Jennifer Jason Leigh breaks a renovation trend on “Celebrity IOU”

A kitchen should be beautiful And functional – that seems Drew and Jonathan Scott's main message in the latest episode of “Celebrity IOU.”

In the episode “Jennifer Jason Leigh's Surprise” of season 8, the brothers meet the actress Jennifer Jason Leigh (“Single White Female”, “I think I’m standing in the woods”) to help her give something back to her long-time friend, Nori.

Nori loves her house, but her kitchen is outdated, so Leigh wants to modernize it along with the living room to give the home a fresher feel.

From the moment they see the kitchen, the brothers see many opportunities to improve the space and are able to get to work making it much more functional and beautiful. However, they forego a popular kitchen improvement that most people would consider a necessity – for good reason.

Read on to find out which popular kitchen trend may be on the way out, and get plenty of tips for maximizing efficiency in the kitchen.

Do not tear down the kitchen wall

When Drew and Jonathan first see Nori's house, they realize that knocking down the wall between the kitchen and living room will make a huge difference. With the wall gone, they can open up the entire space and add a large island with plenty of storage and counter space.

While Leigh is initially enthusiastic about the idea, she learns from Nori's daughter that Nori was actually happy about the wall.

“When she has people over and is cooking, she likes to have some privacy,” says Leigh Jonathan. “So that people don't see all the chaos in the kitchen.”

Jonathan is happy to oblige, but says that with the new wall, Nori's kitchen won't be big enough for an island. Instead, the team will need to utilize the wall and add floor-to-ceiling cabinets and a little more countertop space to make up for the lack of an island.

In the end, the kitchen looks great. The space is efficient and beautiful, and Nori has some privacy while cooking. Perhaps the trend of tearing down kitchen walls is one small step closer to being out of the art!

If an island isn't enough, add a portable workspace

With the kitchen wall in place, it's clear there isn't enough room for a kitchen island. But when Leigh finds an old chopping block table in Nori's garden that Nori inherited from Leigh's mother, the actress is excited to bring the piece into the room.

The team cleans up the table, gives it a new look and places it in the middle of the kitchen.

“There isn’t enough room for a big island here, but it’s nice to have a little more space to prepare,” says Jonathan.

And since this piece is from Leigh's mother, it adds a touch of sentimentality to the kitchen and makes it extra special.

The sink should always be under a window

During the first tour of the house, Jonathan says it is “so strange” that Nori’s sink is opposite a wall of cabinets.

“It’s always nicer to have the sink outside the window if possible,” he notes.

So the team moved the window to the other wall and in the meantime enlarged the kitchen window. It's a simple swap, but it will make a big difference. Now Nori can enjoy a big, beautiful view of the garden while she does the dishes.

Save space with a built-in bench

When the Scott brothers first visit Nori's house, Jonathan suggests replacing the current dining table with a smaller one.

“The table is actually a bit too big for the room, it takes up so much space and in a way blocks access to the door,” he says.

But Leigh quickly explains that Nori loves hosting big dinner parties – and therefore needs all the seating she can get!

Instead of making the table smaller, they add a built-in bench to save space and replace the bulky top with practical storage options in the built-in cabinets.

In the end, there is still enough seating and the space feels much more open.

Choose colors for the entire living space

In addition to the kitchen, the brothers are renovating the living room, refreshing the furnishings and adding built-in storage space to the TV wall.

When selecting the finishes, Jonathan wants to coordinate the kitchen cabinets, the bench and the TV cabinets.

“Because we have so many different storage styles and cabinet types, maybe we should offer several different colors,” he says.

The HGTV star shows Leigh's cabinets in cream, sand, and dark wood tones. He suggests mixing all three tones to expand the color palette and tie the two spaces together.

In the end, the two rooms blend well together without being overwhelmed by just one or two shades. This proves that homeowners don't have to limit themselves to just one or two cabinet colors. Sometimes a large room calls for a little more variety.