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Small Cool 2009: Nreaves' Custom Style
Little Division #44

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Who Lives There: Nreaves, her husband and their 10 month old daughter
Location: Farmington, Michigan
Size: 890 square feet

What is your one favorite element in your small, cool home? I love our custom kitchen. The former dining room that was sized to seat six seemed excessive for a one bedroom apartment, so we expanded the kitchen to double it's size. It is now open to the living space which is wonderful for entertaining and even keeping an eye on our daughter while we cook. We replaced the dining room with a slide-out table that can adapt to seat the three of us in it's "closed position" and up to six when fully extended.

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What was one of the biggest challenges you faced in furnishing your small home? One of the biggest challenges was finding furnishings within our budget. We accomplished this by spending more on a few select pieces of furniture and offsetting that by designing and building other pieces ourselves such as the kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanity. The kitchen cabinets are a low cost plastic laminate and
incorporate materials such as electrical conduit for open shelving. Even the kitchen light fixtures were very cost effective. Each of the six recessed can lights were only $15 a piece and are simply mounted to a suspended plywood frame.


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Want more Small Cool? Check out all the entries on our contest page.

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Comments (42)

Gorgeous bachelor pad! Can't see raising a family here though.

posted by etslee on April 17th 2009 at 11:42am
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this is breathtaking.

posted by hla21 on April 17th 2009 at 11:44am
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i like a lot your extendable dining table. Very space efficient. We also live in a small apartment with our 10 month old son, so I appreciate all the details to make the space more efficient. Does your daughter sleep in your bedroom too?

posted by Anusha73 on April 17th 2009 at 11:45am
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So much counter space!

posted by Jose A on April 17th 2009 at 11:49am
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Your apartment is SO lovely!

I am also super excited to see an entry from my town! :)

posted by k ran on April 17th 2009 at 11:54am
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Great decision to eliminate the dining room. This is beautiful.

posted by GrizzleBizzle on April 17th 2009 at 11:56am
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The framed recessed are interesting. Is there a way you can provide a better photo of them? I'd like to see how you built it.

posted by gem on April 17th 2009 at 12:07pm
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oops, make that:

"The framed recessed "lights"...

(need more coffee)

posted by gem on April 17th 2009 at 12:08pm
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This is the most masculine space I have ever seen. I can practically smell the Old Spice!

I hope this is your style too, Nreaves, and you didn't just have your feminine touch "vetoed" :)

Beautiful, though.

posted by kellylc on April 17th 2009 at 12:11pm
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I'm looking forward to having a long and loving relationship with your kitchen.

posted by AlexDarling on April 17th 2009 at 12:13pm
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wish you'd shown a photo of the bedroom so i could judge the entire apartment :)

posted by erinpeace on April 17th 2009 at 12:19pm
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Mucho macho. And oh so cool.

posted by GreatFriend on April 17th 2009 at 12:20pm
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You had my vote at the first picture; that kitchen is gorgeous.

Overall I love it; really warms my minimalist soul, but I agree it does have more of a "bachelor pad" vibe than "family living" (not complaining about not seeing toys and baby stuff everywhere!). The color palette seems a bit dark for typical family style. In any case, this is just beautiful. I hope you make the finals, I want to see more pictures of this place.

posted by Sydney on April 17th 2009 at 12:24pm
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This is the most uncluttered home of a 10 month old I have ever seen! Where are you keeping all of the toys and equipment??

posted by ensuenos on April 17th 2009 at 12:24pm
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This looks like CG. Am I taking crazy pills? The lighting and lines and angles are all wonky.

posted by lindabot on April 17th 2009 at 12:30pm
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Sleek space, I love that you've kept it rug free, lets the eye wander all over the floor and up the legs of your wonderful sofa. Needs a pop though, something unexpected. I would replace the white plastic chairs in the living room with something in bright red, but keeping the narrow leg. Well done!

posted by jacksonlalonde on April 17th 2009 at 12:31pm
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I normally could not live in such a minimalist space, but this really works for me. The lines and balance of the placement of each piece is quite calming. I also like the thought of being able to clean the surfaces without picking up a thing!

