Home Kitchen Minimalis

All post

Kitchen of the Week: A Calming Cornish Kitchen With Echoes of the Sea

Kitchen of the Week: A Calming Cornish Kitchen With Echoes of the Sea- Proximity to the sea and miles of rugged headland for walking attracted Hugh and Ruth Pittman to buy a ramshackle house in Trebarwith Strand, Cornwall. The original structure had to go, but the new, timber-framed house provided the couple with a relaxing home from home, as well as a robust rental property brimming with character.

Anticipating the kitchen would be the spiritual heart of their new holiday home, the couple enlisted the help of designer Stephen Graver, who consulted with the architect to create a relaxing scheme that works in perfect harmony with the rest of the house. ‘Working with the architect allowed me to make the best possible use of space in the kitchen,’ recalls Stephen. ‘We were able to redesign the windows to emphasise the symmetry of the room.’

Stephen opted for a relaxed beach-house feel in keeping with the style of the property. ‘The finished kitchen is certainly robust enough for rental purposes, but it’s also a very calming and charming room that’s perfectly in tune with its surroundings.’

Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here Hugh and Ruth Pittman
Location Trebarwith Strand, Cornwall
Designer Stephen Graver
Size 5 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms

Stephen Graver Ltd

The kitchen perfectly captures the relaxed beach house vibe. The soft lines of the country-style accessories enhance the Shaker units, while the neutral palette peppered with soft blues references the property’s coastal surroundings. Stephen used Farrow & Ball’s Parma Gray on the underside of the kitchen island, capturing the watery hues of the sea just moments away from the house.

Stephen Graver Ltd

The glorious double-width island is the spiritual heart of the kitchen, but is a practical as well as a beautiful feature, says Stephen. ‘Hugh and Ruth wanted a design that could withstand lots of use, so the island had to be robust,’ he explains. The glinting white quartz worktop is more hard-wearing than marble and reflects the abundant natural light streaming in from the generous windows. Storage cupboards and a dishwasher are concealed underneath the island, which also serves as a laid-back dining area. A double Belfast sink with a Perrin & Rowe tap keeps the pretty look grounded.

Stephen Graver Ltd

‘The windows were much smaller in the original plans,’ explains Stephen. ‘We turned the process on its head and planned the fixtures and fittings first before redesigning the windows around the kitchen to ensure the room has a sense of symmetry.’ Built-in floor-to-ceiling cabinets between the windows conceal a fridge-freezer, as well as storage to ensure clutter is kept out of sight. The burnt-oak flooring – used throughout the house – is another practical solution and conceals cosy underfloor heating for when the temperature dips.

Check out ways to incorporate an island into your kitchen

Stephen Graver Ltd

Painted cabinetry, in Farrow & Ball’s Wimborne White, continues the relaxed Hamptons feel. Stephen decided an Aga wouldn’t be suitable for the rental market and opted for an electric Everhot range cooker with a three-ring induction hob instead. ‘Aesthetically, they’re quite similar, but this is far more practical,’ he explains. Hugh and Ruth sourced the eye-catching pendant lights from Restoration Hardware.

Read tips on choosing the right pendant light for your scheme

Stephen Graver Ltd

‘I wanted to introduce a subtle nautical theme in the kitchen and the cooker hood was a natural fit,’ explains Stephen. The bowed canopy echoes the lines of a boat hull and is made using a traditional ‘ribbing’ technique used in shipbuilding. A stainless steel lining is both durable and practical. The extensive tongue and groove panelling throughout the kitchen is a further nod to the nautical theme, but also serves to pull the look effortlessly back to its beach house heritage.

Stephen Graver Ltd

Stephen’s meticulous attention to detail is demonstrated in this close-up of the cooker hood, where rivets have been punched into a thin sliver of exposed stainless steel to mimic those traditionally found on a ship’s hull.

Stephen Graver Ltd

The kitchen is a masterclass in blending aesthetic beauty and practicality, but there are some notable exceptions. Keen to utilise local materials in the construction, Stephen suggested using natural Cornish slate for the worktops. ‘It’s not the most hard-wearing material,’ he admits. ‘It will mark and scratch, but that’s part of its charm. Things don’t always have to be pristine to look good.’

Be inspired by more coastal kitchens.

