WATCH: Check Out Stephanie Zubiri-Crespi's Brand New Kitchen Where Design Meets Function

"One of the most important things when designing a kitchen is, bear in mind, what is the purpose and what is the function?," writer, traveler, wino, and foodie Stephanie Zubiri-Crespi tells Metro.Style. "Do you cook or do you bake?"

The Feast With Me author took us on a tour of her well-designed kitchen, her favorite place in their house. The predominantly white and brown kitchen is spacious and bathed in natural light. On the center is an island in white and statement blue, styled with wooden bar stools, a printed rug, and a pot of plant—all providing much-needed texture and color contrast to the overall stark white palette. 

 

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Here are the key elements in Stephanie's kitchen:

 

The breakfast station. This is where Stephanie puts all the breakfast-related items, well organized on the countertops and in the cabinets: tea, coffee, tea cups, toaster, among others.

 

Her storage for pots and pans: Stephanie has several cabinets dedicated to her stainless and Teflon pots and pans, serveware, as well as her Le Creuset pieces, which she says are her "prized possessions."

 

Her appliances. The Bertazzoni La Germania gas range is conveniently set up on the center island, and it helps make cooking more efficient and systematic. Another statement appliance is her dark gray / midnight blue LG Door-in-Door ref with InstaView that's sleek and stylish.

 

The spice drawer. You have to see her collection of spices and how neatly they are organized in her kitchen island's drawer.

 

Her ovens. Stephanie has a total of three ovens. She uses the two smaller ones, say, for baking cookies and reheating a pizza.

 

The well-organized drawers. It's obvious that Stephanie is very particular about her kitchen essentials. She makes sure they're categorized properly, so she can easily find them, too. 

 

The baking station. She has about four drawers filled with her baking essentials, and they're all perfectly nearby the ovens. 

 

The prep area. Having a well-lit space for preparing all the ingredients is a must. In Stephanie's kitchen, one nook is especially allocated for this. It's right by big glass windows accentuated with several herb pots and beside the sink. Here, one can find different chopping boards and knives, the juicer, and the mini chopper.

 

The cabinet for her "everyday plates." What a collection! Her plates are mostly in shades of blue and white, some with dainty Chinoiserie patterns.

 

The breakfast nook with banquette seating. This area, designed with brick walls, may be outside her kitchen, but it's only separated by a glass sliding door so her kids and their guests can easily move from the kitchen to this area. It's Stephanie's next favorite spot in their house. 

 

Her vintage cabinet for her cookbooks. The solid narra cabinet holds her everyday reference books. Stephanie shares that she has another "library of just cookbooks" in her office. In this cabinet, too, are baskets of the cutlery, napkins, and placemats they use on a daily basis. 

 

 

 

As a last piece of advice to those who are planning to create or in the process of creating their dream kitchen, Stephanie shares, "Everything has to be practical and design has to meet function."

"It makes me so happy to cook here, not just look at it. It's a functioning, working, living kitchen. And for me, I believe that, if you have beautiful things, it's not meant for display, it's meant for use," Stephanie concludes. 

 

Produced by Nana Ozaeta