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Open Up Your Space

Removing a portion of a wall is a great way to completely transform a space and it’s usually not as complicated as you might think. Most often, it seems that people would like to open up the area surrounding their kitchen.

Opening up a wall can make a huge transformation to your home.

Older kitchens are often smaller and cramped, especially once you install a few modern appliances like a microwave, dishwasher, or that 48″ Viking refrigerator.  Often, it works best to just remove the wall completely. It’s important to consider if the wall is load bearing and what utilities may be running through the wall. A wall full of water pipes can be a challenge to deal with.

Oh the difference a wall makes!

Laminate Beam replaced the load-bearing wall.

I removed the entire wall at this home (above) in the Lockeland Springs part of East Nashville.  This client didn’t really use her formal dining room and instead wanted it incorporated into the adjacent living room to make if more functional and improve the flow of this home. This involved adding a large laminated beam (right) which is a stronger material that can span a longer distance than typical spruce or pine lumber.  It’s always amazing to see the difference that this makes, especially after another contractor came in and ‘weaved-in’ new flooring and refinished the hardwoods in both rooms.  It looked fantastic! 

Short of completely removing a wall are many variations. For example, I’ve had several projects where I made a large opening in the wall and left a ‘half-wall’ where I had a countertop installed. This not only allows the two spaces to feel more connected, it adds the functionality of a serving bar or possibly a spot to pull up a bar stool.

Removing part of the wall and installing a countertop adds a fantastic centerpiece to the room.

The countertops in these pictures are all custom made solid wood counters made by the craftsmen at Barber Woodworking. In addition to many species and colors of wood, there are countless stone or synthetic alternatives as well.

I widened the entryway into the kitchen and gave it arched corners to match the others.

This fantastic kitchen renovation began by opening up the entryway coming from the dining area. You can see the difference it made in the before and after picture above. One unique part of this project was to include the arched corners to match the other doorways in this Tudor inspired home.

The home pictured below had a wall that seemed to ‘stick out’ into the kitchen. It was a split-level home and this was a load bearing wall. The homeowners chose a solution that required removing part of the wall and then adding a large serving window. This opened up the space a great deal and eased the traffic flow. They can also fit a much larger table in this area which will be nice at the holidays.

I removed part of the wall in this kitchen and added a large serving window.

Removing a wall or a portion of it can actually be an affordable way to make a major transformation. The materials usually just consist of drywall and some lumber and it can be done in a matter of a few days. If you’re giving it some thought, please give me a call and we see what options there are for opening up your space. [contact]