Harbour house reno: part one

I have been working on a house renovation for the last couple of months and it is almost finished. This was a big week. The carpet was installed, the painting finished, the cabinets completed and the new furniture on site. As any project there are a few adjustments to be made but it was ready enough to start bringing in a few pieces today. I started with the new desk area.

One of the things the client asked for was an updated kitchen. They wanted a new refrigerator and the one they wanted required the cabinets to be readjusted (the new refrigerator was larger), a new sink (she had her heart set on a farmhouse sink) and she wanted new countertops. She also wanted the dated wallpaper to be removed and the existing ceiling lighting updated. And she needed a desk area; nothing big but a place where she could use her laptop. There was not a lot of room and the only place we could use was where she currently kept her microwave.

Desk area before

I thought about doing something built-in and even considered cutting into the wall behind the desk to borrow space from the closet on the other side of the wall. I also thought about doing something like this:

Real Simple

I liked the idea of a desk on casters that they could use for a serving cart or bar area when entertaining. After all my research, I ultimately ended up with a simple secretary / desk from Pottery Barn. I couldn't  resist it; it fit perfectly in the space and had everything the client needed. 

New desk area

To make the desk area personal I brought in elements that fit their lifestyle and personality. I brought in some nautical desktop items, and a bit a whimsey (the ceramic 'plastic' cup as a pencil holder) and custom photography photoshopped to match the color scheme of the new kitchen / dining area. My sister, the photographer showed me some photos she had taken of the beach and we came up with three that were just what I wanted. We adjusted the color (she did while I watched) and then I framed them in simple frames to match the desk.

I added a bulletin board and put a few quotes on it for her for fun.

I love the way the desk area turned out but putting the desk in that space left the microwave without a place to go. So I took some wasted space by the back kitchen door and had a cabinet built to give it a permanent home.

Back door area before

Back door area / new home for the microwave

Wait till you see what we did to the ceilings!