My Houzz: Gordon Ramsay Gifts a Home Makeover To a Chef

The celebrity-chef uses Houzz to make the project happen and say thank-you to a ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ winner

Mitchell Parker 30 January 2018

Houzz Editorial Staff. Home design journalist writing about cool spaces, innovative trends, breaking news, industry analysis and humor.

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Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay is known for Michelin-starred restaurants and tirades aimed at contestants on Fox’s Hell’s Kitchen, a reality TV show. Off-screen, there’s one former contestant who elicits nothing but praise from the notoriously hard-to-please Scottish chef. And that’s Christina Wilson.

Gordon Ramsay, an acclaimed chef and TV show host, stands in front of his employee Christina Wilson’s row home, which he helped renovate as a gift. Photos by Kyle Born Photography

After winning Season 10 of “Hell’s Kitchen,” Wilson worked her way up to become group executive chef of several of Ramsay’s restaurants, including overseeing the early January opening of Hell’s Kitchen at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. As a way of saying thank you, Ramsay recently gave Wilson the gift of a renovation to the ground floor of her 1920s Philadelphia row house, which she bought using prize money from her “Hell’s Kitchen” win.

The delighted Wilson handed the keys over to Ramsay and went away for four weeks – she splits her time between Philadelphia and Vegas, where she works. Ramsay found designer Matthew Ferrarini on Houzz and collaborated with him on the design and products to furnish Wilson’s home. Ramsay and Ferrarini also got input from Wilson’s brother, Jon, and his wife Jenny, on her style preferences.

When Wilson returned to Philly, she got to see the completed project, which includes a stunning transformation of the kitchen. Because what else would you expect from one of the world’s top chefs?

Watch now: See Gordon Ramsay’s surprise renovation of a Philly row house TKTK

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Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

Project at a Glance
Who lives here: Chef Christina Wilson, winner of Fox’s Hell’s Kitchen, season 10
Location: Philadelphia, United States
Size: Ground floor about 450 square feet (41.8 square metres); entire home about 900 square feet (83.6 square metres), with three bedrooms, one bathroom
Designer: Matthew Ferrarini of Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

Before Photo

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

Before. For a story about a renovation of a chef’s home, it makes sense to start with the kitchen. Wilson thought it had good cabinet space but wasn’t set up for how she likes to cook at home. For example, her KitchenAid stand mixer wouldn’t fit anywhere in the existing space, so she kept it in the basement, lugging it up when she needed it.

The small window and offset door to the right limited the reach of natural light into the rest of the home.

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

After. Ferrarini reconfigured the kitchen so Wilson would be able to see straight through the home to the backyard as soon as she walks in the front door. Putting two glass-panelled doors in the centre of the back wall led him to a galley-style layout. From there, he knew he wanted to tuck the taller elements like the refrigerator and pantry cabinets on the left. That meant the right wall could be a bit airier with the range and sink.

“Never in a million years would I have thought to flip the kitchen how he did, and this is what I do for a living,” Wilson says. “It’s really remarkable.”

Watch: See more of this new kitchen transformation TKTK

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

A pullout work surface gives Wilson extra prep space. The engineered quartz countertop wraps around the wall to become storage and cocktail bar space for the dining room (shown later in this story). Wilson clears off that extra countertop area and dusts it with flour on nights when she’s rolling out dough to make fresh ravioli.

Exposed ceiling beams – the one in the foreground is original to the home – and caged bulb lights fit with the industrial-transitional style Ferrarini was going for.

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

Wilson is used to working in commercial kitchens, so Ferrarini didn’t want her home kitchen to feel too precious. Wire mesh cabinet fronts and stainless steel appliances help keep the look sophisticated but durable.

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

By chatting with Wilson’s brother and sister-in-law, Ferrarini got a sense of her style. He chose a custom navy blue for the cabinets and paired them with brass fixtures for a colour combination that worked well with the industrial theme. Wilson now keeps her stand mixer on one of the open shelves (not shown). Not surprisingly, the new kitchen is now her favourite area of the home.

Watch: See Wilson’s reaction to her home’s transformation TKTK

Before Photo

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

Before. Here’s a look at the home from near the front door. Two half walls with circular cutouts – one of which is seen here to the right – broke up the living room and dining room in a way that Wilson thought was obtrusive. The wall in front of the kitchen at the rear prevented light from spreading through the row house.

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

After. With the half walls and kitchen wall removed, the house opened up. A fresh coat of white paint, including over a brick wall that was exposed during the demolition of the previous space, enhances the home’s natural light. Ferrarini chose to paint the brick because it wasn’t in great shape and he thought having such a large amount of exposed red brick would overwhelm the tight space and constrain the color palette used in the furnishings. “White toned it down, so visually it’s just a little treat on the eyes versus being the main attraction,” he says. An herb garden and new copper pipes pop against the crisp, textured brick wall.

New hardwood floors laid vertically visually elongate the home.

Find out what you need to know before painting brick

Before Photo

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

Before. Looking toward the front of the house before the remodel, you can see how the half walls, cutouts and a small L-shaped stair landing with steps made the space feel closed in. A closet-size vestibule took up more room than was practical. Ferrarini also noticed that the chair and sofa were just too bulky for the narrow home.

What’s more, the front room often became chilly near the windows, causing Wilson to migrate deeper into the home during winter. “It was so dark and cold, which was unfortunate because it’s such a charming house,” she says.

Ferrarini & Co. Kitchens & Interiors

After. Without the vestibule and walls, the living room is able to breathe a bit more. Streamlined furniture, including a sofa in a fun teal color, better fit the space and Wilson’s personality.