White kitchen with marble island, woven counter stools, white cabinets, brass fixtures, and pink peonies in a ceramic vase.

 

Designer & Stylist

Gabrielle Messina


Location

Pennsylvania


photographer

Kinna Shaffer

 

White kitchen with marble island, woven counter stools, pink peonies in vase, white cabinets, and hardwood floors.

The Calla Entry & Kitchen Renovation


The Calla Kitchen Project began with good bones and a wish to let them breathe again. This was a house already well loved, full of the raised-panel cabinetry and tray ceilings that give a traditional home its quiet formality — and our work was less about reinvention than about softening. We kept the architecture and let it relax: marble laid thick and honest, woven textures pulled in to warm the polish, a few antique pieces set against fresh paint until old and new stopped feeling like opposites. What emerged is a home built around the unhurried hours, gathered rather than designed, which was always the point.

Antique wooden sideboard with gold mirror, pink flowers, and decorative objects in an elegant interior.

The Entry


We wanted the first moment of the house to feel collected and warm. An antique French oak cabinet; raw and worn to a honeyed patina grounds the space beneath an ornate gilt mirror — the gilding and the grain holding a conversation across time. The styling is a not to our client's Greek heritage. A solid marble torso, coral peonies held in an ornate brass vessel, a sacred insense burner, a fragment of a capital; collected for years & saved for years for this very space.

A welcome entry, setting the tone for the whole home.

Antique wooden sideboard with gold mirror, pink flowers, and decorative mannequin torso in an elegant interior.
Woman arranging candles on a vintage wooden sideboard with a gold ornate mirror, flowers, and a mannequin torso.
Rustic wooden dresser styled with a torso sculpture, pink peonies, gold lantern, stone candle bowl, and stacked books.
Antique wooden sideboard with gold ornate mirror, pink peonies, marble torso sculpture, and decorative accents.
Antique wooden dresser with marble torso sculpture, pink peonies in gold vase, and ornate mirror on neutral wall.
Ornate gold mirror above wooden dresser with pink peonies, lit candles, brass vase, and classical torso sculpture.
White kitchen with marble island, woven counter stools, and pink peonies in a vase on dark hardwood floors.

The Kitchen


The kitchen is the room everything else organizes itself around, anchored by a marble island that falls in a single uninterrupted waterfall to the floor. We let the stone steal the show and elected to refinish the kitchen's existing cabinetry.

Cool natural marble set against walnut stained hardwood, warm whites, a timeless bridge faucet in chrome, unlacquered brass hardware; keeping our clients potted herbs close at hand for culinary inspiration. A balance of tones in this sunny where every service is clearly made to be used.



White kitchen with marble island, woven counter stools, and pink peonies in a vase on dark hardwood floors.
White kitchen with marble island, woven bar stools, white cabinets, brass fixtures, and pink peonies in a vase.
Woman in red dress watering a small plant at a marble kitchen sink with pink peonies on the counter.
White kitchen with marble island, woven bar stools, pink peonies in vase, white cabinets, and dark hardwood floors.
Woman arranging pink peonies in a wooden bowl on a white marble kitchen island countertop.
Elegant marble kitchen countertop with chrome bridge faucet, fresh herbs, and pink peony flowers near sink.
Woman in red dress arranging pink peonies in a green ginger jar vase in a bright white kitchen.
White kitchen with marble island, woven counter stools, pink peonies, and gold hardware accents on white cabinetry.
Bright dining room with oval wood table, rattan chairs, white slipcovered chair, gold chandelier, and pink floral centerpiece.

The Breakfast nook


The breakfast nook sits just off the kitchen. a space that was before dark and heavy has become a light filled spot -  Walls of windows wrap the corner and pour light across the table; a room made for lingering — for pancakes that turn into a second pot of coffee & for slow mornings.


Under a classic brass chandelier, we pulled in a solid white-oak oval table and paired it with rattan chairs that bring a casual ease and linen slipcovered hosts that soften the whole arrangement. 

Elegant white dining room featuring gold ring chandelier, oval wood table, slipcovered chair, rattan seats, and marble kitchen counter.
Oval wood dining table with rattan chairs, white tea set, and pink flowers, woman in red dress in background.
Bright dining room with oval wood table, white slipcovered chairs, rattan seats, and pink peonies in a white vase.
Woman in red dress standing in elegant white kitchen with gold chandelier, marble countertops, and round dining table.
Bright dining room with oval wood table, white slipcovered chairs, rattan seats, gold chandelier, and coral flower centerpiece.
Woman in red dress stands in white kitchen beside oval wood dining table with gold chandelier and a brown doodle dog.
Oval oak dining table with rattan chairs, white tea set, and pink flowers in a bright dining room.
Light wood oval dining table with wicker chairs, white mugs, and pink flowers in a bright dining room.
Woman in red dress standing in bright white kitchen with marble countertops and elegant dining area with gold chandelier.

Final Note


This project was a reminder that good design often means knowing what to leave alone. The bones of this home were already beautiful — my work was simply to soften the edges, warm the polish, and make room for the way this family actually lives. My hope is that it feels less like a kitchen we designed and more like one they've always had.

 

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