Kitchen of the Week: A Former Aircraft Parts Factory Gets a New Life

Kitchen of the Week: A Former Aircraft Parts Factory Gets a New Life- A tight budget and a busy work schedule had put the much-needed renovation of this kitchen-dining space on hold for several years after the homeowner moved in. The TV executive shares her home with two flatmates, so a well-functioning space is essential, but the original kitchen was confined to a tiny corner of the room, while the rest of the space was strewn with furniture and bric-a-brac due to a woeful lack of storage.

‘The client wanted the kitchen and its mezzanine to feel more integral to the general living space,’ explains designer Sarah Ellison of Trunk Creative. ‘Her vision was for a sleek, contemporary and minimalist space. The challenge was to marry her vision and the reality together into a workable solution on a fairly tight budget.’

Storage areas, built under the stairs, cleared the way for a sleek kitchen-dining space, with the client’s oak dining table – a family heirloom – taking centre stage in the open-plan scheme. ‘It was important to create a sociable environment that would be suited to entertaining,’ says Sarah. ‘As it is, guests can sit at the table while the owner prepares food at the kitchen island, which faces it. It’s very inclusive and the eclectic mix of furniture enhances the warm, lived-in feeling.’

Glass bricks, a relic from the property’s industrial past, and a row of small windows at an unusual height, meant that overhead cupboards were out of the question. ‘We had to be quite creative with the cupboard space,’ recalls Sarah. ‘In the end, we bought standard internal units then customised them to fit the space, so essentially we created a bespoke kitchen for a high street price.’

Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here A young media professional with her two flatmates
Location Clapton, London
Designer Sarah Ellison at Trunk Creative
Budget £20,000
Decade built 1930s
Size of property 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
That’s interesting The building was used as an aircraft parts factory in the 1930s

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Although the room is fairly large, deciding on the layout wasn’t without its challenges. ‘There’s very little wall space in the room, so a kitchen island was central to the scheme,’ recalls Sarah. ‘It has concealed storage, as well as housing the sink unit and providing a food preparation surface.’ She constructed the island using a mix of standard bought units, which were then given a facelift with bespoke doors and topped with a black slate worktop for a dramatic effect.

Internal kitchen units; Lamona chrome professional style single lever tap; all Howdens.

How to get the classic, industrial-style look at home

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‘We were led by budget when it came to the flooring,’ explains Sarah. ‘The existing floor was a cobbled together mix of laminate and rubber that we replaced with epoxy paint, in keeping with the industrial vibe. It’s also very hard-wearing and easy to maintain, which is perfect for the owner’s busy lifestyle.’

Sarah painted the back cupboards and the stair railings in Farrow & Ball’s Down Pipe to add interest to this corner of the room and prevent it looking too stark. A salvaged factory pendant light from the 1950s illuminates the dining area and is a subtle nod to the building’s industrial heritage.

Railings painted in Down Pipe, Farrow & Ball. Large Eastern Bloc industrial pendant, Skinflint Design.

Illuminating ideas for perfect lighting

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Walls of glass bricks feature throughout the property, meaning overhead storage units were out of the question. ‘Despite their appearance, the bricks don’t really allow much light to filter into the room, so we kept the walls and units white to emphasise the sense of airiness and space,’ explains Sarah.

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The trio of mirrors on the back wall were an existing feature, as were the dining table and chairs. ‘The client inherited the table from her father, so this was always going to be a major feature in the room,’ explains Sarah. ‘It’s very traditional in style, but the collection of mismatched chairs pulls it back and makes it feel more eclectic, which ties in with the rest of the scheme.’

The walkway to the mezzanine comprises original floorboards, which Sarah has left untreated for an authentic look.

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‘The Stoves cooker was the client’s choice,’ explains Sarah. ‘She really wanted to use a British brand, and this one fits in effortlessly with the scheme and is easy to use.’

Sarah introduced a pop of colour to the scheme by matching a colourful wall lamp to the owner’s collection of Le Creuset cookware.

Sterling range cooker, Stoves. Orange wall light, Jielde.

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‘The cupboards answer the owner’s desire for a minimalist scheme,’ says Sarah. ‘We’ve kept them looking sleek and unfussy by doing away with handles in favour of a push-click mechanism.’

The unusual window height posed a bigger challenge, however. Sarah wanted the units to sit flush under the narrow windows, which called for some clever carpentry. ‘In the end we used the internal structure of bought units from Howdens and customised them to make them taller before adding new doors,’ she explains. ‘So essentially, they’re bespoke units.’

Internal kitchen units, Howdens.

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In a bid to keep costs down, Sarah found the reclaimed radiators on eBay. ‘They look great, and saving money on items like this allowed us to spend more on other fixtures and fittings,’ she explains.

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Metal support beams have been painted in Down Pipe to break up the large expanses of white, and reference the staircase, which is painted in the same colour. ‘It’s a spacious room, so it was important to create a sense of continuity as you move around it,’ says Sarah.

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For the splashback, Sarah opted for an unusual metal trowelled micro cement finish. ‘It’s not very common in the UK,’ she explains. ‘It’s applied directly to the walls and it fits in perfectly with the tone of this industrial-style scheme, plus it’s easy to maintain.’

How to add colour to your scheme in a stylish way

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The trio of edgy pendants above the island feature concrete fittings, which Sarah chose to match the splashback.

NUD concrete light fixing, Haus.

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A red rocking chair and a collection of artwork along the windowsill form part of the owner’s existing collection of furniture and knick-knacks. ‘She’s been able to conceal a lot of the clutter in the under-stairs cupboards, but it was important to incorporate many of her treasured items into the scheme,’ says Sarah. ‘You have to work around people’s lifestyle and the finished look should reflect their personality.’

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Upstairs, the small mezzanine houses more of the owner’s treasured items. ‘This is naturally a very dark space with a low ceiling, so we decided to embrace the darkness and transform it into a cosy, den-like annex,’ explains Sarah. ‘We used Down Pipe by Farrow and Ball on the walls to connect the room to the kitchen, so there’s a real sense of flow as you move from one room to the other,’ she says.

Element Studios

The floor plan illustrates how Sarah divided up the spacious room into a relaxed kitchen-diner, which the owner and her flatmates can now enjoy as an extension of their living space.

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