Kitchen Cousins Season 1, Episode 1: Taking a Brownstone Down to the Studs

Countertop Catastrophe

Meet the Orlandos, an Italian-American family living in a small condo. The main issue they're facing with their kitchen is one of safety: with three small children they have real concerns over an oven that opens all the way to the floor. Witih a baby about to start crawling, they needed to address that problem right away. The other issue is function, as the one-size-fits-all kitchen that the builders installed just isn't working for them. The Cousins realize that one way to open up the space is to remove the cheap granite countertop and substitute it with a one piece stainless steel one. But when the new countertop can't fit in the elevator, it almost derails the renovation. The next challenge is creating enough storage space. The Cousins plan to solve this problem with custom made Italian cabinets that reach the full height of the ceiling. Then to tie the living room to the kitchen, Anthony undertakes a special project.

This Kitchen is too Hot and Needs a Spice Rack

Kitchen Cousins Anthony Carrino and John Colaneri tackle a suburban kitchen that's desperately in need of a renovation. The appliances are older than the cousins themselves, the doorway from the dining room into the kitchen is tiny and storage is non-existent. One pet peeve of the homeowner? The limited storage means his spices are stored all over the kitchen, which is hard when he's making dinner. And with no air conditioning, this space is unbearably hot! Anthony and John start by tearing down the wall between the kitchen and dining room, creating a much bigger, lighter space. They rip up the multiple layers of floors, putting in beautiful hardwoods and build a custom spice rack out of reclaimed wood. They also refurbish a beloved a chopping block island, making it much more functional for the homeowners.

The Built-in Family Relic and the New Kitchen Dilemma

The Kitchen Cousins, Anthony and John, meet Nalini, a single woman living in Jersey City home she grew up in. As soon as the cousins walk in, they realize that the main obstacle to being able to design a functional kitchen is a huge built-in that's been there since she was a child. Nalini is against getting rid of this old family heirloom, so the cousins decide to come up with two different designs for the kitchen: one of them will preserve the piece of furniture, while the other will create more countertop space but get rid of the built-in. On the design meeting day, Anthony and John are hoping that she will choose the more functional one that allows them to remove the built in. Will she go for it? The cousins also run into trouble with the original subway tile. Their initial plan was to salvage it, but when there's an unexpected problem, they have to think fast to come up with a solution.

A Chef's Kitchen

Anthony and John meet Liz and Anthony Pino, a young family living in Hoboken, NJ. Anthony Pino is a successful local chef who aspires to have a more modern and functional kitchen at home, while Liz is all about having a space that looks like it's from the pages of a magazine. When the cousins suggest a plan of action, the homeowners don't seem to agree: they have a specific idea of what their dream kitchen should look like and they're not willing to compromise. Liz wants an all white kitchen, complete with a honed marble countertop, no matter the upkeep involved, and her husband wants to make her happy. Anthony and John have no choice but to follow their client's wishes. After warning them about possible staining and scratching, John and his Aunt Francine help Anthony and Liz choose a beautiful Carrara marble countertop. The cousins decide to come up with a creative solution that will help keep the marble countertop stain free for as long as possible.

Buy First, Design Later

Iliana Martinez lives in a beautiful home in New Jersey. She has redone the whole house, except for the unsightly kitchen. To convince her husband that they need to renovate it, she's taken matters into her own hands by knocking down parts of the walls to see what's behind them and allowing the cabinets to fall apart. Anthony and John must sieze the reigns of this project and give the Martinez family their dream space. Problem is, Iliana has already ordered state-of-the-art appliances and streamlined cabinets, so the cousins must work with what they have. Their design plan is big and bold, but the homeowner is up for it so it's onto demo they go! Once that's complete, Anthony and John get to installing the floor and cabinets and that's when the trouble begins. First, the customized oven cabinet is 4 inches too wide, then the lights are too big, and the countertop is missing a cutout for one of Iliana's appliances. The cousins have to work into the night to fix these problems.