posted by English Accent on April 17th 2009 at 12:40pm
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all of the things you guys built are AMAZING! i can't stop looking at the pics of your kitchen!

posted by eriiikaa on April 17th 2009 at 12:47pm
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Lindabot, you are not seeing things. I think this is CG too!! Look at the transparent dining room table and chairs. Weird.

posted by morina on April 17th 2009 at 1:03pm
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er, I just realized that the owners did the transparent table and chairs on purpose, to show that it expands. Still, it threw me.

posted by morina on April 17th 2009 at 1:06pm
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I think your baby needs some color and some soft rugs.

posted by Lesley on April 17th 2009 at 1:21pm
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A little masculine and a little dark but very nice.
Cheers!

posted by SeanG on April 17th 2009 at 1:29pm
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Not my cup of tea, but quite perfectly what it is. (If you know what I mean....)

posted by JoanneM on April 17th 2009 at 1:31pm
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Hi everyone,

I am Nicole's husband. I can assure that what you are seeing is not CG. I borrowed a friend's professional camera with a wide angle perspective correcting lens which what makes the lines look strange. morina is correct with respect to the transparent table and chairs. That is two photos spliced together in photoshop with the transparancy set to 30% on the one with the table fully extended.

I admit, it is a bit bachelor pad, but my WIFE actually would let me paint the kitchen walls a brighter color!

posted by mreaves on April 17th 2009 at 1:39pm
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Where does the little girl sleep?

posted by ChrisGal on April 17th 2009 at 2:01pm
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Where are your kitchen cabinets from? Do tell....please! :)

posted by Designa Gal on April 17th 2009 at 2:28pm
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Very nice!

posted by kerri on April 17th 2009 at 3:09pm
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Sleek and attractive albeit with a bit of a well-designed model unit feel to it, but perhaps that's due to it being on the market.

posted by Indy Jeffrey on April 17th 2009 at 4:13pm
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that kitchen wow.

posted by ss622 on April 17th 2009 at 4:47pm
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This is how you do it if you own. Just wow.

posted by Gene on April 17th 2009 at 4:49pm
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Counter space up the whazoo! Sexy bathroom walls. Total yums.

posted by threesheets on April 17th 2009 at 6:45pm
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Love your kitchen!!! Good luck in the contest, fellow Michigander.

posted by williamsweyr on April 17th 2009 at 9:33pm
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So proud to see more Michigan entries on here! My husband would LOVE this space, and I could be quite happy there, too. I wish we were in the market for a condo in Farmington! ;)

posted by Miss*Lisa on April 17th 2009 at 11:14pm
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Where is the decorating? I see architecture but no decor.

posted by Trumystique on April 17th 2009 at 11:50pm
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Stunning. Full house tour, please! :)

posted by FlyGirlLAX on April 17th 2009 at 11:52pm
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I'm usually more drawn to "eclectic" rather than modern, but I want to be in that kitchen every single morning to make some coffee. I'd always have all the cups clean and up on that pretty, busy, calm wall of stuff.

posted by ChicagoCharm on April 18th 2009 at 11:07pm
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I'm still reeling from the fact that this condo costs under 60K! It definitely has the highest "wow kitchen" to price ratio I've ever seen.

posted by stacyk on April 19th 2009 at 8:16am
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I like much of the design however the TV with the windows behind it would not be an option for me nor do I like the sofa back facing the kitchen. It separates the area instead of integrating.

posted by leehou on April 19th 2009 at 9:06am
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I love the place!

posted by vanda on April 19th 2009 at 11:20am
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Love the kitchen and bathroom, how gorgeous, clean and minimal!

posted by BadJuJu77 on April 19th 2009 at 2:32pm
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Absolutely wonderful space!
Don't listen to the ones about it being a bachelor pad (even though you admit)! Everyone is of course entitled to their opinion but I think that it is a beauty of minimalistic design and extremely clean. The bathroom and kitchen are stunning! I can agree on it being a bit dark but that is what makes it even more attracting - you guys stuck with the theme it seems you wanted.

Good luck! You have my vote. =)

posted by scarlett1313 on April 23rd 2009 at 2:54pm
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whats wrong with a bachelor pad?

posted by Motschill on May 21st 2009 at 2:10pm
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