Liked this? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.

http://www.houzz.co.uk/photos/kitchen

9 Easy Upgrades for a More Sophisticated Kitchen

Admin 19.50 kitchen Add Comment

Unknown

9 Easy Upgrades for a More Sophisticated Kitchen- ‘Elegant,’ ‘sophisticated,’ ‘simply beautiful’ — are these words you would use to describe your dream kitchen? Even just adding a coat of paint, new lighting and carefully chosen decorative details can bring your current kitchen a bit closer to that dream. Here are 10 upgrades to consider.

MasterBrand Cabinets, Inc.

Roman shades
Covering the window with a classic Roman shade gives the kitchen a finished look. Go with a colour and a pattern that coordinate with your cabinet and wall colour, or stick with natural linen, which goes with everything.

Rikki Snyder

Topiary
A pair of topiaries flanking the sink is an elegant finishing touch. Use a vintage champagne bucket as a cachepot, or wrap a simple pot in burlap and tie on a velvet bow. If your kitchen gets a good amount of natural light, by all means get real plants — but if not, there’s no shame in picking up a couple of high-quality fakes.

Sheila bridges design, inc

Pendant lighting
Swapping out a plain ceiling light fixture for something with more style can be done quickly — and your new pendant light can become the focal point of the room. Don’t be afraid to go big; even in a small kitchen like the one shown here, a sizeable pendant looks striking, not overpowering.

Browse a selection of pendant lights

A rich cabinet colour
Whether you paint your cabinets or stain them a natural wood tone, a rich colour is a high-impact, low cost way to change the look of your kitchen. Try a saturated hue like the blue-green shown here, or a chic grey or slate on just the lower cabinets.

Pendant, Alison Spear for Stephanie Odegard.

Hartley and Hill Design

Wall paint
If you don’t want to repaint or restain your cabinets, another way to bring in colour is by painting the walls. With all of the appliances and cabinetry, kitchen wall space is often fairly limited — which means not only is it quicker to paint, but the colour is less likely to overwhelm than in, say, the living room. Try a smoky blue, rich ‘greige’ or warm mocha.

Blue paint, Mount Saint Anne by Benjamin Moore.

Terracotta Design Build

Upscale bar stools
There are so many options when it comes to kitchen island seating that there’s no reason to stick with plain bar stools, unless you want to. Try classic bistro stools (like the ones shown here), sculptural wooden stools or sleek Lucite ones.

Also notice the pendant lights in this kitchen — if you have a long counter, placing a row of three large-scale pendant lights above is a great way to bring focus to the space. Glass pendants like the ones shown here are elegant and maximize light.

Stools, Riviera by Serena & Lily.

Kenzer Furniture

Glass cabinet fronts
Update old cabinets by having several of the doors replaced with glass fronts. This costs far less than replacing full cabinets and can completely change the look and feel of your kitchen. Remember, whatever is in the new glass-front cabinets will be visible at all times, so choose just a few cabinet fronts to replace and commit to keeping the interiors orderly.

Cabinet paint, October Mist. Wall paint, Cameo White, both by Benjamin Moore.

Transitional Kitchen Transitional Kitchen

A chic rug
If you’ve shied away from using a rug in the kitchen for fear of spills and stains, try a chic indoor-outdoor version. These rugs come in beautiful colours and patterns now, and no one has to know about the stain-fighting powers.

Sarah Greenman

If you’re not frightened of spills, lay down a beautiful (but not priceless) Oriental carpet. Rugs made from wool and other natural materials are quite forgiving when it comes to stain removal, as long as you act promptly.

Discover 10 tips for finding the perfect rug

Venegas and Company

Branches in a tall vase
Branches last far longer than cut flowers — but more than that, they exude elegance. An armful of seasonal branches plunked in a tall vessel is an easy way to instantly boost the ambience in your kitchen.

Clark Collins - Collins Design & Development

Decorative details
Framed artwork on the wall — and not just ‘kitchen’ art but art you could just as easily hang in another room — can add polish to any kitchen.

Vintage seaweed prints, Winter Works on Paper.

Logan Killen Interiors

Mirrors are unexpected in the kitchen, and just like in other spaces, they can be a wonderful way to boost light. A small table lamp tucked onto the counter brings a warm glow that makes a kitchen feel more welcoming.

Feldman Architecture, Inc.

TELL US…
What kitchen details provide a touch of elegance for you? Please share your thoughts in the Comments below.

http://www.houzz.co.uk/photos/kitchen

10 Ways to Recreate the Great British Bake Off Kitchen Look

Admin 18.49 kitchen Add Comment

Unknown

10 Ways to Recreate the Great British Bake Off Kitchen Look- Every week, people all over the UK hunker down in front of their TVs to see the spectacular fails and successes of 12 amateur bakers in the Great British Bake Off. While the sugary-sweet creations of each contestant are certainly enticing, there’s another part of the show that will have you craving more – namely, the beautiful kitchen décor.

