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When you’re a keen cook, and in the midst of renovating a dilapidated stone farmhouse in one of England’s most stunning locations, the kitchen is bound to be at the centre of the project. Our clients, Mr and Mrs Nicol had the opportunity to design something amazing from scratch – an incredible renovation from the ground up.
After approaching independent local joiners who couldn’t give the couple the inspiration they wanted, they came across our Bristol showroom, where they spoke to Rowena, one of our expert kitchen designers.
Rowena started answering questions we didn’t even know we had, and when we sat down to view the final presentation of the proposed design, we knew she’d nailed it.
Tom Howley Client, Mr Nicol.
With a shared passion for entertaining, creating a spacious, open plan contemporary kitchen was essential. Rowena quickly translated their ideas, taking into consideration the new layout and personal specifications.
As the centrepiece of their home, the new kitchen needed to be flexible, functional and easy on the eyes. Rowena designed an L-shape layout that the whole family could enjoy, with an island at its heart. As the kitchen looks out over the beautiful countryside, she made sure the furniture layout made the best of this by facing prep areas or seating towards the view. Creating an indoor-outdoor living space meant dinner parties could extend outside into the garden, with entertaining essentials still close to hand.
As well as designing aspects of the space for entertaining, the couple wanted a place to work which didn’t look disjointed. Structural support beams painted in Farrow & Ball’s Dewberry provided a little separation from the kitchen, and office furniture in the same cabinet style and colour ensured the whole space flowed. When designing the layout, a living area with two plush sofas and a long dining table with ample seating were added, creating the ultimate family hub.
A large contemporary kitchen like this can make the most of its footprint by incorporating a beautiful, oversized island. The island’s position takes advantage of stunning views framed by huge bi-fold doors, allowing the couple to gaze out over surrounding farmland while they prep food or chat with guests. With generous proportions, it was designed with additional storage underneath the bar area, great for tucking away cooking and kitchen essentials. The island also features bespoke seating, emphasising the social vibe our clients wanted to create in the heart of the home.
When friends come around, I’m part of the conversation now, but the island keeps everyone out of the way when I’m in full flow. It’s also brought us together more as a family, literally – we all naturally congregate in this one room.
Tom Howley Client, Mr Nicol.
Our client’s selected appliances by Fisher & Paykel appliances. A professional hob was included on the island so that they could cook and socialise with guests simultaneously. Appliances were placed in a perfect working triangle; a concept used to determine the best layout for your kitchen, making it both aesthetically pleasing and functional. The logic of this kitchen layout is that when the oven, the sink and the refrigerator are in a comfortable position with each other, the space will function efficiently.
Rowena made sure all of the elements, from appliances to décor, blended harmoniously, with no one material or texture standing out and feeling disconnected.
The Hartford design makes great use of open shelving and glazed cabinets to add personality and colour to the space. The client’s traditional pieces blend wonderfully with the contemporary kitchen layout and the classically inspired shaker cabinets.
Painted in Lithadora and Thistle, from our exclusive paint range, these gentle shades work beautifully with the key accent colour, blue. Pale grey cabinets blend seamlessly with the walls allowing the impressive island to become a statement feature. The couple selected a Ca’Pietra Cement Encaustic Splash Pattern Tile in French Blue to add visual interest to the space, while raw beams add warmth and cosy comfort to an open plan layout.
If you’re looking for a bit of home inspiration, our brochure is here to help. Full of beautiful real home projects, including some of our latest designs, it’s bound to help ignite ideas.
