From dream to reality | An unrecognizable ground floor

Any renovation requires a good deal of planning and crowns a long-term process. Once a month, we will discover projects of various sizes that could give ideas.

Danielle Bonneau
The Press

Geneviève Rainville and Denis Girard gave in to the call for the renovation in the spring of 2021. It had been ready for a long time, but she resisted, fearing both the scale of the costs and the inconvenience that the metamorphosis of the ground floor would entail. floor of their house in La Prairie. The poor state of the kitchen got the better of his apprehensions.

“I had my foot on the brakes for a long time, but even I was no longer able to see my kitchen,” reveals the owner. We had mainly chosen basic materials when we bought the house in 2006. They had aged badly. »

Good time

Through his profession as a photographer, working freelance for Cuisine Bröder, Denis Girard regularly sees the fruit of the efforts of the kitchen designer’s various teams, specializing in the design and construction of kitchens and bathrooms. By photographing interiors once renovated, he saw the impact of using quality materials.

“I saw houses similar to ours and older, which were transformed into something really fantastic, underlines it. Bröder remains a company that does business with high-end suppliers, and that implies a significant investment. But I have seen the results. It is definitely worth investing as much as you can in quality. »

The stars aligned when the mortgage was renewed. With just five years left to pay it off, the couple opted to refinance the home to extend the payments for another eight years. “I was aware that by renovating the ground floor, we would really increase the value of the house, specifies Geneviève Rainville. It is an investment. »

They trusted kitchen designer Geneviève Pelletier, whom Denis Girard had met several times. Far from being limited to the renovation of the kitchen, the owners had the cupboards that separated the living room from the kitchen removed to enlarge the space. A wooden support beam was therefore installed.

“It was important to also modify the staircase, because it’s one of the first things you see when you come in. The steps were sanded and varnished, the risers were painted black and the railing was changed. Thanks to the contrast, the staircase has a much more modern look,” adds Geneviève Rainville.

The color of the oak flooring in the living room and in the kitchen has been brightened. The couple is also pleased not to have skimped on the flooring during the construction of their home. He then paid extra for oak flooring, rather than marquetry. The ceramic section in the kitchen was replaced with oak to match that which had been installed elsewhere on the ground floor.

“The varnish that was applied to the entire floor has a bit of a whitish color in it,” says Mr. Girard. This evens out the boards, since the darker ones have become a little lighter, without affecting the ones that were already light. »

“The floor had yellowed over time,” adds his wife. It really wasn’t pretty. The result is spectacular. »

Imposing island

The installation of an island almost twice as large as the old one compensated for the loss of the pantry and numerous cupboards, which delimited the kitchen.

“I was a little afraid of running out of storage space, admits M^me Rainville. But finally, when we empty all our cupboards, we realize that we keep old things that we never use. A selection had to be made. Everything is now more tidy. We recovered space by putting cabinets up to the ceiling. You put things up that you don’t use too often, like a raclette oven. »

As the space is open, attention has also been paid to the furniture in the living room. Made to measure, it is made of materials that harmonize with the kitchen. Geneviève Rainville is delighted. “We were tired of the furniture we had in the living room, but we couldn’t find anything to replace it,” she says. Once again, we had to make choices, to keep only the books and DVDs we really like. »

They remember with laughter the two months spent eating in the basement or on a folding table in the living room, in the absence of the workers, with their two daughters, Mila and Axelle, who are now 16 and 13 years old. Taking advantage of the advice of the kitchen designer, who notably produced 3D illustrations, they are proud to have been able to respect their budget, with rare exceptions. They have no regrets.