Sometimes, the most innovative renovations start with a small idea that grows gradually and gracefully into a more comprehensive and compelling design project.
That’s what happened when Interior Designers Shayna Bernshtein and Kelly Penney, co-owners of Salt + Stone Co., were called upon to renovate a kitchen in Peabody, Massachusetts.
“It’s a sweet story,” Penney says, “because our first job, in Marblehead, was a full-home furnishing project for a family’s new build that we were a part of from the start—the project that launched Salt + Stone Co. Three years later, we got this project working for the same family again, this time on the husband’s parents’ home.”
“So we’ve come full circle,” Bernshtein adds.
The 2,800-square-foot house, which has four bedrooms and two and a half baths, is a traditional colonial that was erected in the 1980s, and the kitchen in question had been upgraded previously, but it no longer reflected the family’s needs or style.
The clients, an empty-nester couple who raised their children in the home, were ready to modernize the kitchen. The finishes, such as black granite countertops, raised-panel wood cabinetry in a honey oak and tiled floors, felt dated. What’s more, the layout posed challenges.
“The island was at an awkward angle,” says Bernshtein. “And the range was in the island, which made cooking difficult.”
The clients envisioned an open-concept layout, and as the design evolved, the scope grew beyond the kitchen to the entire first floor.
The dining room walls and staircase were opened up to improve flow, new flooring was installed throughout, and the half bath with a stacked washer and dryer was reimagined as a walk-in pantry. A room off the formal living area was also transformed into a new full bath with a dedicated laundry space.
Without adding square footage, Bernshtein and Penney brought these changes together in a transitional-style kitchen, where the reconfigured layout maximizes functionality and flow and is enhanced by details such as a coffee bar with open shelving beside the refrigerator.
“It was a challenge to incorporate everything on the clients’ wish list,” Penney says, adding that the new layout makes the space far more cohesive.
Although the redesign reads modern, subtle touches, including the curved arch that leads to the pantry, the conventional-style hood over the range and the pleated café curtains at the windows, speak in soft traditional tones.
In the reconfiguration, the stainless-steel induction range is the focal point, and the island is the central gathering spot.
The duo chose a neutral palette, wrapping the cabinets and appliances in soft whites and bringing touches of color in with understated gold hardware and natural woods.
The gold tones in the hardware are echoed in the faucets and picked up in the pair of pendants over the island, whose white, conical shades are lined in gold.
Bernshtein and Penney chose the golds to elevate the space and add warmth to all the bright whites that are a commanding presence in the space.
Taj Mahal quartzite, on the counters, the backsplashes and the top of the island, adds continuity, creating a wedding-ring band around the room.
There was a lot of discussion about seating in the kitchen; the client opted for large comfortable chairs that are upholstered in a neutral textured fabric that’s easy on the eyes.
The new bathroom, which is appointed with a vanity and shower, complements the kitchen. Its walls, paneled with fluted natural-tone tile, reference the island’s slat-paneled base as do the doors and drawers of the wooden vanity.
The project was fun and fulfilling for Bernshtein and Penney, who have been friends since high school and merged their common interests in 2022 when they established Salt + Stone Co. “The clients were involved every step of the way,” says Bernshtein. “In the end, they especially valued the added storage and how the redesign transformed the home into a space that feels cohesive, modern and beautiful.”