A Tale of Two Kitchens, Or How We Met [by Stacey Harwood]

With one day remaining on Phoebe Putnam’s visit here, I want to tell the story of how she came to be a guest blogger.  Most of our guests come to us through rather conventional means – either we’ve known them from our circle of writing friends and acquaintances or we get to know them because they become engaged with the blog and we begin a correspondence that leads to a guest blogging stint.  Phoebe took an entirely different route and I bet that nobody would guess it so here goes:

   Shortly after I found my first NYC apartment roughly ten years ago, I became obsessed with making the most of a tiny space, especially the kitchen, because I love to cook.  My obsession led me to Apartment Therapy, a design blog with a mission to help people turn their living spaces into homes, with an emphasis on real homes, not the kind found in glossy shelter magazines.  The blog appealed to me, more so when it initiated a series of contests that invited readers to send pictures of their apartments.  I entered the first “I Love My Kitchen” contest (under my screen name, Shoshana) with a picture of the kitchen in my 200 square-foot studio apartment (I did not win, place, or show).

   In 2007 AT sponsored a “Small, Cool” kitchen contest and Phoebe’s kitchen took first prize.  That's her kitchen pictured above.

   Fast forward:  David and I, after searching off and on for several years, finally land our first NYC apartment. The only draw back?  No kitchen (see right). I still had Phoebe’s kitchen in mind so I e-mailed her for advice.  How big was her kitchen? (Ours is roughly 5’ x 8’).  I wondered if we could re-do our kitchen to look something like hers, which I admired greatly.  Phoebe responded from the Boston area and at the same time put me in touch with her architect dad, who had helped her with her kitchen redesign.  Po Putnam and I corresponded for a bit and I was won over by his ideas, his enthusiasm for the project of designing our kitchen, and his willingness to work from afar.  During the course of our correspondence, I learned that Phoebe was at Harvard, is passionate about poetry, and that we have much in common.  Thus, when David and I started this blog last year, Phoebe seemed like a natural guest blogger.  And she is, isn’t she?  We’re hoping she’ll return. 

    Here's a picture of our kitchen today, as designed by Joseph Henry "Po" Putnam and built by Tony Sapp of Three Pillars.  I love it! Click through for a few more:  

Pear collage by Laura Orem:
  

Painting "Grilled Cheese" by Denise Duhamel:

Comments

[Emma Trelles]

This is inspiring! We are constantly mulling over how to redo our own small kitchen so it is both lovely and functional. I had never heard of AT before, and I'm glad to have another design resource. Thanks for posting, Stacey.

[phoebe]

stacey-- just realized:

best - am - PO - !

guess it was meant to be. love seeing the pictures of how the kitchen turned out in the end, especially that green tile-- is it subway? beautiful, makss your little kitchen look like a peaceful urban lagoon...

all best,
phoebe

[Joseph Henry "Po" Putnam, AIA, LEED AP]

What an amazing confluence of connections! And what a treat to read this mini history of the kitchen! It looks great! A real pleasure to see the photos; and all the more so in the context of this blog...

Very best wishes,

Po

[Stacey]

Phoebe! You're right: Po's the best! Thanks Po for visiting here. I'm glad you like the kitchen. Phoebe they're glass tiles and I was nervous about using them but am happy I did. Emma, once you get started on AT, it's hard to stop. It is a great resource. I did so much research while planning our kitchen, if there's anything you need to know, just ask.

[Moira]

And let's not forget about the fragrant, tasty things that emerge from Stacey's lovely kitchen. How goes the nocino??

[Joseph Henry "Po" Putnam, AIA, LEED AP]

No, you're the best...It was a real pleasure to work for you [DL + SH].

Po

[PS: I am fan of glass tiles.]

[Laura Orem]

How did I miss this? And how do you keep your kitchen so neat and organized? It's lovely!

[carisoprodol]

I love your kitchen.. very beautiful..I wish my kitchen is like yours..

[philippines homes]

The kitchen is often the heart of the home and a place where friends and family seem to gravitate. Lovely design, like it.

Deirdre G

[Belle Ree]

Loving the design of your kitchen!