Home Magazine, Historically Correct Pennsylvania, pp. 158

Located on Philadelphia’s famous Main Line, a string of architectural gems that stretches from the outskirts of the city through several suburbs, Donna and Stephen Ficchis’ home is a grand example of circa-1920 Colonial Revival design. When they decided to renovate the kitchen in the stately old house, the Ficchis went to Blue Bell Kitchens in Springhouse, Pennsylvania, a firm that specializes in period-inspired designs. No shiny modern kitchen for these homeowners – they wanted to duplicate as closely as possible the fine architectural detailing and gracious ambience in the other rooms of the house. Before they discovered Blue Bell Kitchens, the Ficchis worked for several months with a contractor to update antiquated electrical and heating systems and to combine the original small kitchen, pantry, and utility rooms into a single large space more suitable for contemporary family living. One day, in the midst of this renovation process, Donna discovered Blue Bell Kitchens at a local home show. Their display of old-fashioned-looking white-painted wood cabinets sold her.

On the spot, she commissioned Peter Cardamone, chief designer and owner of Blue Bell, to design her kitchen. Collaborating with architect Cynthia Curley, who planned the layout, Cardamone created a space that looks as if it could have been part of the original house. The cabinets, designed by Cardamone to replace a common early 20th-century style, were built on site, and brush-painted with several coats, which, he says, was the way it was done until the advent of premanufactured units. “The plaster wall of the kitchen also serves as the back wall of the cabinets,” he says. The work counters are soapstone, “the first kitchen counter material,” says the designer. “It was used frequently until the 1920’s.”

But what makes this room really special is that Cardamone sacrificed no convenience in the pursuit of nostalgia. With its professional range, abundant counter space, and granite-clad work island with a second sink, the kitchen is functional for the busy Ficchis and their Kitchen.