Farmhouse Kitchen Makeover
When Monique and Keith Keegan inherited the 1960’s Hartland, MI farmhouse from Keith’s father, they knew they wanted to restore the home to original style. Keith’s father, Tom had actually built the home himself in 1960, making this inherited gift that much more meaningful.
The farmhouse had been remodeled in the early 90’s in a style not keeping with the original tone of the home. The Keegan’s decided to remodel and were excited to bring a farmhouse modern vision to life, while still honoring Tom’s original home.
Monique Keegan has an eye for design and was excited to take on this project. Monique started her career in fashion with limited brands as a fashion director, design director, and similar roles. Her and Keith had also been flipping houses in their home state of Ohio when they were discovered by Country Living. They were hired as contributing editors for many years, word got out and their popularity grew, leading Monique to the decision to grow her own business. She’s been busy ever since and feels fortunate to have been featured in magazines such as Martha Stewart, Midwest Living, Columbus Monthly, Country Living and Capital Style to name a few.
Today, the Keegan’s work together doing much of the same work, but more dominantly on the commercial level. They’ve worked on retail stores such as Abercrombie & Fitch, DSW, American Eagle Kids, Grail in Vancouver, Pop Up Shops such as the Express collaboration with the NBA, W Nail Bar, and more.
Bringing the Vision to Life
The Keegans reside in Ohio, so Monique took to Google to search for a natural stone provider near Hartland, MI. She found Great Lakes Granite and Marble, contacted them via phone, and actually ended up conducting the entire project that way. Monique shared that her project manager, Brandon, was exceptional to work with, understood her vision, was timely and thorough during the whole process.
“I can’t say enough about how easy he (Brandon) made the process. All I did initially was submit a layout with my ideas and said I wanted a dramatic black and white detail stone. Within a day, I received options that were available…. Template layouts were done via email and easily reviewed and approved from Ohio,” shared Monique about her experience with Great Lakes Granite and Marble.
Stone Selection
Monique selected Nero Marquina Marble for her farmhouse modern kitchen. This beautiful, genuine black, high quality stone comes from Spain. It is primarily black with white veins that can be very abundant depending on the slab. Monique chose to have her stone done in a honed finish, which presents a satin buffed or matte appearance. This finish will have less reflection and shine than a polished finish, creating a softer look. It is sometimes described as more relaxed or casual, while still being elegant. A honed surface is smooth and provides a good work surface for countertops, it will also leave the surface less slippery than a polished countertop.
Monique selected a flat honed edge for her project as well. Keeping with the simple farmhouse theme, Monique didn’t want to get too “fancy” with the edge details, keeping it clean and simple allowing the stone to be the highlight.
Every room needs a star, and this kitchen’s may be the island. It highlights vein matched mitered waterfall end panels on both ends of the island for a stunning centerpiece to a gorgeous room.
For the Keegan project, the stone was actually purchased from CIOT, and sent to Great Lakes for the fabrication and installation. Since the slabs were purchased from CIOT, Monique had the opportunity to re-appropriate any leftover materials for her laundry room. Monique’s project manager, Brandon was able to give her the dimensions of the excess materials so she could design her laundry room, taking advantage of the extra pieces, making the most of her investment, and carrying this elegant stone throughout the home.
Bringing It All Together
Monique completed her farmhouse vision with gorgeous black marble flooring, restored the existing walnut flooring in some areas, white subway tile, and brass Edison signature hardware fixtures. Smeg appliances highlight the kitchen as well. Italians really know beauty and these appliances complete the elegant yet relaxed look of the Keegan kitchen. The Hex 3” tile is made from tumbled black marble with a honed finish, sourced from The Tile Store.
When asked to reflect back on the project and the “feeling” she wanted to shine through the finished product, Monique shared that she wanted classic, yet updated. Functional as well as beautiful (it’s actually a working farm!). Beautiful yet sturdy enough to stand up to the two 175lb Newfoundland dogs the Keegans have. She definitely executed on that vision, and the team at Great Lakes Granite and Marble were there to help bring her vision to life. “The team was amazing. The work is beautiful. Everything was fast and efficient,” is what Monique shared with me. Words everyone wants to be able to say about any home remodel project!
