Today we’re highlighting our 5 favorite hidden features in our recently completed kitchen renovation!
Earlier this week, we released the full reveal of our (finally!) complete kitchen renovation. If you haven’t had a chance to check out the full reveal, we’d suggest taking a peek at that post first!
Follow along with this renovation from the beginning: why we’re renovating the kitchen | a happy surprise | choosing cabinetry | sharing the new kitchen layout | choosing backsplash tile | choosing an eat-in kitchen table (vs. an island) | the mood board | the kitchen is GONE and how we’re making it work | maple flooring is in! | appliance first impressions | installing cabinets onto unlevel floors | how to install drawer fronts on inset cabinetry | how to buy countertops | 5 transformative kitchen updates | the reveal!
Now that we’re all caught up on the full kitchen transformation, lets talk through the hidden magic of the space! We focused on integrating hard-working storage and appliance solutions without drawing attention to them for a seamless look.
1| Beverage Fridge
This appliance is at the top of the list for a reason! The addition of this KitchenAid panel-ready drawer refrigerator changed the way we organize our cold consumables. Moving our beverages over to this under-counter model also allowed us to store and organize food in our main refrigerator more efficiently. This was helpful since we downsized to a counter-depth refrigerator with the remodel.
The top drawer acts as a refrigerator for beer, soda and sparkling water while the bottom drawer is a freezer with a filtered ice maker and additional space for cold spirits. The custom panels were fabricated by our cabinet maker and are an absolutely perfect fit to keep the fridge nearly undetectable.
2| Charging Drawer
We’re admittedly particular about avoiding extraneous plugs and cables dangling from outlets, so when our cabinet coach suggested a small charging drawer above the trash pullout, we were immediately on board. While in the demo stage of the project, we had our GC move an already existing outlet to be positioned perfectly behind this articulating charging station. Camera batteries, bluetooth speakers, and headphones now live inside the drawer instead of cluttering up the countertops. Its an incredibly convenient feature that we’re very glad we added!
3| Appliance Garage
One of our main goals for this kitchen was to keep the countertops as clear as possible. Our former kitchen layout was severely lacking in countertop space, so we were determined to remedy that downfall. In addition to a desire to hide our devices in a charging drawer, we also wanted to hide our heavy appliances in a spot that wouldn’t require an olympic level deadlift to pull them out from a lower cabinet. Enter the appliance garage! We used the Blum Aventos HL lift system to lift the custom door up and out of the way. Now, accessing our blender and mixer is a snap and we don’t have to stare at them when we’re not mixing or blending.
4| Panel-Ready Appliances
We’ve used panel-ready dishwashers and refrigerators in past kitchens at Tree House, our garden unit and the two flat, but this time we fully committed! The only appliance that didn’t receive a cabinet panel is the range. And we wanted to display that 36″ wide beauty in all its glory anyway.
The dishwasher, beverage fridge and full-size refrigerator all received custom panels of varying complexity. We’ll go ahead and say it – installing panel ready appliances with inset cabinetry is not for the faint of heart. Tolerances are intended to be around 1/8″ on all sides, and the minute adjustments are enough to test anyone’s patience. Adjusting the dishwasher to an acceptable placement took me an entire day due to the fact that our floors are significantly unlevel. Even with that in mind, we’re still completely thrilled with our decision to select these custom appliances. The elevated look is truly special and the continuous cabinet runs are something we couldn’t have achieved with traditional appliances.
5| Automatic Pantry Lighting
We’ve discussed the automatic pantry lighting previously, but it remains a favorite feature of the kitchen. We prefer dim light in the evening and it’s wonderful to be able to open the pantry for an evening snack and have the lights turn on automatically.
The fixtures themselves are nearly invisible inside the cabinet and the light they emit is bright enough to be helpful, but not blinding. It’s a high-value upgrade for sure!
We’ll be diving into a few more favorite kitchen features in the coming week or so and would be happy to answer any lingering questions you may have!
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LOVE these features!!! One small recommendation – I added tiny caster wheels to the bottom of my KitchenAid, and now it’s so much easier to pull out / put away at the back of my counter. https://a.co/0lhwrpN
whoa, LOVE that tip! Thank you!
