Kitchen-Plus Renovation Warm and inviting

A thoughtful remodel delivers a new kitchen hub, a mudroom entry, and more-while honoring the 1929 house's classic bones

- JILL CONNORS

Lots of space. Lots of wood. Lots of light. Sometimes too much of a good thing can be, well, too much. Especially when there's also too little openness, too little function, and too little flow. That was the case at Heather and Andrew Altobelli's gracious vintage house in Westfield, NJ, which came with a sprawling kitchen wing that lacked another essential ingredient: warmth. "I'm a foodie, and I need a kitchen that's a hub where we can all be together," says Heather, who loves to cook and entertain.

Enter builder Mike Mroz and his wife, interior designer Ellie Mroz, who were hired to rethink the existing space and exchanged walls of 1990s glazed-maple cabinetry for an eclectic mix of finishes that echo the home's original wood-paneled walls, handsome moldings, and weathered-brick exterior accents. The revamped kitchen is now open to an inviting breakfast room, and connects to a charming entry that leads to a large mudroom and an upgraded bath-convenient with a swimming pool just outside. An outdoor dining area and snack bar create a seamless connection between indoors and out. The result: renovated spaces that feel both modern and timeless. Best of all, says Heather, "we kept the integrity of the house."

REMAKING AN ENTRANCE

“We paid attention to traditional details and materials,” says Mike Mroz, who added a new Dutch door at a secondary entrance that now leads to a mudroom lined with brick pavers. The space’s casual shiplap walls are in keeping with the home’s stone-and-shingle Colonial Revival architecture.

1. A fieldstone path off the driveway leads to a portico that is Heather Altobelli’s favorite way to enter the house, whether laden with groceries or accompanied by the couple’s children—ages 12, 14, and 17—since it’s close to both the kitchen and mudroom. Mike repaired the original slate roof; siding shingles were replaced or repaired and repainted.