See a Dated Westchester Kitchen Remodeled Into a Modern Centerpiece

It’s a story as old as time: move into a house with the intention of renovating, and then life gets in the way. Years and years later, those projects remain untackled, and the quiet frustration you feel every time you walk into certain rooms starts to creep up on you.

For Matthew and Lisa, homeowners living in Pound Ridge, New York, a town in Westchester, their story looked a little something like that. “We moved into the house 20 odd years ago and immediately identified that the kitchen was not, to put it mildly, our dream kitchen,” explains Matthew. “It was time, money, and all these other reasons that we didn’t [renovate], but it had always been something we wanted to do.”

Here’s what their kitchen looked like before renovation:

The remodeling journey begins

After the couple’s adult children had moved out of the house, Matthew and Lisa were finally ready to remodel their kitchen. They worked with Block contractor Randy of Urban Construction Corp. to recast the constrained space as a bright, modern centerpiece, where cooking sessions, casual breakfasts, and dinner with friends all unfold.

The kitchen space was stuck in 1968, when the Pound Ridge home was built. It had a traditional L-shaped layout and was lacking in usable storage. “It wasn’t really functioning for us,” Matthew says. “We got to a point where some of the appliances that we had replaced [over the years] were starting to need updates and repair. That’s really what triggered it.” 

The couple decided to work with Block upon a neighbor’s recommendation. “Lisa and I had never done a major renovation of our house, and we didn’t want to get in above our heads,” Matthew says. Block’s protections helped assure the couple that they would have support if anything went wrong during the remodel. Luckily, things were smooth sailing.

Through Block, they were matched with Urban Construction Corp., and were happy to accept Randy’s proposal. (Randy had also worked on their neighbor’s house, and they had heard glowing reviews.) “We wanted to work with somebody we could trust,” Matthew says.

Randy helped them narrow in on a scope that was realistic and matched their budget. “We had all kinds of ideas,” Matthew says. “Randy was very good at saying [things like], ‘Is it really worth your investment to do this when instead we could do that?’” For instance, the couple was set on installing a French door to lead from the kitchen to the deck. After talking it out with Randy, they realized it wasn’t worth the extra investment. “He was quite helpful in giving us a realistic project scope that matched up with our budget and our time frame,” the homeowner adds.

Matthew and Lisa’s Pound Ridge kitchen reinvented

After knocking down a wall and adding windows, the newly remodeled kitchen is much more open than before, and flooded with natural light. There’s an eat-in island where the couple enjoys having casual meals, beautiful new appliances, and much more cabinetry to accommodate their many pots and pans. Matthew and Lisa feel the flow of their space is vastly improved, and cherish not having to worry about storage space. “It’s all about having a place for everything,” he says.

The Scandinavian-inspired kitchen makes cooking and entertaining a breeze. “It’s much more minimalist, clean lines, but very functional—we didn’t do anything that wasn’t functional,” Matthew says. “If it didn’t serve a purpose, we didn’t use it.”

And now they are using the space in ways they never thought possible. “The other day, we had 17 people standing around the kitchen, which we would not have been able to do [before],” Matthew says. “We’ve been thrilled with the looks and the function of everything so far.”

Project stats

Ready to begin your own kitchen remodel? 

This transformation began with the homeowners’ vision and the right professional involved from the start. If you’re ready to renovate, Block guides you from big-picture planning to the final walkthrough, matching you with pros who are selected for their experience and strong track record. Each remodeler in our network is thoroughly vetted, so you can be sure you’re teaming up with someone who understands bathroom renovations inside and out. With knowledgeable experts supporting you at every phase, you’ll navigate the process with confidence and end up with a space that truly feels like home.