Transforming the Heart of the Home
Lindsay Olson, owner of Lulu Designs, shares how she completely renovated a small, outdated kitchen for a busy family of six in Huntington Beach, California.
How did you get started in interior design?
I was always creative but at around five or six years old decided that I wanted to go to business school. So I did and after graduation got an internship in real estate. I loved seeing the houses but hated the sales side of it. I ended up meeting a developer, and we started flipping houses together because I had an eye for design and noticed when something felt off about a house and what needed to change. I didn’t have the confidence to know why what I was doing was working, but it was clearly helping him sell the houses quickly. This was something I wanted to pursue further, so I went to school at night for interior design and got my degree. I’ve been doing it ever since.
Would you describe your design philosophy?
I’m all about blending function and form. I can make anything look beautiful, but it must work well for my clients. If it doesn’t, then I haven’t done my job. Those two elements are what I strive for every day in every project, along with client satisfaction. I’ve been doing this for around twenty-four years now, and for some people, I’m on their fourth or fifth room or even their third or fourth house. I’m in a relationship business, and that repeat business is so important.
You’re considered a kitchen expert. What’s your general approach to designing this space?
I always start with a client questionnaire to understand how they use the kitchen, whether it’s primarily for just heating quick meals or making everything from scratch. From there, I can plan the layout and working triangle between the stove, fridge, and sink based on how the kitchen is used. If they’re not cooking every day, I can separate zones or make it more of a showpiece; if they’re in there constantly, it needs to become a workhorse. But I also always think long-term. Even if a client doesn’t cook, the next homeowner might, so it has to work for anyone.
What were the goals for this particular kitchen renovation?
This client, a doctor, said from day one, “I hate my kitchen. It’s got this ugly green granite and a random wall—I don’t know why it’s here.” Her wish list ended up being simple: get rid of the green, make the design classic because she doesn’t want to redo it again, and keep the space beautiful but functional for her lifestyle. She’s a mom of four and runs a catering business, so she uses her kitchen constantly. She needed a space that would work hard and also look great since it’s visible from the front door.
We ended up removing a wall and adding an archway to the kitchen from the entry, which opened up the space completely and gave full access to it. Now she can sit eight people at the island, which is essential for a family of six who also have other family members and friends visiting all the time. The cabinets also needed to handle the wear and tear that will naturally come with how heavily the family uses the space, so I didn’t want white paint that would chip and need to be touched up. We went with white oak cabinets, which, even though they’ve been on trend, aren’t time-stamped to 2026 and can take more of a beating than paint.
The island is stunning and clearly takes up a large part of the space. Would you tell us more about it?
Like I mentioned, it needed to seat at least eight people, so it had to be around seven by fourteen feet. When I went with my client to look at slab options for the counter, she fell in love with the marble. But this type of stone is a different animal because of the veining, so we needed to purchase four slabs to make it all line up, which was so worth it.
With marble, you also have the opportunity to create a really cool edge detail that you can’t with ceramic countertops since they need to have a square edge. Because we were using this stone, I wanted to do something a little different that would be more of a conversation starter. I worked with my fabricator to come up with the design, and we were all so happy with the final product. If we had just kept it all square, it would have been a missed opportunity.
Did that marble have any influence on the rest of your design choices?
Yes, the marble’s mix of cool and warm tones inspired the palette I used in the rest of the space. I wanted both to coexist since I feel like many kitchens lean too white and gray. I made sure the gold veining was carried through to the hood’s metal trim and the knobs and pulls so the space felt warm and cool at the same time. That balance helps it stay timeless.
The kitchen has two fridges, a freezer, two dishwashers, and a huge sink with two faucets. How did you fit everything in?
The client admitted later that when she saw my designs, she was worried that she’d lose too much cabinetry. But after we finished, she said, “Now I have to buy more stuff because I have so much storage!” The large island is really central to it all since it supports the forty-eight-inch sink and multiple appliances, and then we added the two fridges, a freezer, and plenty of cabinetry along one of the walls. The layout gives her everything she wanted yet still feels open.
Were there any challenges or unexpected adjustments during the process?
We originally wanted to add a mini mudroom in the space, but there’s a drain from an upstairs shower in one of the walls that we couldn’t move. Instead, we expanded the existing mudroom into the front entry because it leads directly into the kitchen, turning it into a more flexible space for my client. We added large cabinets in the same finish as the kitchen, so she can also use them for additional storage for the catering business she owns, if needed.
Tell us about the coffee bar. Was that her idea or yours?
That was all her. On top of owning a catering business, she also has a franchise of Duck Donuts, so she has about fifty ways to make coffee: Keurig, Nespresso, espresso machines, kettles, and more. And with four kids, everyone makes different drinks using different methods. The family doesn’t drink alcohol, but she wanted the area to feel like a traditional bar—just for coffee. It has a nugget ice machine and refrigerator, so it could easily convert to a bar in the future for any future homeowners.
What inspired the arch detail above the coffee bar?
We added the arch at the entry, and the coffee bar actually sits to the left of it. Everything started feeling a little too square, so repeating that curve balanced the space and made it feel intentional. She didn’t need more storage, so I could cut a little bit into the available room, which ended up creating a cozier space.
Which element of this design are you most proud of?
It honestly feels like a completely different house. Removing that wall helped make the kitchen more functional and completely changed the home. You can now see straight through from the front door to the backyard. But I’m probably most proud of the fact that she sends me pictures weekly of her kids and their friends in her house. That’s why I do what I do.
For more info, visit luludesigns.com