Kathleen Holemans and Peter Reynolds liked the green millwork at Ruthie’s All-Day so much that they stole the idea for their Arlington Forest kitchen. The space had been renovated in 2010 as part of a larger whole-house project, but by 2022 they were bored with it.
“I wanted to bring more color into the room,” Holemans says. “The previous colors were earthy browns and grays—very soothing but not so exciting after a long period of time.”
The couple called on Kate Hougen, founder of Mira Jean Designs, to revamp their kitchen without changing its footprint. Hougen kept the existing appliances and perimeter cabinets, refinished the oak floors and introduced a new ceramic tile backsplash from Sonoma Tilemakers, along with new light fixtures and a walnut island with a quartz countertop.
Choosing a new hue for the old bamboo cabinets was the biggest decision. “[The clients] had seen Dakota Johnson’s kitchen in Architectural Digest and its beautiful green cabinets,” says the Arlington designer. We Googled it and found the actual paint color and brought samples back to the home.”
But it was the wrong green—too dark and not as bright as it looked in the magazine—so the hunt continued. “We pulled a handful of paint samples and looked at them in the space, but we weren’t loving the colors,” Hougen says. “Then one day I walked into Ruthie’s and I thought, ‘This is it.’ The hostess was gracious enough to look up the color. Halfway through dinner she brought me a Post-it note with the name on it.”
Sherwin-Williams’ Reseda Green was the winner. A fresh paint job made the cabinets look like new, and reeded glass doors on two of the upper panels lend textural interest. “I love this green because it’s fresh and vibrant without being jarring,” Holemans says. “I wanted a clean, crisp look that would contrast with the white tiles and countertops.”