As contractors who specialize in kitchen and bathroom remodels, Gene Ramey and Don Thompson knew problems were bound to turn up when they began remodeling the kitchen in their Fan District house last year.

Warm woods and earthy colors set a relaxing tone in this Fan District kitchen remodel.

Unexpected remodeling issues are like mushrooms after a good, warm rain: They come with the territory.

Ramey and Thompson's self-imposed deadline made the job even more challenging. They wanted to finish before their families came to visit for Thanksgiving.

That gave them four months to gut a 405-square-foot room and rebuild it from the floor up.

"We had to rip out the old floors, tear out the servants' stairs, and add structural support to a load-bearing wall," Thompson says. "It was a total renovation."

Painting by Tennessee artist Anne Blair Brown appropriately depicts a scene of diners. The artist is known for her en plein air works.

While the house was built in 1908 and features 10-foot ceilings and expansive, richly detailed rooms, the kitchen had been remodeled in the early 1980s, and its historic character had been lost in a sea of white laminate cabinets.

"The bones were good," Ramey says. "We just needed to put it back together."

Ramey and Thompson's design plans called for a room that served three functions.

"We wanted a cooking area, a guest area, and a fireplace where we could drink our coffee in the morning and sit by the fire in the winter," Ramey says.

For the guest and cooking areas, Ramey and Thompson installed a nine-foot-by-four-foot island in the front half of the kitchen, with bar stools on one side and a deep sink and prep space on the other.

Because they didn't want to crowd the kitchen with cabinets, they built a pantry behind the room's new wet bar.

Handmade, crackled-finish tiles on the cabinet wall and behind the wet bar tie the two areas together, as does a subtle interplay of colors and finishes on the cabinetry and countertops.

The cherry cabinets lining the wall to the stove and refrigerator have a light stain that shows off the wood grain, and the countertop there is matte-black granite. The cabinetry for the island and wet bar features a lightly distressed black finish, and the countertop is glossy, light-colored granite.

A refurbished fireplace is at one end of the kitchen. Although the mantel is not original to the house, it blends beautifully and historically with the rest of it. The homeowners and their cat, Sophie, often spend winter days and nights availing themselves of the extra heat source.

The plans for cozy fireside seating at the other end of the kitchen lacked only one thing: a fireplace. Ramey and Thompson hired a brick mason to build a firebox and connect it to a flue formerly used for a kitchen stove.

"When they cleared out the old flue, there was soot everywhere," Ramey says.

Thompson built and installed a traditional-style mantel based on a sketch he made of a customer's fireplace. And that wasn't the only time he and Ramey rolled up their sleeves. This was a DIY project by a couple pros willing to get their hands dirty at home.

"We subbed out the plumbing, electrical, and drywall," Thompson says. "We did the floors and tiles and installed the cabinets."

Their one regret: not installing a wine cooler. "But we could add that easily," Thompson says.

The remodel meant no home cooking for a few months, but Ramey and Thompson say it was worth it.

"Usually, as a contractor, you can pick it apart after you've finished, but we were amazingly happy with it," Thompson says.

And they finished in time to host that Thanksgiving dinner with their families.