Take one homeowner with a vision of light, bright and white, add a close-knit team of contractor, designer and cabinet supplier, and multiply by high-tech communication. That formula adds up to a showplace gourmet kitchen, optimized for both entertaining and family use, said Suzanne Reid, a designer for Markraft Cabinets.
 
Markraft recently completed that job for Paul and Christy Evon, a couple with two young children who divide their time between Canada and North Carolina.
 
A spacious, open-plan kitchen, dining and family area are the heart of the Evon family’s Landfall home. White is the dominant tone, in simple, un-fussy cabinet door designs and white counters. Silestone’s “Blanco Stellar” quartz, which Mrs. Evon chose for its distinctive look, is white with embedded “glimmer.”
 
“She really wanted a little bit of that sparkle,” Reid said, which also influenced the choice of classic crystal knobs.
 
Complementing the whites are rich hardwood flooring and a tropical hardwood center island. It’s wenge, a heartwood from Africa with a dark brown, almost black, finish. “The wood kind of tones it down,” Reid noted, “and adds some warmth.”
 
The Evons like to entertain, and designed a separate wet bar into their kitchen. It features an ice maker, roll-out trays, and a lighted glass-front cabinet for bar glassware. “This includes beautiful glass shelving,” Reid said, framed in white-finished wood.
 
Several features accommodate multiple people working in the kitchen: A second prep sink, trash bins by each sink, and a warming drawer in addition to the restaurant-quality range. The appliances are gleaming stainless steel.
 
“High-end appliances set the tone for the cabinet line,” from the custom builder StarMark Cabinetry, Reid explained. “They just make beautiful cabinetry, really like fine furniture.” Beyond their solid construction - all plywood - and such user-friendly features as dovetailed wooden, full-extension soft-close drawers and soft-close hinges, StarMark Cabinetry builds in features that in other brands are added at installation: customized end panels, seamless accommodations for appliances and special finish details.
 
In the Evon house, these touches included a mantelpiece above the range and material to harmonize structural columns with the cabinets.
 
Acting as a matchmaker was custom homebuilder Eddie Evans, who recommended Markraft to Mrs. Evon. Markraft did all the cabinets for her house, including those in the bathrooms and laundry. Reid met with the client a few times, but handled most of the design at long distance, “through the miracle of email and the Internet,” she said with a laugh.
 
Since 1985, Markraft has specialized in cabinet and countertop design and installation in residential and commercial construction and custom remodeling. To learn more about Markraft, go to www.markraft.com. Contact Markraft at 910-762-1986 and like Markraft on Facebook at www.facebook.com/markraftcabinets.