiles, and accessories by the borough's best. Here's an advance look at some of the highlights.

Located at the Brooklyn Expo Center in Greenpoint, the fair includes design talks, pop-up shops, and installations. It's free to the trade, students, and media; tickets are $15 for the general public, but Remodelista readers get a $5 discount per ticket with coupon code REMODELISTA5. 

Above: Launching at Bklyn Designs, Bolé Road specializes in textiles designed in Brooklyn and handwoven in Ethiopia. Owner Hana Getachew is a Cornell-trained New York interior designer who was born in Addis Ababa. Examples from her Modern Classics Collection are shown here.

Above: Casa Kids makes bunk beds, loft beds, and desks in Red Hook. The Cabin Bunk Bed, from $1,700, converts into twin beds.

Above: Artist Doug Johnston's ropework Coin Trays, $30 each, will be offered in a Dwell-curated store of Brooklyn designs.

Above: The walnut and brass Track Trivet ($60), an ode to the railway that became the High Line, is one the designs that will be offered by the Friends of the High Line pop-up shop.

See more of the show highlights at Gardenista.

 Below: Bklyn Designs will be at the Brooklyn Expo Center on Mother's Day weekend, May 8-10, in Greenpoint. Tickets are $15; Remodelista readers get a $5 discount with coupon code REMODELISTA5.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Current Obsessions: Rustic Charm
• Expert Advice: Sebastian Conran's 11 Tips for Designing a Small Kitchen
• Editors' Picks: 5 Spring Favorites from the May 9 Remodelista Market

We've been admiring Berlin design from afar it seems forever. Of late, when Remodelista editors Sarah and Christine separately took off for the city—Sarah and family are there all spring—we decided it was time to join them. Stay tuned for a week of the latest from Germany, precision-made kitchens and bohemian guest rooms included.

Above: Oak Cutting Boards by German design firm e15.

Watch for Sarah's Berlin finds all week. Here's one of her letters home: "People walk or bike everywhere, graffiti is all-pervasive, sneakers are the shoe of choice (forget heels), and when the sun shines everyon spills onto the river banks and sidewalks with beers in hand (it’s legal to drink in public, even on trains). Technology is absent in public (it took me a few days to notice that people aren't glued to their phones ); they linger in cafes over breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and there is a collective sense of enjoying the day-to-day, not racing through time. It’s a rich and layered city with a heavy history, and even though I'm here for more than a month, it’s still not enough."

Monday

Above: In the first of our Kitchen posts this week, Julie presents Berlin designs in spic-and-span bright white.

Tuesday

Above: On Tuesday, meet the Rolls Royce of mattresses, made in a Berlin workshop specializing in horsehair and wool stuffing. (In the meantime, see more options in Editors' Favorite Mattresses and read our wellness guru Jackie Ashton's 10 Secrets for a Better Night's Sleep.)

Wednesday

Above: For this week's 10 Easy Pieces, Izabella presents German-made cleaning tools. And for their countertop companions, go to 12 German-Made Kitchen Essentials.

Thursday

Above: Sarah's best find to date? The Plain English of Germany: A Berlin company specializing in classic kitchens with modern edge.

Friday

Above: On Friday, Margot pays a House Call to two creative Swedes in their Berlin fixer-upper: illustrator/blogger Sandro Juto and graphic designer/artist Johan Pergenius. Photograph via Freunde von Freunden.

Saturday

Above: Calling all Bay Area readers: This Saturday, join us for the first Remodelista-Gardenista Market of 2015. It's at the Marin Country Mart, from 9 am to 5 pm. Hope to see you there! Photograph from Scout Regalia, one of our 40+ sellers; see more market highlights here.

Michelle and crew at Gardenista are Berlin Bound this week, too. Take a look. Did you know that Germany is the birthplace of the green roofs movement?

More Stories from Remodelista

• Paris in the Springtime: The Très DIY Hotel Henriette (Starting at $75 a Night)
• The New Dolce Vita: A Reinvented Village in Tuscany
• Restaurant of the Moment: Skye Gyngell's Spring at Somerset House

In the German village of Uckermark, architect Thomas Kröger and team at TKA recently converted a 140-year-old brick-and-timber barn into a family vacation house with a separate guest apartment. "In its time, it was an ultramodern building," says Kröger, a Berlin star who got this start working for Norman Foster and Max Dudler. Now, the structure is ultramodern once again—while remaining true to its past.

Photography by Thomas Heimann via Yatzer, unless otherwise noted.

Above: The 1900 farm building known as Landhaus was once used to house two settler families as well as their cattle. The converted interior is still defined by a series of original beams and trusses.