The show’s kitchen, housed in a gigantic garden tent, captures just the right amount of country charm and whimsicality without losing any of its crucial functionality. In honour of the show’s great style, here’s a roundup of some beautiful kitchens that will have you itching to whip out the muscovado and cream in no time.

British Standard by Plain English

Invest in blue
One of the first things you’ll notice about the show’s setup is that many contestants are working on baby-blue kitchen sets. The colour is both cheerful and soothing, and positively invites you to put on your smartest apron and get your hands working into some flour.

This kitchen pairs baby-blue cupboards with a textured wooden floor and charcoal range cooker for an edgier take on the soft pastel schemes featured on the show.

If you’re keen to recreate the look, a simple repainting of kitchen cupboard doors is a fairly inexpensive job, or try painting a wall in a duck egg blue shade for a quick update.

Torie Jayne

Apply pastels liberally
The show’s famous KitchenAids, refrigerators and crockery all sport varying pastel shades. Not only are these incredibly pleasing to the eye, they evoke the delicious pastries, biscuits and cakes that are sure to be created in such inviting spaces.

Pastel accents, such as this delicious mint, can easily be applied via kitchen appliances, stools, tea towels and other accessories.

rigby & mac

Display your crockery with pride
While the contestants on the show whip up elaborate lattice pies and éclairs, the shelves behind them are stacked with colourful and vintage crockery.

Take pride in your baking equipment and display it prominently in a vintage cabinet for easy access. Bonus points if the cabinet is painted blue.

Browse 9 ways to stash bulky kitchen kit

deVOL Kitchens

Stick to soft tones
Although events on the show may get quite dramatic, the background décor balances out the calamity of a collapsed soufflé through the use of soft colours.

This kitchen is painted a muted putty shade, giving it a glowing and inviting look. The tongue and groove and cute peg rail add to the country charm.

Read more about country style

Beach Vintage

Mix and match
The show’s aesthetic partly gets its cheery look from mixing and matching pastel and floral patterns throughout the set, particularly when it comes to the displayed crockery.

Incorporate the look in your own kitchen by picking up vintage crockery and accessories from flea markets and second-hand shops and mixing them together to your heart’s content.

Torie Jayne

Keep supplies organised
A frazzled baker is not a happy baker. Save yourself the stress and make sure all of your baking supplies are neatly organised and labelled in a designated cupboard.

Maintain a soft pastel vibe with coloured jar lids, cute labels and colour-organised ingredients.

Colin Cadle Photography

Embrace old-fashioned
The show’s English country vibe is charming and cosy, two qualities that are very desirable in a kitchen.

Channel the country vibe by investing in classic kitchen appliances, like this cream Aga. If you want to keep your investment on the smaller side, an antique steel or copper stove-top kettle will also do the trick.

Ryland Peters & Small | CICO Books

Decorate with bunting
The set designers at the Great British Bake Off love bunting, and the little triangle chains are prominently displayed all over the show.

Replicate the village fair feeling by hanging bunting in your kitchen, your living room, or even your garden to prepare for tea time. They’re also an easy DIY project you can do with kids.

Holly Marder

Put your kitchen island to good use
If you’re lucky enough to have an island in your kitchen, emulate the show’s contestants and conduct all of your prep work there.

Conserve the country style by ensuring you keep your work space tidy and clean. If your island is open, source old-fashioned baskets to stash vegetables neatly and to hand.

Roundhouse

Keep your work station ready
Make sure your work station is always ready to go, whether it be a kitchen island or a basic countertop.

Keep essentials, such as chopping knives, mixers, and measuring spoons, within reach. This particular bespoke kitchen island incorporates a handy hidden shelf for storing (and quickly accessing) cookbooks, bowls and plates.

A vase with freshly cut flowers will enhance the softness of the space, and the flower’s scent will mingle pleasantly with the delicious smell of dough rising in the oven. Happy baking!

TELL US…
Are you a fan of the Great British Bake Off? How do you channel the set’s style into your own kitchen? Share your tips and photos in the Comments below.

MORE
See more kitchen ideas

http://www.houzz.co.uk/photos/kitchen

Kitchen Planning: Which Wood Should I Choose for my Kitchen Cabinets?

