
Positioned in Pasadena, California, it’s exhausting to consider that this gorgeous 1959 custom-built house was as soon as a frightening fixer-upper. Because of Annette Vartanian’s eye for inside design and her husband Alan’s architectural background, their mid century fashionable dream was quickly realized. They usually began with a contemporary kitchen rework.
“The place was a hoarder’s paradise,” says Annette. By means of all of the muddle they noticed the house’s wonderful structure—boasting an inviting and open flooring plan, massive home windows and a large out of doors deck—and fell in love. “Nobody else noticed the potential, however we did,” Annette reminisces. With a can-do angle, the couple purchased their dream house and commenced the method of renovations and touch-ups.
“Finally what we wished to do with our mid century fashionable look was to keep up the integrity of the home however replace it to our fashionable way of life,” Annette says.
Huge Renovations
With this in thoughts, they started to renovate the house, beginning with the kitchen. Annette describes the unique as, “darkish, dingy and admittedly, actually gross.” With a purpose to pay homage to the darkish wooden cabinetry from the unique kitchen whereas including some much-needed brightness, the couple opted for Ikea cupboards with walnut-finish fronts from Semihandmade. The dark-toned cupboards are paired with white counters and a white backsplash.

The floorplan was saved a lot the identical. The fridge was the one equipment moved—swapping partitions for simpler accessibility. Annette, in addition to the earlier proprietor, likes to entertain. To go well with their way of life and provides a nod to the final proprietor, the couple determined to open up a part of the wall that beforehand separated the kitchen from the eating room. The change higher connects the house to the eating room and will increase the obtainable pure gentle. “Now we are able to proceed that custom of internet hosting events,” says Annette.
Whereas terrazzo was their excellent flooring alternative, at 100 {dollars} per sq. foot, it wasn’t believable. As an alternative, Annette selected an analogous materials with the identical period-appropriate appeal—white quartz stone tile flecked with silver and gray, which was solely 4 {dollars} per sq. foot. The flooring stretches from the entry by the kitchen, however transitions to hardwood within the eating space. The unique flooring was a worn laminate, so Annette and Alan traded it out for chestnut-stained wooden.
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Customized Design Trendy Kitchen
With the assistance of Semihandmade, Annette was capable of create the {custom} mid century kitchen she’s all the time wished—for a fourth of the value.
When Annette first started to sort out the kitchen, she met with a carpenter to debate a {custom} house. Discouraged by the value, she researched different choices and found Semihandmade. “It was the apparent alternative,” she says.
Based in 2011 by John McDonald, Semihandmade focuses on creating {custom} doorways, cabinets and different equipment to suit Ikea cupboards. Their course of permits for a {custom} house at a fraction of the price. “With Semihandmade we might get a mid century fashionable really feel however in a totally fashionable kitchen that’s useful for our household,” Annette says.
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For John and Semihandmade it’s been a wild journey. The corporate has landed on Inc. Journal’s listing of 1,000 fastest-growing personal U.S. firms yearly since 2015. Semihandmade has unfold by word-of-mouth and its sturdy social media presence and continues to develop. “It’s been a blast,” John says. Annette and Alan opened up the wall separating the kitchen and eating room to present a extra open really feel to the world. The necessity for a vent hood over the range posed a possible aesthetic drawback, so as an alternative of going with a standard choice, Annette selected one which disappears into the cupboard construction. “This was a very vital design alternative that allowed for one thing sensible and useful however nonetheless works with the design,” she says.
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