Super similar to Christina’s suggestion – I bought this little roller tray to go under my husband’s coffee maker. It makes it super easy to slide out to fill the water reservoir. Love the tiny lever you need to press to make it move, so it doesn’t slide otherwise. It is also crazy slim, so you aren’t adding much height. https://www.amazon.com/Kitchen-Sliding-Premium-Appliance-Countertop/dp/B09CT7NVVS/ref=pd_lpo_1?pd_rd_w=I1ilR&content-id=amzn1.sym.196193c7-f80f-4550-90d9-c8be3a442748&pf_rd_p=196193c7-f80f-4550-90d9-c8be3a442748&pf_rd_r=NZ7GMGB23HGH9QSF3YYY&pd_rd_wg=7UZNs&pd_rd_r=a8f809b7-e2e5-49f4-83bc-8c04730b13dc&pd_rd_i=B09CT7NVVS&th=1
Christina, do the casters cause your mixer move more when you use it? I make bread dough in mine, and often can’t walk away or the mixer will walk itself across the counter!
I put a dishcloth under mine so it slides more easily without compromising its steadiness. No issues with it moving itself while running!
Would love to hear about the decision to have a glass rinser by the faucet. I’ve seen that a couple times in recent renovations and wonder about how you guys use it. Thanks! It’s all GORGEOUS!
The glass rinser is so FUN! We use it to swish out our glass between drinks, or to give it a rinse before putting in the dishwasher.
What was the depth of the dishwasher that allowed it to be flushed with the rest of the inset cabinets? I also want inset cabinets; my cabinet maker highlighted that the dishwasher and microwave drawer will be sticking out a bit.
It’s a standard dishwasher! I’m not sure why the cabinet maker would tell you that. I linked our exact dishwasher in the sources at the bottom!
I am so excited for you to have planned and executed such a beautiful and functional kitchen. Your color choices are inspiring and refreshing. I am curious about the mixer and using it. Are you sliding it out and using it just in front of the door? Is it easy to slide? I have both kinds of the kitchen aid mixers and one needs room to flip back to change beathers, etc. and the other larger model requires the lift handle and clearance. I’m just curious about the logistics and ease of where and how you use the mixer. Thanks! (and I’ll sneak another ? in here: you have two ceiling pendants, so is one over an empty space? Is that to allow for a bigger table or just for extra lighting?)
Thank you! For the mixer, we pull it out and use it on the larger countertop surface (just to the left of the sink). And the double pendants are for more light and a little ‘cafe’ feel. :)
It’s going to sound after my question on your last post (thanks for the info on the blower motor on the range hood!) that I’m just replicating your kitchen, but I swear I’m not … it’s just that we also want an undercounter two-drawer fridge freezer because, again, 5’ x 7’ kitchen and the main fridge is elsewhere. Are you guys able to stand up a half gallon of something (like, say, soy milk) in the fridge drawer? I can’t quite tell from the bottle in the drawer. Thanks again, Kim and Scott!
We’ve not tried to store a gallon of milk or a carton of alternative milk, but I think it would fit. The drawers are generously sized and taller than they look. I’m sure the specs are available from the manufacturer so you could know for sure.
I’ve long wondered what happens when a panel-ready appliance fails and you can’t or don’t want to replace it with the same unit. Am I correct in imagining you would need a new custom panel? Presumably panel-ready doesn’t mean panel standardized within or across brands.
That’s likely true for something like our refrigerator, which is uniquely sized. The dishwasher, however, would likely use the same panel across brands. It’ll be a limiting factor for sure, but we’re OK with that.
Does your Kitchenaid drawer freezer produce ice? Lots of negative reviews saying the ice maker doesn’t work, curious about your experience.
Yup! It produces more ice than we could ever use and we actually find ourselves turning the ice maker off more than leaving it on. The one bit of negative feedback we have for the unit is that the lights within the control panel itself aren’t very bright and flicker a bit. I wonder if people simply don’t realize that their ice maker is turned off?