Kitchen of the Week: A Maine Farmhouse Kitchen That Doesn’t Play by the Rules

We couldn’t go Up North this week without a stop by our favorite family compound in Spruce Head, Maine, where sculptor-turned-builder Anthony Esteves and his family live frozen in time. We’ve returned to this site again and again, for inspiration from the young family’s handbuilt home, a look at their delightfully primitive kitchen, and a tour of the circa-1754 Cape Esteves renovated for his mother. Today we’re revisiting the Cape’s farmhouse-inflected kitchen, where, Esteves says, “the goal was not to restore the Cape to its exact historic standard. Rather, the aesthetics are informed by the range of styles within early American homes.” The result: a pleasingly rustic yet decidedly luxe kitchen with a pitch-perfect blend of historic charm and modern amenities.

Photographs by Greta Rybus.

Above: The hand-hewn beams, wide-plank floors, and showstopping run of paned windows over the sink are original to the circa-1700s home. A modern luxury for an avid cook: the double-wide gas range.

Above: Esteves chose a mix of Carrara marble and butcher block for the countertops and sourced an apron-front sink from Kohler Dickinson. The antique glass cloche is French—Esteves picked it up at Marston House on the island of Vinalhaven, Maine.

Above: A closeup on the Carrara marble countertop. Thinking of using Carrara in your own kitchen? Read Remodeling 101: Marble Countertops for everything you need to know.

Above: Esteves lined a wall of the kitchen with a Shaker peg rail, where hangs a dish towel. Clean towels are stored in the round baskets under the island. The wire cages were sourced from Trillium Soaps and the wooden stools were another Marston House find.

Above: Additional hanging storage courtesy of iron wall hooks attached to the rafters. Esteves’ mother uses them for copper pots and pans.

Above: The adjacent dining room, with a farm table and black spindle-backed chairs. The centerpiece is made of foraged blooms arranged by Esteves’ sister-in-law, who owns event design company One & Supp.

Above: The Cape exterior.

Can’t get enough of our Up North issue? Check out these posts:

• The New Sanctuary: Inside a Curator’s Haven on the Coast of Maine, Ikea Kitchen Included
• Live Like a Local (for Less): The Newly Opened Toronto Annex Hotel
• Les Touilleurs: A Classic Kitchen Emporium in Montreal