wedgwood, seattle / December 2024
Frameless Golden Home walnut veneer cabinets, quartzite with waterfall details and full-height backsplash, expanded kitchen window with stone wrap, updated electrical, integrated microwave, and a concealed vent hood—completed in five weeks. A Wedgwood neighborhood kitchen upgrade built around real stone, warm walnut veneer, and a brighter sink wall: quartzite counters and full-height backsplash, waterfall panels, a larger window opening wrapped in stone, refreshed electrical, and a refined appliance package including a built-in microwave and integrated hood.
Case Study
Window expansion touches siding, flashing, insulation, and trim sequencing, and it also forces backsplash and cabinet modules to land on verified dimensions after the opening is set. Quartzite full-height fields are less forgiving than short subway tile: outlets, switch locations, undercabinet lighting, and hood blocking all have to be coordinated before stone fabrication. Frameless cabinets demand tight tolerances at panels, appliances, and filler conditions so seams stay quiet.
We sequenced window and rough electrical ahead of cabinets where possible, then set cabinetry and templating so quartzite seams, waterfall corners, and window-wrap cuts could be measured off finished planes. The vent hood route was coordinated with upper cabinet depth, liner dimensions, and exterior termination so ventilation performance matched the concealed look. Lighting was split between recessed ceiling cans for general illumination and under-cabinet LED for task light across the quartzite backsplash.
The finished kitchen feels brighter at the sink wall, warmer at the wood cabinetry, and more substantial at the stone surfaces. Full-height quartzite and waterfall details give the room a custom-built character without excess ornament. The upgraded electrical and appliance layout supports daily cooking with fewer compromises, and the integrated microwave plus concealed hood keep the working wall visually calm.
Gallery
A strong project page should show the room from more than one pretty angle: wide context, material detail, and the way the space actually reads.
Material Read
These are visual, technically informed material assumptions. Exact product names require invoices, box labels, or supplier records.
Cabinets / frameless kitchen cabinetry
Slab fronts with vertical grain walnut veneer and frameless construction. Exact door style and supplier paperwork would confirm SKU; comparable specs include frameless boxes with thick panels for integrated appliances and panels that land flush at appliances.
Stone / natural quartzite slabs
Quartzite carries natural variation and needs templating after cabinets are set. Full-height backsplash layouts require outlet cutouts, switch alignment, and seam planning before fabrication.
Stone / waterfall edge fabrication
Waterfall corners increase fabrication complexity and weight. Installation sequencing protects edges during cabinet and appliance setting.
Millwork & enclosures / window surround finishes
Enlarging the kitchen window affects exterior cladding and interior finishes. Stone returns at the window marry waterproof back-splashes to daylighting details and must be coordinated with trim and stool conditions.
Ventilation / concealed or cabinet-integrated hood
Concealed hoods require correct CFM for the cooktop, duct routing, make-up air considerations on larger homes, and precise cabinet depth for the liner and chimney transition.
Appliances / built-in microwave
Trim kits and venting paths vary by model. Rough opening, adjacent landing depth, and circuit sizing should be confirmed before cabinets are ordered.
Electrical / kitchen branch circuits and receptacles
Modern kitchens often require dedicated microwave, refrigerator, dishwasher, and cooking circuits plus GFCI at required locations. Older Seattle stock frequently needs panel capacity review when adding loads.
This project is a useful reference for how a mid-upper Seattle kitchen scope stacks when the priorities are real stone, frameless cabinetry, a brighter sink wall, and modern appliance integration without losing warmth. Completed in December 2024 for about $76,000 on a five-week schedule, it sits in a realistic band for a compact-to-mid footprint kitchen where the material level is high but the room is not a full structural re-plan.
The cabinet package is frameless Golden Home work with walnut veneer slab fronts. Frameless construction usually reads cleaner at reveals because doors and drawers cover more of the box, but it also punishes sloppy rough dimensions. Appliance openings, panel widths, and end panels need to be resolved early because integrated appliances and refrigeration panels consume exact widths. Walnut veneer adds warmth against cool quartzite; the vertical grain direction keeps the wall elevations calm and modern.
Quartzite is the dominant finish story. It appears on the perimeter counters, selected waterfall ends, and as a full-height backsplash behind major working walls. That decision changes labor and sequencing compared with a short tile backsplash. Full-height stone means outlets and switches must be located and sometimes recessed or mounted to meet finish requirements, and undercabinet lighting needs a predictable lip depth so LED strips land correctly without visible glare.
Waterfall panels change fabrication and handling. Mitered corners at vertical drops must be protected during installation, and the island or peninsula side panel has to align with cabinet toe-kick and panel seams so the stone does not look like an afterthought.
This kitchen included window expansion work, which is not only interior finish carpentry. Changing the rough opening affects exterior cladding, weather resistive barrier continuity, flashing, insulation, and trim. On the interior, a larger window improves daylight at the sink and makes the room feel less tunnel-like. Wrapping the opening in stone ties the backsplash field into the architecture of the window rather than stopping tile at a sill that feels disconnected.
Kitchen remodels often reveal undersized branch circuits or crowded panels. At minimum, modern appliance loads expect dedicated circuits for cooking equipment, microwave, dishwasher, and refrigeration, with GFCI protection where the code requires it for countertop receptacles. Lighting upgrades should separate general cans from undercabinet task lighting so dimming and switching behave predictably. None of that photographs as nicely as stone, but it is what makes the kitchen safe and inspection-ready.
The vent hood is integrated into the upper cabinet run so the cooking wall stays visually quiet. Concealed hoods still need correct duct sizing, exterior termination, and realistic CFM for the cooktop below. A microwave located as built-in must respect adjacent landing clearances, trim kit dimensions, and circuit capacity; ordering rough openings to match the actual appliance model prevents expensive cabinet rework.
Five weeks is tight but achievable when demolition scope is controlled, lead items are on site on time, inspections are scheduled deliberately, and stone templating happens immediately after critical cabinets are set. The schedule breaks when rough openings, electrical, or hood duct paths are still moving while finishes are trying to land.
At roughly $76,000, this Wedgwood kitchen is not pretending to be a full custom millwork exhibit with every wall moved. It is a strong finish-and-systems upgrade: frameless veneered cabinets, natural stone at counters and walls, a window scope that touches the envelope, electrical brought current for modern appliances, and integrated ventilation and microwave planning. That is where money goes on a quality kitchen in Seattle: durable surfaces, correct rough-in, and installation discipline rather than an endless list of decorative changes.
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