Admin 17.48 kitchen Add Comment

Unknown

Kitchen Planning: Which Wood Should I Choose for my Kitchen Cabinets?- Whether solid or veneered, wood is still the most popular material for our kitchen cabinets. And with good reason. Timber naturally grows in a range of colours and can be washed or stained, too, to produce a variety of finishes. There may be visible grain or the wood might appear wonderfully smooth, and different woods have different properties. Tulipwood, for example, is a tough hardwood much used for cabinet construction, but it’s not a looker, so it needs to be painted. Other woods, such as rich walnut or pale washed oak, look gorgeous just as they are. So whether you want a dark, sleek kitchen or a Scandi-influenced design in soft tones, there’s a wood to suit. These nine beautiful kitchens serve up a smorgasbord of timber options and appearances.

bulthaup by Kitchen Architecture

Go beyond the pale
The tall unit in this kitchen is Bulthaup’s b3 design in white structured oak. Its pale appearance helps the tall bank of units to blend into the wall and feel unobtrusive, while still bringing lots of lovely woody character to the space.

Blakes London

Choose something rustic
The base cabinets in this industrial-inspired kitchen are made from flooring timber and have an uneven, varied tone. The wood is treated and sawn, so it has lots of rich texture and, for further detail, the grain runs vertically.

MDSX Contractors Ltd

Pick honey tones
Kitchens made from pine used to be all the rage, but today’s designs often use woods such as birch or ash instead. They have the same soft brown colour, but none of the sauna associations! The built-in cabinets here are made from ash and tone in with the exposed brickwork behind, for a subtle and warm look.

Teddy Edwards

Mix finishes
Mixing solid wood with painted wooden cabinets is a nice way to create variety of tone in a kitchen. The cabinetry in this room is made from solid bleached oak, with the Shaker-style tall cupboards painted in a warm pale grey.

Mowlem & Co

Darken for drama
Classic and dramatic, dark wood brings a sophisticated feel to any kitchen. This super-stylish design is made from oak-veneered cabinets with a wenge wood stain. Many kitchen companies offer stains in a range of timber colours to be applied to veneered cabinets.

Roundhouse

Add wooden accents
Dark wood makes quite a bold statement when used throughout a kitchen, so if you love its deep tones but don’t want it to dominate your room, try using it as an accent. This kitchen in matt lacquer in a soft grey colour has a breakfast bar and worktop made from whole-stave American black walnut to bring some definition.

See more ways to work a grey kitchen scheme

Wellborn + Wright

Make it reclaimed
This worktop looks fantastically chunky and robust, and it’s combined with a timber-clad wall, too, for extra rustic points. All the materials in this kitchen are reclaimed, to give this property, constructed in 2012, a sense of age and authenticity.

Read more about choosing the perfect kitchen worktop

Designer Kitchen by Morgan

Create a contrast
This striking kitchen has doors made from a mixture of solid walnut and solid tulipwood, with the tulipwood doors hand-finished in ivory-coloured paint. To complement the contrast between the walnut and ivory doors, two handle types were used, with simple chrome T-bar handles on the walnut and designer handles wrapped in bridle leather for the ivory doors.

Check out what to consider when choosing handles

Green Goods

Bag some bamboo
Although technically a grass, bamboo is wonderfully woody in appearance and makes a good alternative to timber. The units in this kitchen are made from strand-woven bamboo plywood teamed with painted cabinets.

TELL US…
Share your thoughts on the right wood for a kitchen in the Comments below.

http://www.houzz.co.uk/photos/kitchen

Kitchen Planning: Which Wood Should I Choose for my Kitchen Cabinets?

Admin 16.47 kitchen Add Comment

Unknown

bulthaup by Kitchen Architecture

Blakes London

MDSX Contractors Ltd

Teddy Edwards

Mowlem & Co

Roundhouse

Wellborn + Wright

Designer Kitchen by Morgan

Green Goods

http://www.houzz.co.uk/photos/kitchen

Kitchen of the Week: Country Meets Shaker in a Converted Barn

Admin 15.46 kitchen Add Comment

Unknown

Kitchen of the Week: Country Meets Shaker in a Converted Barn- Some barns sit in open country, surrounded by fields, but others were built next to the farmhouse, so that valuable livestock or goods were close to hand. Built in the 17th century, this beautiful barn adjoins the home of Arran and Anna Stevens, and once the couple had renovated the house, they turned their attentions to the unconverted barn.

