While modern kitchen and bathroom designs are a 210 Design House hallmark, much in thanks to our partnership with Snaidero, we’ve recently noticed a growing demand for a more traditional look in kitchens. We’re not talking about the classic dark cherry, ornate cabinets of the early aughts, but instead a new kind of traditional, incorporating highest-quality, luxury designs created by 210 brand partner Plain & Fancy.
Modernizing a Traditional Aesthetic
“Many of our clients grew up with homes with traditional cabinetry, or maybe they raised their families in such homes, but as times evolve and they either downsize or move to city living, we’ve seen clients trending to a more transitional look — cleaner lines versus ornate door detailing,” says Eleanor Leichenko, 210’s Business Manager.
“For those looking for a traditional aesthetic, we’ve designed our entire third floor to reflect that styling, from the flooring to the coved-ceiling details, to further enhance the experience,” continues Senior Designer Alexander Adducci.
Adducci adds that he approaches designing traditional and transitional kitchens similarly to more contemporary spaces. “We’re always balancing aesthetics and functionality. For a client that wants a more modern feel with their traditional cabinets, we might suggest a custom, full-overlay door, which is very European.”
Homeowners are also gravitating toward flush-inset cabinet construction and decorative detailing like metal mesh door inserts, antique brass hardware, and hand-glazed colored cabinets. “White is always popular, as are tones of beige and gray, but we’re increasingly seeing interest in colors like pastel green and blue,” Adducci says.
Plain & Fancy Statesman (left) and Taliesan (right) cabinets at 210 Design House
Customizing Traditional Cabinetry
Plain & Fancy not only offers a wide range of styles (Taliesan, Brookside, Vogue, Millbrook, and Oxford are client favorites), custom stains, and painted finishes, “limited only by your imagination,” but will also color match a specific finish specified by a homeowner. The Pennsylvania-based, family-run company has been making luxury, custom cabinetry for more
than 50 years, and their quality offerings continue to inspire 210 designers.
For our project at One Bennett Park, designed with Related Midwest and Robert A.M. Stern Architects (RAMSA), 210 worked to customize a Plain & Fancy door for all of the units. Highlighting the design flexibility Plain & Fancy offers, the beautiful, transitional door style was made especially for the project, complementing the overall design details of the building and becoming a focal point of each of the condo units.
Kitchen Project at One Bennett Park, Chicago
Mixing Traditional and Contemporary Styles and Technologies
While some clients want a fully traditional look, others prefer to mix traditional designs with more modern elements. A 210 Design-created penthouse in Nashville, for example, blends both seamlessly.
Kitchen Project at a Nashville Penthouse
For the project, 210’s multi-housing team collaborated with Frank Ponterio Interior Design, marrying Plain & Fancy traditional cabinetry with the contemporary style of a high-gloss fume eucalyptus Look door from Snaidero to complete a gorgeous, new construction penthouse. Since 210 carries both lines, the process of installing both was simple, and the results speak for themselves.
Eucalyptus Look doors from Snaidero at 210 Design House
Even when the aesthetic remains uniformly traditional, modern technologies move a kitchen to the 21st century and beyond. Whether that means adding outlets to the back of drawer boxes for charging devices, automating doors and lighting for appliance garages, or installing induction burners directly in a stone countertop, 210’s capabilities always take designs — modern or traditional — to the next level.
Plain & Fancy at 210 Design House
For more information about how 210 is both embracing and reimagining traditional designs, visit us at our River North showroom.