Momma Needs a New Kitchen

This week, it's all in the family! Kitchen Cousins John and Anthony renovate a kitchen that is close to their hearts and stomachs. John's parents, Denise and John, have raised three boys in their home, and the kitchen has always been the center of their family life. Now, the cousins want to surprise Denise with a kitchen she's been looking forward to for years. The cousins will have to move quickly though to get the kitchen installed in time for Thanksgiving. On demolition day, things get off to a slow start when the cousins tackle an unlabeled electrical panel. Eventually they get through the demo and John is left with only his childhood memories. Just when they think things are going to start moving along, the kitchen is stalled when an unexpected snow storm tears through New Jersey, knocking a tree down on Denise and John's house and killing the power.

Put a Window in a Wall

Avril and her two children recently moved into Devin's home with him and his two children. With these two families coming together, the kitchen in Devin's 40-year-old house is not up to the task. Devin also wants the new kitchen to fit Avril's taste, and hopes the cousins can make it a really special space. John and Anthony are determined to make a kitchen that fits the new family comfortably makes better use of the small space. Although Devin is hesitant about color and modern flair, it's Avril's favorite aesthetic so he lets John and Anthony get creative. They come up with a plan that blows both Avril and Devin away -- a picture window that opens the kitchen and makes it a focal point of the whole house while also allowing for a cosy breakfast bar.

30 min

Turning a House into a Home

Jamie and Gabe Ollins have had a lot on their plate over the past two years with a new baby and a new house. They've already added an extension to their place and a new roof, but they've been stumped by what to do with their cookie-cutter kitchen and the adjoining living room. The kitchen is badly in need of updating as well as a better work flow. The corner sink that Anthony describes as a waste of space will be gone, and their bland color scheme will be a thing of the past. Their new kitchen will be given a splash of modern pop and flair, and the cousins will give the couple expert advice on how creatively connect it to the living room.

Leave it to the Professionals

This week, Kitchen Cousins John and Anthony take it to the floor (guy that is). They are renovating Rich and Shane Svorec's home. Rich does the floors for their company, Brunelleschi Construction, so the Kitchen Cousins want to give him a great kitchen. John and Anthony meet up with eager Rich and Shane at their house and discover that Rich took on a DIY kitchen renovation that went sour! In his defense, the kitchen had a wall that blocked off the entire space so Rich took matters into his own hands and knocked it down. Now he and his wife live in a kitchen that depends on a ceiling made of plastic wrap to keep the insulation from falling in their children's breakfast, not to mention struggling with ancient appliances that barely work. The knocked down wall gives the cousins a completely clean slate but the Svorec's have a pretty intense wish list.

Can You Feel It?

This week, it's all about texture! Lisa Rivera loves to entertain and have her girlfriends over for bubbly cocktails. But her parties can fall flat because of the dark and boring kitchen. It's up to Kitchen Cousins John and Anthony to revive the dead space and breathe life into her drab kitchen. Knocking down a wall helps brighten the room and make it feel more spacious. But that's not all: John and Anthony have some funky ideas up their sleeves that will add depth, texture and lots of color.

Stairway to Kitchen Heaven

The Kitchen Cousins have a fight on their hands, and it's with a beautiful brownstone with an unfortunate kitchen catastrophe. From the closet-sized room itself to the old appliances, the kitchen has seen better days. But what gives the homeowner, Michele, the biggest headache are the weird stairs that lead from her kitchen to her back deck. They're unsightly and in the way. John and Anthony have a master renovation plan but first, they have to get down and dirty with one dusty demolition. The brownstone refuses to go down without a fight and Anthony has to call in the architect to help get the job done. Once the construction is done and there's an open floor plan, the guys face a design challenge to marry the formal antique dining area with the modern kitchen design Michele wants.

Condo Combo

No demo, no problem! This week, Anthony and John get to avoid some of the dirty work as they design two kitchens for two different clients in a brand new condo building. The Cousins have a clean slate to work with and they use all their design tools to put a unique spin on similar layouts. It's hard work, but creating the spaces is what they love to do.