Above: The barn hadn't been used for decades when the owners, a young family, bought it as a country escape. Its three new archways (with slatted-wood gates) open the house to fields, orchard, and garden. Photograph by Thomas Heimann via Home World Design.

Above: Kröger describes his design as applying "the preexisting language of the house and adapting it using its own means and rules." 

Above: The house is centered by a double-height great hall with a fireplace (a necessity because the room is unheated). Note the inset sitting niches in the hearth.

Above: The brick-paved great hall is cathedral-size in scope with two stories of rooms around it. Explains Kröger: "The space is designed so that the great hall is unheated and surrounded by an enclosed and heated body of rooms. So for the cold season, only the smaller and more sociable areas of the house can be used, like birds' nests."

Above: Platform stairs lead to the slightly elevated open kitchen-dining-living area.

Above: The dining table is crowned by a wood-slatted pyramid that extends to the upstairs floor, which has three bedrooms, two baths, two studies, and a loggia.

Above: The minimalist kitchen is freestanding and defined by a sculptural angled ceiling hood.

Above: A cross section shows the dramatic pyramid that divides the upstairs floor. Plan via Metalocus.

Above: A longitudinal section of the design. Plan via Metalocus.

Above: The main room opens to a lounge furnished with mattress-inspired seating.

Above: Glass partitions offer sweeping interior views. "The entire building was upgraded and a considered approach to energy was made," explains Kröger. "The walls of the heated rooms are insulated on the inside with a wall heating and clay plaster."

Above: The barn's apartment is in a connecting structure with its own entrance. It has a living area and kitchen on the ground floor and two bedrooms and a bath on the second floor. 

Above: The bathroom's honeycomb floor tiles extend up the walls.

 Above: Though contemporary in spirit, the room incorporates the wooden trusses.

Above: Changes to the barn on the street side are "barely readable," says Kröger.

Above: Uckermark, just an hour north of Berlin, is a popular rural retreat.

 Before

Above: The back of the structure, pre-renovation. 

Above: Arched openings were introduced to connect indoors and out.

Above: The interior as it looked at the start of construction. See more of Thomas Kröger Architekt's work at TKA.

Take a look at some more farm conversions we've been admiring:

• The New Connecticut Farm, Sustainable Edition
• An Upstate New York Barn Transformed for Energy-Efficient Modern Living 
• For Rent: A Revived 16th-Century Farmhouse in Puglia, Italy
• An Idyllic Farmhouse Retreat in Vermont

More Stories from Remodelista

• The Architect Is In: A Brooklyn Brownstone Transformed, with Respect
• A Bespoke Parlor and Kitchen in Boerum Hill
• The Architect Is In: Daniel Piechota Talks Kitchen Overhaul

Most interesting room in the house? The kitchen, hands down (in our opinion). Here's our roundup of Berlin kitchens we're currently admiring.

Above: A chalky white kitchen in Berlin by Gisbert Pöeppler.

Above: Jacek Kolasinski designed this stark white kitchen in a grand historic building; see more at A Sexy, Minimalist Remodel in Berlin.

Above: The Berlin kitchen of gallerist Karena Schuessler. Photograph via Freunde von Freunden.

Above: Available for rent: the house of Bruno Taut in Berlin. Photograph via Boutique Homes.

Above: A white and silver kitchen via real estate site Fantastic Frank.

Above: The Berlin kitchen of Jadwiga Pokryszka, discovered on SF Girl by Bay. Photograph via Vint Agency.

Above: The kitchen at the Freund von Freunden apartment designed in collaboration with Vitra.

Above: Sarah Van Peteghem styled a Berlin kitchen using products from German design company Llot Llov; see more at Coco Lapine Design. 

Above: A white and stainless steel kitchen via Fantastic Frank.

Above: A Friedrichshain kitchen via Coco Lapine Design.

Above: A kitchen in an apartment remodeled by Sophie von Bulow. Photograph via Dezeen.

Take a look at some of our favorite Kitchens Around the World in our greatest-hits posts:

• 10 Stellar Scandinavian Kitchens
• 12 Notable Kitchens in the UK
• 10 Fantastique French Kitchens
• 11 Italian Kitchens, Dolce Vita Edition
• The White Album: 13 Favorite American Kitchens, High to Low

Explore dozens of Kitchen Gardens on Gardenista.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Trend Alert: Black Flatware, 9 Noirish Styles
• 12 Minimalist Concealed Kitchens
• Remodeling 101: The Ins and Outs of French-Door Wall Ovens