Kitchen Aide: Kansas City Kitchen Mixmasters Show How It’s Done

The butlery’s two doors make for easy access from anyplace in the kitchen. Photos by Laura Kackley

Dual Zones

When Ashley and Ryan Young refreshed their Prairie Village kitchen, they enlisted the help of Kylie Scovell Brewer with Scovell Remodeling.  “Ashley and Ryan love Colorado and travel to Italy often, so we wanted to bring those elements in,” says Brewer. “They love to cook, but don’t like the mess.”

Left: Above the range, the Zephyr hood is framed in custom Profile cabinetry. Right: Deep teal painted custom cabinetry in the butlery highlights the warm hues of the reclaimed timber countertops.

The solution? A dual-zone kitchen with open space for cooking and gathering and a recessed “butlery” for prep. The bright, airy space is centered around a custom Unruh walnut table and features custom Profile cabinetry and easy-to-clean quartz countertops. An island of plain-sawn white oak across from the Wolf cooktop keeps the cook’s ingredients handy. A trio of windows over the sink brings the outdoors in.

White-painted paneling adds dimension to the walls.The GE double oven is tucked away in the butlery. Brass sconces from Visual Comfort light the countertop.

The butlery, repurposed from a former laundry room and powder bath, features cabinetry painted a Farrow & Ball teal and walnut countertops from Elmwood Reclaimed Timber. Floating walnut shelves hold framed handwritten recipes for Grandma’s pie and Mom’s cookies. A second prep sink, built-in freezer shelves, an espresso machine, and GE double ovens help organize much of the kitchen prep. Styling by Kristin Holton of Estately.


A second sink in the peninsula keeps kitchen helpers out of the main flow. Photos by Nate Sheets

Contemporary Classic

The homeowners of this Loch Lloyd kitchen entertain quite a lot, says designer Laura McCroskey with McCroskey Interiors, but their old kitchen didn’t quite deliver in function or style. McCroskey opened it up, while keeping the basic footprint. Now a pony wall peninsula in waterfall honed Negresco granite, a marble checkerboard floor, and a bleached-oak pantry with reeded glass and plenty of drawers provide a mix of materials. 

Softly glazed white-oak cabinetry on the island and upper cabinets is matched with creamy white cabinets on the perimeter.

Along the back wall, an eight-foot-wide black-framed window, with a cast-stone surround by ADI, would be right at home in a city loft. Framed photos by Kansas City artist Kim Taggart are from the McCroskey Interiors art collection. The streamlined vent over the Ilve range faces the window.

Brass pulls on the custom upper cabinets are from Armac Martin.

The large island, with its notched marble countertop, holds a 4½-foot- sink and is surrounded by stylish upholstered chairs by Olivya Stone. Ostby Construction helped make it all happen.   


Rather than bar stools, the Lorings requested table-height seating. The custom walnut table reveals an inlay borrowed from a family heirloom silver pattern. Photos by Aaron Leimkuehler

Banquette Bonus

Martin and Sarah Loring’s Tudor-ish home off Ward Parkway had a lot of great features, but the kitchen wasn’t one of them. Enter designer Lisa Otterness with Classic Kitchens, who waved a magic wand and gave Sarah the double ovens she so desired—just not in the space you would expect. The deep blue-hued banquette is enclosed by angled counters at two different heights. The 36-inch height cabinets and counter function as the baking center, while the 42-inch counter tops the two side-by-side ovens. There’s also a drawer microwave.

Left: Crisp Hale Navy blue and Nordic white hues heighten the natural wood tones of the trim and flooring. Right: Beautiful solid wood doors conceal the generous pantry.

Making it all work was expert cabinet installer Paul Short, whose son is married to the Lorings’ daughter. “I couldn’t do what I do without him,” says Otterness.

Another plus—when they scraped a bit off the formerly white-painted beams, they discovered the original walnut and brought the finish back. “A great retrofit honors the age of the home,” says Otterness.


The breakfast area is an addition to the original space, as are the French doors leading outside. Photos by Aaron Leimkuehler

European Chic

“You do you,” the Prairie Village couple told Belgian-born designer Karin Ross, “we are open to different things,” and it was music to her ears. She pulled out all the stops of her signature European-chic kitchen design with elements that “play well together,” she says. 

A creative mix of painted cabinetry and natural woods highlight different zones in the kitchen.

A leafy motif carries through the space: a trio of pendant lights like falling birch leaves, bar stools imported from Spain with backs like ginkgo biloba leaves, and a branchy chandelier over the breakfast table. 

Teak wood panels imported from Europe dress up existing posts.

Wood accents include painted maple and natural cherry cabinetry and a special teak that wraps around existing columns. Quartz countertops pair practicality with a little sparkle. Custom hand-formed European tiles with gold veining subtly highlight the cooking area, while oval tiles with a metallic sheen draw the eye to the bar area.


Originally, the kitchen was centered around a small kitchen table. With some tweaks in the layout, a generous island that offers plenty of space for both prep and everyday dining was able to take its place. Photos by Aaron Leimkuehler

Contemporary Tudor

In Brookside, Shelly and Mark Kramer were contemplating a big outdoor kitchen project when they realized their indoor kitchen and little-used dining room needed to come first. “We wanted a comfortable space with a cozy hang-out vibe for our family,” says Shelly. “Now I love it when the morning sun floods the room with light.”

A single door opening from kitchen to dining room was enlarged and trimmed to match the Tudor details of the home.

“We came on to make sure their project is perfect,” says Portfolio Kitchen and Home owner and designer Geri Higgins. “We wanted to protect the dignity of the house, change the layout, and lighten it up.” A large arched opening with custom molding brings the dining room in. Pale, paneled cabinets reference the Tudor style, while large-format Calacatta tiles in caramel and camel add warmth to the backsplash. They tested 25 colors before coming up with the perfect off-white for the walls.

Left: A paneled door disguises the JennAir refrigerator with its stylish obsidian interior. Right: Contemporary twists on traditional design abound in this kitchen, such as the Layla Grayce chandeleir and the leather-upholstered bar stools. Countertops are honed Caesarstone.

Cabinets painted a soft greige hue and a striated bronze range hood suggest the past, while chandeliers in a spare design hint at contemporary. “It’s a great mix of fresh, modern, and traditional,” says Higgins.

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