Star Kitchen: Alison Victoria
HGTV star Alison Victoria shows us her stunning Chicago kitchen.
Photograph by Christian Harder.
As the star of HGTV’s Windy City Rehab, designer Alison Victoria has become famous for renovating and building homes packed with glamorous and historic details. When she started construction on this Chicago property, she had no idea that she’d be the eventual owner — but she became attached and couldn’t let it go. “I needed to live here,” she says. The kitchen was a top priority, and after spending nine seasons as the host of HGTV’s Kitchen Crashers, she had a vision from the start. She paired statement pieces like a brass hood and marble island with simpler elements like white Shaker-style cabinets. “I don’t care what people say — white kitchens aren’t going anywhere,” she says. To help the kitchen blend in with the open living and dining rooms, she hid most of the appliances behind cabinet panels. And she made the room extra inviting by adding a cozy dining nook with faux-leather banquette seating. It has turned out to be an ideal home office. “I do all my work here,” she says. “I’m just so in love with the space.”
Photograph by Christian Harder.
Dramatic Details (pictured above): Alison brought attention to the high ceilings by adding detailed custom moldings to the tops of the cabinets.
Bold Brass: Alison installed a one-of-a-kind brass hood as the kitchen’s focal point. “It’s a wow moment,” she says. Brass accents like the faucet and pendant lights bring the whole look together.
Matching Range: The BlueStar range was customized to match the cabinets, which are painted one of Alison’s favorite shades of white: Pure White by Benjamin Moore.
Marble Wall: Alison didn’t want a backsplash that showed grout lines, so she opted for a solid piece of Calacatta marble. “Natural stone and marble are true artwork from the earth,” she says.
Photograph by Christian Harder.
Patterned Floor: The white oak floorboards are set in a herringbone pattern. “They remind me of a Parisian flat,” she says.
Credits:
All text written by Erica Finamore for Food Network Magazine.
Photograph by Christian Harder.
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