See inside: York County lavender farm gets a major upgrade with California Closets

Deb Segura’s York, SC home was built by a French lavender farmer and looks like it belongs in the Provençal countryside. Today, the estate is still a working lavender farm and the home blends rustic style with modern functionality.

One of the first upgrades Deb focused on was the large, walk-in pantry adjacent to the kitchen. After working with California Closets in the past, she knew they were the right ones for the job.

• Yup, California Closets does way more than just closets.

We spoke with Deb and her designer, Morgan Haynie of California Closets, about the project and took a full tour of the finished pantry.

Why did you want to remodel the pantry?

“It was very basic with just some track shelving and unfinished pine shelves. And there were only four shelves — it felt like something you might find in a garage,” said Segura.

• “It definitely needed some tender love and care,” said Segura.

What was the vision for the project?

“It’s such a cool location and such a cool house, so we wanted to do it justice. We wanted something where you could leave the door open because it felt like a continuation of the kitchen,” said Haynie.

How would you describe the design?

“It’s a massive pantry, and the design isn’t super elaborate, but it’s a nice crisp white color and everything has its own place, which is really nice visually,” said Haynie.

“We were able to create three parts: a pantry for the food, storage for other things, and then a bar area with two wine chillers,” said Segura. “We tried to make it a little more upscale.”

What was the design process like?

“Depending on the project, I usually recommend coming to our showroom,” said Haynie. “After I measured the space, Deb came to the showroom to preview the design and feel the finishes on a larger scale.”

Segura said the process was quick and easy. “It turned out beautifully and I can’t say enough good things about California Closets.”

Here’s a full breakdown of the California Closets process.

Were there any challenges you had to design around?

To make room for a freezer and two smaller fridges, “we had to decide on the proper location for those based on the existing electrical and what would appeal visually,” said Haynie.

“The house was built with metal studs, so you couldn’t hang shelving with ordinary anchors. They had to use heavy-duty drywall anchors to attach the shelves to the wall,” said Segura.

• “Even with that challenge, they installed it in one day,” said Segura.

What’s your favorite thing about the pantry?

“I really love the countertop because it breaks up the space and has great functionality. It’s such a cool feature that I feel like a lot of people probably don’t have the space to do, but if you do it’s nice to have that drop zone in there,” said Haynie.

• Fun fact: Deb’s husband John made the countertop out of maple.

“Just the feel of it, and the way we incorporated the wine chillers and the freezer. I think it flows really nicely. It’s not really wide, but it seems wide because of the way we designed it,” said Deb.

Here’s what the pantry looked like before:

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Here’s what it looks like now:

California Closets can transform just about any room in your house. Get some design inspo and book a free consultation.

This content was created in partnership with California Closets. All “after” photos by Andy Weber.