Four years ago, in a frantic search for a kitchen to start recipe testing, I chanced upon this bare studio in Sunset Park. I was sold on the foot-thick old beams, soaring, slatted ceilings, and bank of windows. There was no back splash, floor drain, or vent hood. It had no gas, nor water. It lacked sufficient electric, too. But it was 600 square feet, uncluttered by kid debris. ⁠
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I moved in with my estate sale-salvaged Garland stove ( @welbilt_inc )and cookbook collection. I plastered the huge white walls with recipes, brought in the talented @digitaldottie, @kaysarasaraa, @jess_ziman, and got to work. ⁠
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The space has grown up, as I've settled in. My books have shelves; my mop bucket has wheels. I order trash bags by the case and seamless by the roll. ⁠ ⁠
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Some of my (and your) favorite cookbooks were photographed inside these studio walls. Some of my (and your) favorite chefs have eaten here. My kids’ schools come for field trips. ⁠
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Daily, I hear my neighbors at work—carpenters, set designers, painters, sculptors, a florist. Their music, the occasional drill. It makes me happy, the buzz of things being made. ⁠
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Photo credit: @ben.hanning⁠