Shaker-style koa cabinets are the centerpiece of this updated kitchen design. A farmhouse-style basin sink, in hammered copper, adds to the charm.

Six years ago, Robert Chaffee came across an old home for sale, nestled high up on the slopes of Diamond Head. The Mediterranean-style house, with room for two families and servants’ quarters, had seen better days.

“It was a dump,” Chaffee says. Still, it was a dump with very good bones. The home was built in 1929, around the same time as Honolulu Hale and the Dillingham Estate, so it had solid brick construction.

Chaffee bought the home, got it placed on the historic register and set out to bring it back with the style and craftsmanship it once knew. The kitchen renovation was one of the last projects.

For this job, Chaffee teamed up with Alex Butchart, CKD, of Highline Kitchen Systems, to create a space that fit with the home’s past. He also wanted an arrangement that allowed him to cook, talk to his guests and enjoy the ocean views beyond.
Chaffee’s first instinct was to keep with the design aesthetic of the ’20s and use Shaker-style cabinets with a distressed finish. For the cabinets, he chose koa, which proved to be both beautiful and economically feasible.

“I love the wood,” he says. “We’re in Hawaii, so it makes sense to go with koa.”
King & Zelko Hawaiian Woodworks created the custom cabinets, pulling in detailing from the home’s exterior columns as an edge accent. Placing the cabinets in sleek, flush lines would have created a modern feel rather than the traditional look they were seeking, Butchart explains. So the cabinets were built to different levels and with bump-outs. The substantial 3-inch crown molding running along the tops of the cabinets complements the home’s historical roots, too.

With characteristic attention to detail, Butchart incorporated cabinet fronts, using a beautiful antique-style glass with a hand-blown look. While appliances are modern and top-of-the-line, Butchart kept the look traditional by using custom cabinet fronts where he could. A handy roller-door appliance barn also allows Chaffee to keep his countertops clear.
A key focal point in the kitchen is the hammered copper sink. Chaffee hunted high and low to find the farmhouse-style basin that he wanted, before coming across the perfect one at the Bella Pietra showroom. (They don’t sell the sink, but were able to put him in touch with the distributor.) A bronze Rohl faucet and hammered bronze cabinet pulls complement the sink’s farmhouse charm.

Lighting also had to be addressed, because the back of the kitchen was at risk of being a little dark. That problem was solved with the addition of an overhead skylight, which has the added benefit of circulating cool air throughout the room.
The finished result is rich and strong, a beautiful blend of materials that have definite impact
and a lot of warmth.

“I love it,” Chaffee says. “I entertain quite a bit. I have neighbors and friends over and I love to cook Italian food. We open the doors up to the outside and they mingle back and forth with their drinks while I’m working in the kitchen.”