Traditional Home – September 2019

EVERYTHING

HAS A

PATINA.”

—designer

Heidi Arwine

ood is the language of love, they say, and in this house,

all that amour has a distinctly French accent.

It’s influenced by the formal French-style exterior

of the Dallas home—and by the Francophiles who live

here. “She loves French architecture, cooking, and bak-

ing,” interior designer Heidi Arwine says. “And she had dreamed of

having a La Cornue range. So that was the first order of business—

getting the La Cornue ordered.”

But Arwine, who worked in tandem with architect Christy Blu-

menfeld on the project, didn’t stop there. She and Blumenfeld gave

the family a complete La Cornue kitchen with base cabinets that

echo the elegance of the copper-trimmed range.

The copper story continues on the trim decorating the custom

vent hood and on cookware that fills ceiling-mounted shelves. “The

homeowner already owned all of that copper,” Arwine says. “We

created the shelves to showcase the pieces that she loves.”

Arwine and Blumenfeld designed the shelves—statement mak-

ers in their own right—to work in harmony with new windows. Each

shelf aligns perfectly with a muntin to ensure uninterrupted sight

lines and light that flows beautifully.

The windows—one on each side of the range hood—were one of

Blumenfeld’s big moves during the renovation. The kitchen needed

natural light, but Blumenfeld was hesitant to alter the original ar-

chitecture created by Richard Drummond Davis—until she found

Davis’ plans and discovered that the windows were supposed to be

there all along. “That was our green light,” Arwine says.

Blumenfeld also switched out a coffered ceiling in favor of ex-

posed beams that add to the kitchen’s rustic French aesthetic. The

dark tones of the beams jibe with cabinetry, including an artisan-

made dish pantry outfitted with contrasting natural wood doors

with metal mesh inserts.

“Everything has a patina,” Arwine says. The table base is an an-

tique lathe from Europe. Its graceful, timeworn form acts as counter-

point to new marble that will soon, too, wear history on its surface.

Baking kitchen The refrigerator looks like an old-time icebox, but it’s actually

a new pro-grade unit from Sub-Zero. Shelves with abundant lighting hold

all of the homeowner’s baking essentials. Preceding page French flair

reverberates through the kitchen with a La Cornue range and lavish use

of marble, including ledges ingeniously built into the backsplash. Pendants

from Visual Comfort add an industrial edge.

f

58 THSeptember/October 2019

KITCHENS