Design Pointers. The kitchen's look and feel connects the indoors with the outside with natural elements, such as the woven-style chairs, the hardwood floors and maple island countertop as well as the sage green paint, used as an accent. "Basically, I use green as a neutral," Cowan say. "I feel green works with everything." The cream-painted cabinets contrast nicely with the hardwood floors, a deliberate choice. "We decided against going with wood cabinetry, because we felt it would be too heavy and not contrast enough with the wood floor," she explains.

The young couple hails from large, extended families on both sides. They’re adding new members of their own: a boy who’s 4 years old and a girl, just 2. Throw in Sunday dinners, birthday celebrations and weekend barbecues. Without a doubt, family is a central part of their lives. And with the holidays around the corner, everyone’s been looking forward to the warm, comforting scents of both a turkey and a ham roasting in their double oven.

But when it came time for the couple to build their dream home, one they plan to live in for the rest of their lives, they weren’t sure what to expect. “This is the only house we’ve ever built, and we will never build another house again,” the wife says. “We didn’t know what was typical, what was not typical.”

But the couple did know Tiare Noelani Cowan, CKD, Allied ASID, of Archipelago, Refined Island Interiors. They were already familiar with her work. Cowan was the first person they hired—before the architect, before the contractor. She guided them through the process, paid close attention to details and maintained the integrity of the design concept: an Old Hawaii, plantation-style home.

Kid Functionality. Many design elements were targeted toward the children to make the kitchen functional for little ones. For example, this bar counter (back) also serves as a pass-through into the dining room, where the children can pick up their snacks and juices without going through the kitchen. It also provides an area where they can sit and watch their mom while she prepares dinner.

“We trusted her so much, because we knew her from before,” the homeowner says. “She just went to town. The saving grace for us was, she was very budget-conscious as well. She told us, ‘OK, you want to spend money here, but not here.’”

Cowan explains, “We ended up changing finishes and cabinetry lines to work with the budget.” Such details can be upgraded later, without compromising the overall design. “Originally, we had planned on a European Spekva solid wood countertop, but we ended up doing a John Boos maple and stained it. We probably saved $8,000 on just that one item. Altogether, we probably saved about $18,000 in the kitchen by changing the cabinet line and countertops.”

In the end, the young couple got what they wanted—though they couldn’t always articulate what they wanted exactly, other than a kitchen that functioned well for entertaining large groups, was kid friendly and captured their desired design: a plantation style. “We had no idea what size crown molding we needed, what kind of knobs, what kind of door handles or what fits with what style,” says the wife. “But Tiare knew. She made it so much easier for us, and she really pulled it together.”

Where To Get It

Designer: Tiare Noelani Cowan, CKD, Allied ASID, and Debi Kimsey, Allied ASID, of Archipelago, Refined Island Interiors

Bar Fridge: GE Profile beverage center from Servco Home & Appliance Showroom

Cabinetry: Custom-made Shaker style, painted cream and sage, from Hawaii Woodcrafts

Cooktop: GE Profile, from Servco

Counters: Verde Butterfly granite from Selective Stone; John Boos maple (island)

Faucets: Bannockburn, brushed nickel, by Danze

Refrigerator/Freezer: Sub-Zero, model 632F, 48” built-in, from Sub-Zero/Wolf

Oven: GE Profile built-in double oven
oven, from Servco Home & Appliance Showroom

Refrigerator: undercounter drawers, from Sub-Zero