“We have a lot of clients looking for house desks,” says Derrill Bazzy, designer for South Mountain Co., a design/build firm. In or adjacent to the kitchen is where pros are putting these multipurpose built-ins. Homeowners need somewhere to look up a recipe, type a list on the laptop, and post family notices. Architect Bill Shephard of John Morris Architects believes these separate but accessible workstations are becoming more popular because today’s kitchens tend to be exposed and open. He says built-in desks “keep daily operations hidden from view and kitchen clutter to a minimum.”
They may be designed to conceal stuff, but the desks themselves are on display.
Many houses on Martha’s Vineyard enjoy gorgeous settings, but this one “sits on a spectacular piece of land at the edge of the woods overlooking the water,” according to John Abrams, South Mountain president. Since views are captured from every angle, the public rooms share one contiguous space facing walls of glass. Bazzy wanted to maintain that airiness in the kitchen by “avoiding upper cabinets and emphasizing large windows.” The glazing left little room for storage, so Bazzy capped the end of the pantry with a cantilevered desk topped by a tall corkboard. The desk projects out from the wall as an extension of reclaimed cypress wainscoting. It juts into a passage leading to the back door mudroom and the cellar stairs—a place that homeowners pass through several times a day. On the opposite wall are recessed shelves, so cookbooks and phone books are handy. “It’s kind of a little hub at the junction of the kitchen and utility hallway,” adds Bazzy.
Designing a vacation house is often an exercise in efficiency. Owners host large gatherings and long-term guests, so projects like this coastal Maine home need multiple administrative areas. In addition to an upstairs home office, both the main kitchen and the guesthouse kitchen feature adjacent workspaces. French pocket doors in the main kitchen slide open to reveal “the command station for organizing events,” explains architect Bill Shephard. “This kitchen forms the nucleus of the compound, so having a workspace here was key,” he adds.
The little alcove faces southwest toward the front entry. This lets the owner see visitors as they come up the path and gives her fantastic natural light throughout the day. Tucked behind the refrigerator, the room houses pantry storage and a secondary sink with countertops for food prep. Computer and telephone portals keep messy cords in control. A combination of cherry cabinets and shelves puts books within easy reach while keeping less attractive paperwork behind closed doors. A built-in bulletin board covers the shared kitchen wall so guests don’t see it even when doors are open.
This Chappaqua, N.Y., home has a built-in desk in its 300-square-foot kitchen that’s an architectural focal point. Carol J.W. Kurth, AIA, developed the kitchen on an axis using the desk as an anchor. It lines up with the main sink, which is framed by an open archway leading to the family room and beyond to French doors. “We wanted the kitchen to look like a mix of furniture and cabinetry,” explains Kurth, “so we decided to do this little hutch piece above a dropped desk and align it so this is what you see from the family room.”
Apothecary drawers just above the stained wood desktop are small so they won’t become unruly when full. Glass-front cabinets flank display ledges backed in beadboard. The combo makes an appealing home for collectibles. A grommet hole in the desk surface permits wiring to slide neatly through. File drawers and cabinets sized for hard drives complete the storage ensemble. A framed corkboard turns scribbled notes into art while lighting tucked under the hutch illuminates homework efforts.
