Sometimes the smallest annoyances lead to the biggest transformations. For Kendra and Scott, it all started with a refrigerator drawer that wouldn’t stay put in the kitchen of their Edina mid-century rambler.

“Every time we opened it, one of the drawers would fall out,” Kendra recalls. “And duct tape was not fixing it anymore. People would stay over and put things on the shelf, and then it would break. It was a headache.”

The refrigerator issue sparked a larger conversation about their 1953 home’s dated kitchen. They’d purchased their home in May 2020 knowing updates would eventually be needed but, like many homeowners, they weren’t sure where (or when) to start.

They started by talking to a few design build firms, looking for advice.

Finding the Right Partner for the Job

Kendra had noticed White Crane’s signs during runs through South Minneapolis, so when the time came to tackle their kitchen, that memory led her to include White Crane on their shortlist. She and Scott interviewed several companies but Kendra found something different in her conversation with Brittany, a designer from White Crane.

“Brittany just seemed very on top of her game, in terms of being able to answer questions and talk about what’s realistic,” says Kendra. “I didn’t feel like I was going to be taken for a ride.”

More Than Just a New Kitchen

While Kendra and Scott’s project started with a broken refrigerator, it evolved into reimagining how their home could better serve their family of four. The White Crane team created a design that would improve the flow between spaces while maintaining the integrity of existing walls. A thoughtfully placed bar area serves as a transition point connecting the kitchen, dining room, and living spaces.

The finished project has transformed how the family interacts daily.

“The kids now have a place to be while we’re doing food prep,” says Kendra. “They can sit at the counter and stir the pancake mix in the morning.” Even simple tasks like doing dishes have become more social, with room for everyone to be in the kitchen at once.

The Little Things Matter

Some of the features Kendra and Scott appreciate the most weren’t even on their radar initially. White Crane’s design team thought through details the couple hadn’t considered, from adding a countertop button for the garbage disposal (“Who knew a button for your garbage disposal could change your life trajectory?” laughs Kendra) to converting a small amount of dead space under the breakfast bar into a wine cozy.

The team also remained open to Kendra and Scott’s ideas. When the original design called for cabinetry by the front window, Kendra wondered if they could add a built-in desk as well. “We had this big, beautiful view,” says Kendra. “I wondered if we could actually sit there.” The team made it happen.

The family set Thanksgiving as their goal for completion. “We were like, this is going to be the christening we want,” says Scott. The night before the holiday, he texted their White Crane project manager a photo of the roast in their completed kitchen.

“I said, ‘Here we go. Thanks, guys! Love you!’”

Now the kitchen has become such an integral part of their home that Kendra jokes: “If we ever were to move, it’d be like ‘Well, I’m not leaving this kitchen!'” But with a space that works this well for their family—and a neighborhood they love—moving is the furthest thing from their minds.

Valuable Tips

We asked Kendra and Scott if they’d offer any advice to others who are considering a remodel. Here’s what they said:

Choose good designers, and then trust them, even when plans evolve.

“When it comes right down to it,” says Kendra, “there’s a certain degree of trust you have to put in your design team that it’s all going to look good and be consistent with what your vision is. There were times when I was like, ‘I don’t know how all these elements are going to come together.’ and I was having to trust Brittany and Hunter. They’d tell me, ‘It’s gonna work. You just have to give it time.’ And then it did! And we wouldn’t make any changes in the design of it, because we just really like how it all came together.”

Find a team that will support your budget.
“We went in with a number, and said, ‘We don’t want to spend more than this.’ And I think we were really good about sticking with that number,” says Kendra.

She adds: “I don’t think initially I gave White Crane enough credit for helping us stick with that number while also achieving our goals. The conversation wasn’t so much like,’Oh, we want to do all these things/Well, you can’t do all these things because your budget is X’. It was more like, ‘Okay, let’s see what we can accomplish with the budget you have.’ That was very helpful.

“They presented us with options and said, ‘Here’s your budget, and here are your options. Now what do you want to spend your money on?’ Then Scott and I made choices like, well, we’re gonna go a little bit above our budget, because we want to fix the wall in the basement, for example. And I don’t regret making those choices to push our budget a little bit to try to accomplish as much as we could.”

Consider going bigger than planned.
“Honestly,” says Scott, “that’s probably the one big thing I have in hindsight. You’re not going to have this opportunity very often, so go big. If you think, ‘Yeah we should do that someday,’ well, you’re never really gonna get to it. What we’ve learned was if you’re gonna do it, go big. Push yourself, or your budget, because, really, there’s only a couple of times you’re probably going to do this.”

Kendra agrees. “I think if anything, Scott and I regret not doing more. Like, why not also do the bathrooms and just rip that band-aid off?”