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Seeking to preserve and update the house they commissioned from Richard Barancik in 1953, Chicagoans Howard and Doris Conant hired Margaret McCurry, of Tigerman McCurry Architects . Above: Formerly a narrow galley arrangement, the kitchen was expanded and given terrazzo floors, stainless-steel countertops, walnut cabinetry, from Poliform, and a substantial granite-topped island for casual dining and entertaining. SubZero refrigerator and Franke sink, at Abt.com. (February 2009)

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Juan Miró and Miguel Rivera, of Miró Rivera Architects , worked with Mike Kaeske and Lynn Bradshaw to give their Austin, Texas, home a modern look without disrupting the traditional feel of the neighborhood. Above: The duo used wood and soapstone countertops and stainless-steel appliances to modernize the kitchen, though the original flooring remains. New windows bring in natural light. The oil is by Johannes Hüppi. (February 2009)

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“It was an ’80s building needing a rehab,” says journalist Dena Kaye, who, along with her partner, designer Dick Fallin , updated a house on St. Bart’s in the French West Indies. While retaining the basic footprint, the pair modernized their residence and opened it to the views. Above: The nondescript kitchen was transformed with stainless-steel countertops. “I love eat-in kitchens, because people always gravitate there anyway,” says Kaye, who picked up the flower painting at an artist’s atelier in the Pyrenees. (February 2006)

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In renovating a New York apartment, designer Juan Montoya chose marble tiles to replace old vinyl, and cabinets are now “Douglas fir that has been sliced and relaminated, so the grain is absolutely straight,” Montoya observes of the extensive makeover the kitchen received. Franke sink; Waterworks faucets. Sub-Zero refrigerator. (February 2006)

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“It didn’t have to be Tudor Tudor,” says designer Douglas Marsceill, who renovated the 1935 Los Angeles residence of composer Burt Bacharach and his wife, Jane. “We wanted to keep it more casual.” Above: “There was just a galley kitchen. One of the Bacharachs’ main requirements was a kitchen/family room combo.” Marsceill, who collaborated with contractor James Williams, knocked out several walls, joining five rooms to create one large space. (February 2000)

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“My client, Terri Henning, needed a comfortable home where she could begin again,” Monique Gibson says of the penthouse she carved out of a converted bank in Charleston’s historic district. Above: Brick walls ground the kitchen. “When I first saw the apartment, all the original brick was visible,” says Gibson. “We decided then that we must salvage as much of it as possible and use it in the kitchen and family room.” Devant Chez Mestre , 1959, is by Willy Ronis. Viking range and ovens. Barstools, Sentimento, with Bergamo fabric. (February 2008)

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“The apartment had a poky kitchen,” says designer Sandra Nunnerley . “The new one was carved, in part, out of the butler’s pantry. It’s a traditional white-paneled space, very simple but thoroughly done,” she adds. The range, hood and oven are from Viking. Microwave,GE. (February 2004)

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Architect John B. Murray and interior designer Elissa Cullman joined two apartments in a 1914 Manhattan building to make a generously proportioned duplex. Inset: The gutted family room, study and dining room, beyond. Above: The new kitchen—a window was blocked for the range—and adjacent family room. Stools, T & K French Antiques. Sub-Zero refrigerator. Viking range. Waterworks faucet. Vaughan light fixtures. (February 2005)

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For the renovation of a 3,800-square-foot Florida condominium, Sally Sirken Lewis said, “Let’s keep it really light, like the environment, with its cool, sandy beaches. Let’s add bleached floors and taupey walls.” Above: The kitchen was redesigned to harmonize with the entrance hall and the living room. A Roy Dowell collage, Untitled #797 , 2000, hangs beside the refrigerator. Neff bleached-maple cabinetry and black-granite countertops. (February 2002)

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In California’s Carmel Valley, Sally Sirkin Lewis and her associate Kenn Shlaes renovated a house for Ed and Ruth Morrow. Inset: The original kitchen. “It was dismal and old-fashioned,” says Lewis. Above: The cabinets and granite-topped counter they designed “are sleek and sophisticated,” she notes. At rear hangs Richard Serra’s Billie Holiday , 1999. The refrigerator is from Sub-Zero. Wolf ovens. (February 2005)