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Step Inside a Seattle Blogger's Kitchen

By MIMI
October 22, 2015
Photo: Jose Mandojana
Seeking light, bright space, a Seattle blogger breathes new life into her old home's kitchen.
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West Coast Revival

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Sarah Adler wants the whole world to eat healthy. A nutrition coach with a blog called Simply Real Health, she's developed tons of recipes that don't require scads of ingredients or hours to orchestrate. Adler published her first cookbook, The Simply Real Health Cookbook, last spring. In it, she shares her recipes to support and encourage a health-forward approach to balanced, whole eating.

The cookbook's lush photographs were shot in the kitchen of her 1920s Arts and Crafts cottage, tucked into a historic Seattle neighborhood. The kitchen's overall design is inspired by Adler's favorite Seattle restaurants, as well as her travels. "It had to be easy to navigate and not overly stocked with things. It's essentially my office, so I needed it bright, clean, and open," she says. "It's a great, happy space."

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Go With Your Gut

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Adler's contractors tried to push her away from marble countertops because of their tendency to stain, but she stuck to her guns."I actually like the look of it being a little worn," she says. "I don't want a pristine kitchen that makes everyone feel uncomfortable."

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Keep It Real

Photo: Jose Mandojana

She retained an original brick chimney and kept it unpainted. "Contractors were fighting me to drywall over it or at least paint it. They said it could crumble," she says. "I fought hard. I really like rustic elements to balance out all the white."

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Don't Stop Searching

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Her beautiful wood dining table was a lucky Craigslist find. "I bought it from a couple that was moving from a big house into a smaller one," she says. "They wanted to get rid of this amazing table, and I had been looking for so long. It has two huge side leaves and can expand to seat 10 people."

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Pick What You Like

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Her light gray dinner plates are from West Elm. "I like them because they're different than white, and I have smaller white plates, which look pretty with the gray," says Adler. Her mismatched, all-blue bowl collection was scavenged from Etsy and Seattle's secondhand stores, and her cocktail and barware are also vintage and varied. "I hunt these pieces down," she says. "I'm keeping it casual."

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Shake It Up

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Cocktails are high on Adler's list of favorite things. She makes her own simple syrups and infusions using herbs and citrus. For parties, she and her fiancé, Kyle, pictured at left, set up a bar on the kitchen counter and display index cards with cocktail recipe ideas to inspire guests as they concoct their own drinks.

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Find Your Sunny Spot

Photo: Jose Mandojana

"Ambience is a huge thing," says Adler, who snapped up Ikea's Saarinen-inspired dining table for her L-shaped breakfast nook with built-in benches. A perfect white circle, the table adds a smart midcentury modern note to her vintage-infused decor.

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Old Meets New

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Adler brightens up her mostly white space with a mixture of colorful vintage and new cookbooks and keepsakes.

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Bright Ideas

Photo: Jose Mandojana

Adler sourced vintage-style light fixtures online, buying her stainless steel and Edison bulb chandeliers from Overstock.com.

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