When Function Meets Family: Our Kitchen Banquette Story
I’m sitting at our new kitchen banquette crafting this blog this morning. I thought this was only fitting, as we’ll be diving into the story of how this cherished spot in the heart of our home came to be. It all started with an idea … always a scary thought when I share with my hubby, Matt, “hey, I have an idea!” But, this concept was different from the start. All of our design projects – from our clients’ homes, to ours, are full of heart, emotion, and vision.
The Problem
This project in our kitchen started from my deep desire to create a space in our kitchen where we could all share a meal – all five of us. This was not something we had ever had in our kitchen before. We were making due with a high top table that we purchased when we had one kiddo, when we first moved into our home over 10 years ago. This table was fine all around. It still looked OK, was sturdy, and was standing up to the demands of our growing family … until we ran out of room and seating in our tight space. The day Harvey graduated out of his high chair, our table barely made for four. It no longer worked for our family of five. From that point on, our quest to find a solution to seat all five of us in our kitchen began.
Creative Solutions
We experimented with all sorts of solutions. My initial thought as a creative, and design enthusiast was to launch a full-on kitchen renovation. Obviously!! 🙂 A new, massive island, constructed parallel to our kitchen, with ample seating for five or six, is what I was dreaming of. I had it all mapped out. Painters tape lined each inch of our kitchen floor with the exact placement of our new island. Seating measurements were taken and checked three and four times, and the new finishes were all ready.
Like any renovation, we brought in trusted experts (now friends!) to complete the job. We were thinking that this would be a quick and easy fix to refresh our kitchen. Unfortunately, after getting some initial bids on products, we quickly learned that we would have to save for many, many moons. This was necessary before having the budget to pull off this renovation to the caliber we thought our home and our family deserved.
Back to the Drawing Board
Back to the drawing board I went. This time, with a much smaller vision, but still one totally full of heart and determination to find a solution. It needed to work as hard for our family as we do. This solution involved focusing on one portion of our kitchen – the true problem area, our too small dining table, crowded in our kitchen.
I researched for what seemed like weeks on end to find the perfect, smaller footprint, narrow, yet long table that could accommodate all five of us. But, without fail, every option was too deep for our space constraints. Or, nearly as expensive as a whole kitchen refresh. NOPE, that’s not going to fly. All of the inspiration, the vision, the look, the materials were in place. Just not a feasible solution to make it happen, until …
My father-in-law, Jim, came across an old church pew. The pew was in decent condition, but definitely needed some love and care. The structure of the seat needed to be secured, the scuffs and wear were showing. Also, the pew definitely was not the stain color I would have chosen. Then, it all clicked. I had researched kitchen banquettes for months, and a church pew could be the starting point to serve as the bench portion of our banquette. It was a total light bulb moment! And, to top it all off, as we learned more about the history of the church pew, we found it was from my hometown of Hastings, NE. WOW, a sign to say the least!
After More Noodling
After noodling a little longer, I roped my sweet, sweet father-in-law into restoring the old church pew. He also made a handcrafted banquette kitchen table to pair along with this awesome old church pew. We were able to pick out a wood slab together, along with Harvey’s expert help at the hardware store. From there, we shaped the table to our exact measurements using one of those blue and white oval rugs that everyone had in their homes from the 80’s, including my parents. This helped us achieve the perfect oval shaped edge. Then, we selected a stain that allowed the stunning wood grain to show through, while still offering a modern take on this new masterpiece in our kitchen.
In just a matter of weeks, Jim had stained the church pew, and fully restored it to function as our new kitchen banquette seating. He had shaped and stained our new wood table, complete with these modern fluted and oval shaped legs. He even helped us install it in our home. This was the culmination of so many months of research, inspiration, and work, and it was coming together SO beautifully!
Just One Piece of the Puzzle Remained
There was still one piece remaining, chairs to accompany our new banquette. They needed to be small in scale, but comfortable, to serve as Matt and I’s seating. My researching quest continued to find the perfect chair. I literally looked at thousands of chairs, and I was faced with the same obstacle as before. None of the chairs were petite enough for our space, while still offering the function and comfort (and price!) we were seeking.
Luckily, shortly after our new banquette was installed, Matt rediscovered some old chairs in our basement. We hadn’t used or seen them in quite some time. They were my mom’s chairs that we had in our home all while growing up. I always liked the chairs, and we were using them as extra seating around a kid’s craft table in our playroom. Matt brought them up just to have a look at how they might jive with our new kitchen. And, I kid you not, the chairs paired PERFECTLY with our new dark, english toffee coffee colored stained church pew. They also matched our lighter, more natural wood toned kitchen table. The style, scale, and size of my mom’s forgotten chairs were perfect for our new set up, too. Another wow moment, for sure!
Grateful for New Family Heirlooms
Now, just a couple months into our new kitchen banquette arrangement, and we are beyond grateful to wake up to this beautiful new space. Curated from an idea, and many hours of research and handywork, a new and cherished spot in our home was created. What an amazing heart-filled project with so many connections to our family that will now serve our hardworking home for many years to come. As we continue to enjoy these curated, custom pieces in our home, I’m hopeful that these furniture pieces will be cherished family heirlooms for many years to come.
Throughout this process to seek a space that works harder from our family, and we truly enjoy, I’m reminded of the importance of the design and curation process. With love, care, and a passion for design, the opportunities to love your home again are endless.
Cheers to the love for design, beautifully curated homes, and my awesome father-in-law to make my vision come to life.
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