Home is where the heart is, and the heart of the home is the kitchen. These words ring true for editor-in-chief of Bake from Scratch and passionate home baker Brian Hart Hoffman and his beautifully remodeled kitchen. After living in his downtown Birmingham, Alabama, condominium for five years with his husband, Stephen, the couple decided the 1990s open floor plan no longer served their lifestyle.
“It had a weird flow,” Brian explains. “Once you entered the door, you could see straight through to the kitchen, the living room, and the city skyline beyond, which is great, but no one went past the kitchen. It was a bottleneck.” The couple needed a home with more-defined areas for entertaining, baking, and seating, so they set out to create spaces tailor-made for them.
“My goal was to have open yet defined spaces, with the kitchen created specifically for baking.”
Brian’s extensive collection of copper kitchenware serves as decoration as well as storage to corral frequently used items. A photo of a similar glass-front metal cabinet was the inspiration for this clever storage area.
But before any work had begun, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted Brian to begin hosting the Baking School