Protected by Grade II listed status, the barn had to be sympathetically brought into the 21st century using traditional materials and painstaking like-for-like work. Then Sam Shaw, of Sustainable Kitchens, was commissioned to create a beautiful cooking space in this large, open and impressive structure. ‘It was just a shell when I first saw it in autumn 2013,’ explains Sam, ‘with gnarly, thick stone walls and a ceiling stretching up to just over 5m at its apex.’

Sam’s brief was to create a kitchen that perfectly suited this space. ‘It had to look as though it really belonged in this ancient building,’ says Sam. The owners liked Sam’s Shaker designs, but wanted a slightly more country cottage look. ‘So we added lots of details, mouldings and beautiful chamfered edges,’ says Sam, ‘while keeping the palette neutral and the walls clear.’

Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here Arran and Anna Stevens
Location Upton Cheyney, south Gloucestershire
Property A converted barn attached to a four-bedroom house
Size Part of a space measuring 6.5m x 4.5m
Designer Sam Shaw, managing director of Sustainable Kitchens

Sustainable Kitchens

‘It was important to keep this space feeling like a barn,’ says Sam Shaw. ‘There was no question of plastering the walls.’ Original oak lintels above the doors were repaired like for like and the owners had bespoke oak window and door frames made for the space.

Sustainable Kitchens

The kitchen sits on the house side of the barn, with space for dining and a lounging area at the other end, and access to the garden. ‘There is a separate living room, behind the larder wall, so the barn operates as a kitchen and relaxed family space,’ says Sam.

The far wall is home to a huge larder. ‘We often fit larders with double doors, but here we installed the fridge-freezer at the centre, with larder storage space on either side,’ says Sam.

Ovens, Neff. Fridge-freezer, Whirlpool.

Sustainable Kitchens

The 300-year-old stone walls are 70cm thick and extremely uneven, so fitting units and upstands against them was a challenge. ‘The solution was to create upstands that are actually boxes, that can be scribed back to the stone on the sides and at the top while fitting snugly to the worktop,’ says Sam.

An additional benefit to this design was that electrical sockets could be fitted here with cables hidden within, so that the lovely stone walls remain clear and unspoiled.

Browse ways to incorporate stone into your space

Sustainable Kitchens

Sam only works with sustainable timber and all the carcasses here are built from FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) birch plywood, while the frames and doors are made from PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) oak.

‘We never use tropical hardwoods,’ says Sam, ‘and we also use nice organic products to finish our designs, including oils and lacquers that are ecofriendly. Our aim is to make as small an impact on the environment as possible with our work.’

Sustainable Kitchens

The owners wanted to tweak classic Shaker design and take it in a more country cottage direction. ‘We added lots of embellishments and details, such as chamfers on cupboard frames and thicker worktops than we would typically use in a traditional Shaker kitchen,’ explains Sam. You can see these details here. The drawer fronts are slightly recessed, with the mouldings level with the frame.

Sustainable Kitchens

As well as fitting both physically and aesthetically into this barn, the kitchen was designed to reference freestanding style. ‘We gave the island and units the sense of being on legs, like a freestanding kitchen, by recessing the timber at the base,’ says Sam.

The limestone flooring, which runs throughout the house, has underfloor heating installed beneath. ‘It helps to preserve the authentic feel of the barn,’ says Sam, ‘with few modern additions tacked on.’

Sustainable Kitchens

Before it was converted, the barn was open to the roof, with the tiles visible. ‘The owners had to repair the roof joists,’ says Sam, ‘and plaster that area in to create a ceiling, using traditional lime render that is sympathetic to the age of the building.’

The tall larder and almost all the appliances fill the far wall, which marks the boundary between the barn and the house.

Sustainable Kitchens

The units are painted in Tallow by Farrow & Ball. ‘We use the exterior eggshell because it’s tough and gives a more durable finish than the interior version,’ says Sam. ‘It also has no oil content, so it’s quick drying.’

Sustainable Kitchens

The island wasn’t designed to work as a breakfast bar originally, but when it was being installed, the owners asked if the worktop could be extended a little. ‘It’s not a full breakfast bar,’ says Sam, ‘as there are drawers on that side, so it wouldn’t work, but it functions nicely as somewhere to perch and is more comfortable than sitting at a true island unit.’

Discover clever ways to expand your kitchen worktop

Sustainable Kitchens

To create a warm, country cottage feel, Sam built worktops that are pleasingly chunky. They are constructed from wide boards of oak that measure 40mm thick and have softly curved corners.

TELL US…
Share your thoughts on this beautiful kitchen in the Comments below.

http://www.houzz.co.uk/photos/kitchen