Kitchen · Lawrenceville, Pittsburgh

Row home kitchen

The finished kitchen seen straight on: the brick chimney, a dark granite peninsula on dark stained oak, terracotta tile, the back window and door, and slate floors

I don’t believe homes should be designed around resale value or whatever is trending that year. They should reflect the people who live in them. My job is to figure out who that person is and build around that.

In this house, that meant noticing the piano, the pottery, the plants, and the artwork. The homeowner is a ceramic artist, and it didn’t take long to understand what mattered to him. The kitchen never felt like it belonged in the house because it never felt like it belonged to him.

We spent months planning every inch of this project. It started with hand sketches, then measured drawings, CAD plans, and detailed renderings. Before construction ever began, the homeowner had already seen the finished kitchen. That level of planning makes better decisions, better construction, and a better finished product.

The materials followed naturally from there. Roman clay walls for warmth and texture. Dark stained oak cabinetry. Granite countertops. Handmade terracotta tile. Slate floors. Nothing was selected because it was trendy. Everything was chosen because it feels honest, ages well, and fits both the home and the person living in it.

Construction
Leber Contracting
The kitchen before: honey oak cabinets, a laminate peninsula crowded with plants and pottery, beige floor tile, and the brick chimney
Before
The kitchen before: a white range, microwave, and refrigerator under a short run of honey oak cabinets
Before
The design rendering: the brick chimney, a dark peninsula with two stools, dark wood cabinets, and a brick-tone tile backsplash under the back window
Rendering
The finished kitchen from the same spot: the brick chimney, the dark granite peninsula, terracotta tile, and slate floors
Finished
The back door corner: Roman clay walls above a terracotta tile wainscot, dark stained oak cabinets, and slate floors
Roman clay, oak, and slate
Close-up of handmade terracotta tile, laid in a vertical stack
Handmade terracotta tile
The finished kitchen from the corner: an exposed brick chimney, dark stained oak cabinets, a dark granite counter, handmade terracotta tile, and windows on two walls
Brick, oak, and terracotta

More work

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