My Kitchen Reveal with Queen City Audio Video and Appliances and Jennair

I am so excited to finally be able to share my kitchen reveal with Queen City Audio Video and Appliances and JennAir appliances. This project has been in the works for nearly two years, and it’s been so amazing seeing my dream kitchen come to life. In this blog post, I’ll lay out all of the vendors I used to create this space, in addition to specific on countertops, hardware, lighting and decor.

In addition, I am some thrilled to announce that I’m offering a giveaway on my Instagram page where you can enter to win a 10-piece JennAir cookware set valued at $899 for your own kitchen. It’s a luxury set with a 5-ply core that helps it heat up fast for more efficient cooking. Visit my Instagram for details on how to enter. Keep in mind, you can visit @queencityhomestore on Instagram for more kitchen inspiration as well as details on a special offer to get $25 off from Queen City Audio Video & Appliances by texting ‘Queen City’ to 31996. If you feel I missed something not listed in this post, please leave a comment on the post and I’ll be sure to get back to you and answer your questions.

The Kitchen Design & Appliance Selection Process

When Drew and I started drafting architectural plans for the house, I already knew exactly what I wanted my kitchen to look like. White cabinets, marble-looking countertops, gold hardware and lots of room to cook (for when I actually learned how to, lol!). It was important to me that the kitchen be an open, cozy space where guests could hang out and I could feel comfortable entertaining. For that reason, chef’s kitchen appliances and an extra large island were a must.

The first step in designing any kitchen is picking out your appliances so that you can plan your plumbing and cabinet design around those selections. Having worked in the design industry previously, I immediately knew I wanted my kitchen to house JennAir appliances. I always loved my past experience of working with Queen City Audio Video and Appliances for clients. They have the best customer service, and I was always impressed with their selection and in-store experience. It seemed like a perfect fit.

Last year, I was able to visit Queen City Audio Video and Appliances and shop for my appliances in-store. It was an incredible experience, and I felt the store associates had an impressive level of knowledge about their appliance selection. After looking at several brands, I ultimately decided JennAir was the best fit for my kitchen due to the modern, minimalist design and high-end technical features.

JennAir had just launched the new-era Rise and Noir appliance product lines, and they felt very cutting-edge and revolutionary, which was the vibe I wanted for my kitchen. I also loved how they launched innovative features with the appliances that were digitally integrated, such as using wi-fi to preheat your oven or pairing seamless for smart home use. I chose to go with the JennAir Rise collection, and the appliances I selected for my kitchen are listed below, as well as some impressive features that are important to mention about each item.

My JennAir Appliance Package

Refrigerator: JennAir 42″ Built-In French Door Refrigerator – Refrigerator has a beautiful obsidian interior with a produce preserver that keeps fruits and vegetables at it’s optimum freshness. It comes with a fully-flush design with custom-cabinet front panels that blends seamlessly into the cabinets. Also has a twin-fresh climate control system that offers humid air in the refrigerator and dry, rigid air in the freezer. Last but not least, the drawers are soft closer and the interior illuminates with LED lighting.

Beverage Center: JennAir Rise Undercounter Beverage Center – Also built with an obsidian interior to match the main refrigerator, this beverage center allows you to set independent temperature zones for both beer and wine. I love the auto light feature that turns on when you walk by, displaying drink options for guests. In addition, the front glass is UV-resistant and filters out ultraviolet light to prevent temperature swings.

Wall Oven: JennAir Rise 30″ Double Wall Oven – This oven provides an intelligent culinary experience with the use of the ‘culinary center,’ which is step-by-step support system backed by customized algorithms that helps you cook your meat and recipes to desired temperatures/doneness level. This oven also has smart integration allowing voice control through Alexa and Google Home as well as preheating on demand through wifi and the JennAir appliance iPhone app.

Dishwasher: JennAir Rise Trifecta Dishwasher – This dishwasher offers the trifecta promise: brilliant cleaning, water/energy reduction, and quiet operations. In addition, this dishwasher also connects through the Jennair app, offering wifi connection to run your dishwasher remotely. Having used this dishwasher for several weeks now, I can say it’s the quietest one I’ve heard, you won’t even know it’s running.

Rangetop: JennAir Rise 36″ Rangetop – This rangetop is offered with 14 different grid configurations based off grills, griddles and burners. I loved the sleek brass burners and brass-front knobs that paired perfectly with my kitchen’s gold hardware. In addition, this range top comes with cast iron grates and includes a very-powerful 20,000 BTU power burner that heats large pots quickly.

Microwave: JennAir Rise 24″ Undercounter Drawer Microwave – This microwave is very discrete and pairs seamlessly into my cabinet design thanks to the drawer design and lack of hardware. It has lots of programmable cook options including sensor cooking, defrost and reheat options.

Other Kitchen Design Selections

Last but certainly not least, I wanted to discuss some details around my cabinet design, countertop selection, plumbing and hardware. My cabinets were done by Schlabach Wood Design, an amish wood company based out of Ohio that specializes in custom cabinetry. I loved how they were able to take my vision of modern, yet classic design to create the perfect kitchen. Some features include raised panels. custom-stained oak shelving, shiplap hood and open glass cabinets with floor to ceiling design.

My plumbing was ordered through Ferguson Showrooms. They’re a plumbing supplier in Charlotte with amazing prices and selection. I went with the Newport Brass East Linear Pull-Down Faucet in forever brass PVD finish. This brand is definitely luxury when it comes to plumbing fixtures, and I love that it comes in over 28 finishes. If you’re really looking to step up some important areas of your home such as your kitchen and master bath, I highly recommend this brand. We also used them in our master bath.

I’ve had lots of questions about the countertops we chose in our kitchen. I had the most amazing experience working through Stoneworks in Charlotte. They’re a countertop fabricator with leading technology in design and have an amazing selection of countertop options thanks to their commercial relationships with big suppliers like Daltile. If you’re in Charlotte, New York or Florida, I highly recommend you work with them for your kitchen. The countertops we chose were Calcatta Leon Quartz with a meitered edge. We did a 2.5 inch meiter on the kitchen island to make it stand out, and a 2 inch meiter on the kitchen perimeter. In addition, I really wanted a statement backsplash, so we chose to carry the same countertop material up the backsplash behind the hood. It’s such a statement in our kitchen and I absolutely love how the design turned out.

I’ve also received a lot of questions about the hardware we used in our kitchen. All of the hardware in the main areas of our house are Topknobs, and my designer, Kathryn Lilly Interiors helped us determine what size pulls and knobs to use throughout our kitchen. She pulls together a complete hardware plan based off your cabinet design and it was so incredibly helpful because I think hardware can be really tough to decide. Our hardware is a mix of the Topknobs Lydia collection in honey bronze finish. I highly recommend you go through Kathryn Lilly Interiors in ordering your hardware because she gets amazing pricing and can help determine the correct sizing and collection for your space.

I am so incredibly happy with our my kitchen design turned out. I often find myself sitting in this space in awe of my dream vision coming to life. It’s casual and comfortable thanks to it’s open, laid-back design, but also has some modern, glam aspects to it as well. I can’t wait to take you along on more room reveals throughout my house as all the spaces come together!