Kitchen of the Week: Warehouse Roots Inspire a Manhattan Loft

Chemically outdated steel, hewn walnut along with a fiberglass backsplash include the expression of background to this attic in New York’s Tribeca area. Architect Steve Schappacher and his team used these simple materials to play off the attic’s warehouse origins. The proprietors of the attic — it was originally two lofts, now united — wanted a space that felt open and clean but still suited each of their requirements. A hidden pantry, seamless layout and wet bar gave them the look and function they desired.

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Montauk black slate countertops contrast with white cabinetry. The cabinet faces are ashes and therefore are stained — rather than painted — white, or so the grain is still visible. Hewn walnut on the front part of the island matches with the custom flooring.

Even though the family needed more storage, they also wanted their new kitchen to have a fresh look, therefore Schappacher and his team put in a pantry right behind the kitchen. The left and right end panels on the backsplash have pivoting windows that open up into the hidden pantry area, allowing the family to pass items back and forth.

Bar stools: Restoration Hardware; facet table: clients’ own; oven: Miele; range: Viking

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A doorway round the corner opens up into the pantry, which spans the entire 18-foot length of the kitchen. The windows not only let in more light but also allude to windows a more traditional kitchen might have.

Sconces: custom; pantry shelving: Metro Shelving

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Possessing an open, combined living area was significant to the household, but they also wanted their new house to respect its origins as a New York warehouse. Steel and hewn walnut cover tribute to the original materials, whereas the vaulted ceiling and spacious layout keep the attic ambience. The fiberglass onto the kitchen backsplash brings to mind fireproof windows in old lofts, while all the exterior windows at the attic are original to the structure.

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Around the corner a wet bar helps take some of their entertaining load off the kitchen. The majority of the same materials were used for cohesiveness — including the slate counters and ash cabinetry but Schappacher used crackled subway tile out of Artistic Tile to your new backsplash. Charcoal-colored grout highlights the cracks in each tile.

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A wall remedy Schappacher calls”liquid metal” ties in with the rest of the warehouse-inspired materials — including the customized iron capitals and bases on the columns. Schappacher had a custom metal fabricator utilize hot-rolled sheets of metal and chemically age them for this unique look.

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