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Fort Collins Kitchen Design, From Old Town to the Foothills

We provide Fort Collins kitchen design, custom cabinetry and remodeling for homes across the city and in Timnath, Windsor and Wellington. Some of these houses were standing before Colorado State University had its current name, while others were finished last year. A good kitchen plan starts by knowing which kind of house it's in.

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Homes in Fort Collins

Fort Collins Homes and the Kitchens Inside Them

The city has grown steadily south and east from Old Town, so its housing reads like a timeline. These are the types we plan for most often.

  1. Late 1800s to 1920s

    Old Town and Laurel School homes

    The neighborhoods around Old Town and the Laurel School Historic District near campus hold Victorians, foursquares and Craftsman bungalows. Kitchens were utility rooms then, set at the back with a pantry and a door to the yard. We often combine the kitchen and the old pantry into one room and design cabinetry that sits comfortably beside the original trim.

  2. 1950s to 1960s

    Postwar ranches near campus and midtown

    These single-story houses have compact kitchens, often galley-shaped, with a window over the sink and the dining room on the other side of a wall. Many have a basement below, which makes it easier to bring new plumbing and electrical up through the floor when the layout changes. The wall to the dining room is usually the one worth opening.

  3. 1970s to 1980s

    Bi-levels and two-stories of the 1970s and 1980s

    Much of the city was built in these decades as it spread south. Kitchens tend to be closed, with soffits overhead, an eat-in nook and a sliding door to the backyard. Taking the nook into the kitchen and the soffit out of the ceiling can give a dated room a real island and full-height storage.

  4. 1990s onward

    Southeast Fort Collins, Timnath and Windsor new builds

    Newer neighborhoods in southeast Fort Collins and the master-planned communities in Timnath and Windsor have open kitchens that are roomy but often generic. We focus on proportion and use: an island sized to the room, a vented hood instead of an over-range microwave, and a pantry that works like a back kitchen for a busy household. HOAs here usually review exterior changes only.

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Designing for Fort Collins

What Shapes a Fort Collins Kitchen

Three things come up in nearly every Fort Collins project, and all three are easier to handle at the drawing stage than on site.

  1. 01

    Historic review in and around Old Town

    Fort Collins has an active historic preservation program, and designated landmarks and properties in historic districts typically need design review for exterior changes. A remodel that adds a window, moves a back door or vents a hood through a visible wall may count. We plan ductwork and openings with that in mind, and we suggest checking with the city's historic preservation staff before drawings are final.

  2. 02

    Horsetooth in the window

    Many Fort Collins kitchens look west toward Horsetooth Rock and the foothills. We often turn the island so the cook faces both the room and the view, and keep the range on a side wall where the hood won't cut across the window. Low-e glass on that west wall tempers summer heat and the strong UV that comes with living at about 5,000 feet.

  3. 03

    Original floors meeting new cabinetry

    Plenty of Old Town houses still have their original hardwood, and patching it to suit a new layout is part of the job. In this dry climate, new boards and new cabinetry should sit in the house to acclimate before installation, so old and new wood settle at a similar moisture content. Where an exact match isn't possible, a deliberate border or threshold looks more intentional than a near miss.

Kitchen Design and Remodeling Across Fort Collins

For luxury kitchen design in Fort Collins, the house sets the brief. An Old Town foursquare asks for a kitchen that could pass for original, while a Timnath new build usually needs its open plan sharpened: clearer zones, a better island and storage planned around how the household actually cooks.

Older Fort Collins houses rarely have a true right angle, and newer ones often leave an awkward gap between the cabinet tops and the ceiling. Cabinetry made for the house solves both, with scribed ends against uneven plaster and tall units that reach the ceiling cleanly.

When the plan involves new walls, plumbing or a structural opening, a kitchen remodel managed from plan to install keeps every trade working from the same drawings. Read about the timber and stone we specify and how each behaves in a dry climate. Then request a design consultation and bring a few photos of the room as it is.

Heading south on US 287 or I-25, see our page on kitchen design for Loveland homes.

Also covered from this page

Fort Collins and Nearby Communities

  • Timnath
  • Windsor
  • Wellington

This page also covers Timnath to the southeast, Windsor to the east and Wellington to the north. All three have grown quickly: Timnath and Windsor with large master-planned communities, Wellington with new subdivisions around its small-town center. Most kitchens there are newer and already open, so the design work is about refinement rather than rescue.

Pikes PeakI-25
  1. Colorado Springs
  2. Monument
  3. Castle Rock
  4. Parker
  5. Highlands Ranch
  6. Littleton
  7. Cherry Hills Village
  8. Aurora
  9. Denver
  10. Lakewood
  11. Arvada
  12. Broomfield
  13. Boulder
  14. Longmont
  15. Loveland
  16. Fort Collins
Pikes PeakI-25
  1. Colorado Springs
  2. Monument
  3. Castle Rock
  4. Parker
  5. Highlands Ranch
  6. Littleton
  7. Cherry Hills Village
  8. Aurora
  9. Denver
  10. Lakewood
  11. Arvada
  12. Broomfield
  13. Boulder
  14. Longmont
  15. Loveland
  16. Fort Collins
The service corridor along I-25, Colorado Springs to Fort Collins. Points mark city centers; the shaded edge is the mountain front.

Questions

Fort Collins Kitchen Questions

01

Do I need historic review to remodel a kitchen in Old Town Fort Collins?

Interior work generally doesn't need it, but exterior changes to a designated landmark or a property in a historic district typically do. That can include a new window over the sink, a relocated back door or a hood vent on a visible wall. Check with the city's historic preservation staff early, and we'll design around what they approve.

02

How do I match original hardwood floors when expanding an Old Town kitchen?

Start by identifying the species and board width, since older Colorado houses commonly have oak or fir. Boards salvaged from a closet can patch the most visible areas, with new stock used where cabinetry will cover it. Let any new wood acclimate in the house first, then refinish the whole floor together so the color reads as one.

03

Can I get a real island in a 1970s or 1980s Fort Collins kitchen?

Often, by giving the eat-in nook to the kitchen. The nook usually adds enough depth for an island with 42-inch aisles around it, and the old table spot becomes counter seating. If a sliding door sits in that nook, we plan the island around the traffic path to the yard so it never blocks the door.

04

What should I change first in a new-build kitchen in Timnath or Windsor?

Usually the hood, the pantry and the lighting. Replacing an over-range microwave with a vented hood improves both the look and the air, a full-height pantry wall outperforms a corner closet, and layered lighting fixes the flat glare of a grid of recessed cans. The cabinet boxes can often stay if they're sound, extended to the ceiling for proportion.

Planning a kitchen in Fort Collins?

Bring the floor plan, the photos you've saved and a list of what frustrates you about the room you have. That list is where good briefs begin.

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