Lake Shore Drive kitchen with walnut cabinetry, black marble, and warm brass details

Lake Shore DriveResidence

Fontana, on Geneva Lake

Made for cooking and company.

The homeowners cooked often and loved hosting. They wanted a kitchen that served everyday meals and could close off from the dining room while a chef cooked for a party.

They also wanted to quiet the timber home aesthetic without abandoning it. The kitchen needed to belong between the adjoining rooms, rather than become a sharp departure from the house around it.

The Studio's role

Studio Saint Marie developed several interior architectural layout concepts, then planned the cabinetry and cooking workflow with the clients. Our design scope included cabinet and appliance heights, lighting distribution, pocket doors, mechanical cabinet lifts, and the island's concealed steel support.

Featured spaces: Kitchen, bar, primary bath, and custom cabinetry details
Materials: Walnut, soapstone, brass, black stone, and sculptural wood
Design focus: Cooking and hosting, with storage and dimensions planned around the homeowners

The kitchen

More room to cook and gather.

Moving the entrance and removing the angled pantry opened room for a longer range wall and a larger island. Matched walnut cabinetry, soapstone and brass quiet the timber home aesthetic while keeping the kitchen connected to the rooms around it.

Walnut kitchen with brass details and a stone fireplace at Lake Shore Drive Residence

Open kitchen framed by a stone fireplace extending from floor to ceiling

Walnut kitchen with a stone range wall and integrated appliances

Walnut range cabinetry with brass hardware and a stone backsplash

Walnut panels with matched grain concealing the refrigerator

Planned around the people who use it.

An entrance that changed the plan

Moving the kitchen entrance created room to extend the range wall and enlarge the island. Removing the pantry closet, which cut across the kitchen at 45 degrees, freed natural light and improved the cooking workflow. Circulation was reconsidered between the main hallway, side entrance and garage. The design required moving structural posts and reinforcing the subfloor for the island's added weight.

Every cabinet had a purpose

Before removing the pantry closet, we measured its storage volume. The replacement pantry cabinets preserved that capacity and increased it. We planned what would go in each cabinet alongside the clients, arranging storage around who usually cooks and how they work. The lighting plan checked that light reached the intended work areas.

A dining room that can close

The homeowners wanted friends to gather in the dining room while a chef worked in the kitchen. Pocket doors tuck behind the pantry cabinets when open and separate the rooms when needed. Hanging brass shelves display their bourbon collection beside the doorway.

Raised cabinets, reachable storage

Lifting the cabinets beside the range hood preserved the rectangular shape of the backsplash. To keep this storage useful, we designed mechanical lifts that lower the cabinet storage at the push of a button. Oils and seasonings remain within reach without changing the composition of the range wall.

Heights chosen for two people

One homeowner is 6 feet 1 inch tall; the other is 5 feet 3 inches. Cabinet heights were planned around both clients' reach. The stone range hood sits above the taller cook's head. The double oven heights were chosen around the client's natural arm position rather than a standard recommended height.

A lower island with concealed support

The homeowners preferred a lower seating height rather than a raised 42 inch bar. Soapstone alone could not achieve the spans they wanted, so we designed a custom steel frame to support the stone and waterfall ends. Pop up outlets were planned into the frame as part of the island design.

Craft and private spaces

Details with weight, texture, and restraint.

The bar turns exposed wood grain into a sculptural feature. In the primary bath, black stone, warm walnut, brass, and a concrete soaking tub continue the home’s grounded material character.