Photography: Squarelight Photography, Brittany Schone

When a local business owner and outdoorsman approached Matt Knittle of MK Woodworks to help him and his wife bring some functionality into the design of their Springfield, New Hampshire timber frame home, he was thrilled. “We’re very selective about who we work with,” says Knittle, “but it was clear that our services would be a good fit and our visions were aligned.”

“With a timber frame home, there are a lot of restrictions due to the framing—you are forced to be creative because of where these massive timbers fall that cannot be moved” explains Knittle. “So, as I encourage all my clients to do, we evaluated what the most important part of the kitchen was for them. For some it can be the sink, or even a $100 toaster, but for this particular family, it was the appliances.” Which for a family with three kids who love to entertain and cook, makes a lot of sense. The only issue? It was during the peak of the COVID appliance bottleneck. “So I said to them, I really think you should look at True Residential—I’ve used them. I think they’re refrigeration appliances are better than the others, and you should get on it. And so, within 24 hours, they had visited a showroom in the Boston area [Yale Appliance], and I started receiving confirmation after confirmation,” he remarks. “Their appliance package they put together for their home is second to none.” 

To accommodate the family’s farm-to-table lifestyle and their love of cooking, Knittle first made sure to incorporate a massive, 14’ x 9’ island—providing a large workspace fitted with ample storage underneath along with room for some chic French cafe-like counter stools from Serena & Lily. To keep the space light and airy and to perfectly complement the antique white and brass True Residential 30” Beverage Column and the 36” Refrigerator Column, Knittle used a marble from The Stone Shop for the countertops and backsplash. On the main cabinetry, an antique white paint color matches the True units while the island cabinetry features a light blue “Hazy” paint hue from Farrow & Ball that adds a charming touch. “The wife has great taste and was instrumental in coming up with the colors we applied—we received a paint chip sample from True and then we sent that out to a finish supplier to match it,” he explains.

But that wasn’t the only space that needed a functional revamp. Previously lined with utilitarian stainless steel-wire shelves for almost two decades, the pantry needed a serious reboot. To start, Knittle made sure all the appliances the homeowners had ordered were properly appointed for the utmost in use and performance—including a double oven and microwave drawer from Thermador, a large Kohler sink, a Sparkling water system from Grohe, a commercial dishwasher, and last but not least, a 36” stainless steel Freezer from True Residential. Once that was settled, Knittle had the cabinetry painted an eye-catching Hague Blue from Farrow & Ball that solidified the appealing nature of the space. “She [the wife] spends most of her time in the kitchen and subsequently the pantry, so I wanted to ensure incredible functionality and have them be aesthetically pleasing,” says Knittle. “I love True’s robust look and the hinge detail is really, really unique. They have a retro look to them with a bit of commercial flair that’s just so cool and timeless. I feel confident that 10 years from now my clients will still be happy with the product they bought. In addition, we love building stuff out of wood but we’re not always advocating for that. I think appliances can look really good on their own—I don’t feel like panelized refrigerators are always necessary. I love that True has a great solution that is really beautiful and doesn’t require a panel—the glass feature is also fantastic. It’s always nice to have a newer product available versus the same old, same old we’ve worked with for years.”