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" From every direction, the old kitchen in Susan Sherratt&amp;#039;s Alameda, California, home conspired to confine her. A header dropped the ceiling height, a peninsula blocked off the breakfast nook to one side, and a peninsula with ceiling-hung cabinets blotted out the family room. Having no windows just added to the feeling of confinement. Along with its significant cosmetic problems, the kitchen was essentially dysfunctional. What Susan really needed was an island work area instead of twin peninsulas. She was also frustrated with the double wall oven which she considered to be a bit on the puny side. &amp;quot;I could barely get a turkey pan in it,&amp;quot; she says. Susan&amp;#039;s quest for a better double oven drove her to remodel. Naturally, she and her husband, Richard, had other goals in mind, too: the island, additional storage, aesthetic appeal and more. Early in the process, Richard decided to add on to the space by having the breakfast nook wall pushed back, taking advantage of an overhang on the house. This eventually let kitchen designer Victoria Reginato, CKD, also of Alameda, to expand the kitchen into the breakfast nook&amp;#039;s old location. To open up the new space, Reginato took out the peninsula separating the kitchen and breakfast nook. She also evened up the ceiling heights, removing an unattractive dropped ceiling. &amp;quot;In the old kitchen, there was a load-bearing post with a header above it that made it feel like another room,&amp;quot; Reginato says. With help from a contractor, she moved the load from the header into the attic. &amp;quot;That got us a clean ceiling line from the kitchen into the family room, and that really made it feel like one room.&amp;quot; Even with the expansion, the dimensions of the kitchen wouldn&amp;#039;t allow a typical island. &amp;quot;The island is only one cabinet deep,&amp;quot; Reginato says. &amp;quot;That&amp;#039;s not as deep as some might like, but we were able to create an island, which is what Susan wanted.&amp;quot; And Susan made the island her baking center. &amp;quot;I had a cabinet built-in to accommodate the mixer,&amp;quot; says Susan. The mixer is on a shelf designed to lift up conveniently to counter height. Confining no more, the space went from an eyesore to an expansive delight, a breakthrough that allows the Sherratts to get the most out of their kitchen.  What Was Done   Evened out the ceiling heights by moving header load into the attic  Moved back the breakfast nook wall, adding 6 feet of space  Installed an island  Replaced existing wood floor with wide-plank hickory  Exchanged the single oven with double oven  Overhauled lighting, removing oversize fluorescent fixture  What It Cost Cabinets $21,100 Contractor $20,350 Appliances $13,900 Countertops $3,000 Flooring $3,000 Plumbing $2,500 Painting $1,300 Lighting $800 Mural $750 Backsplash $600 TOTAL $67,300 "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.elledecor.com/home-remodeling-renovating/home-makeovers/a1127/before-after-kitchens-bright-beautiful-32344/>