Got a big kitchen refurb in mind, but unsure about where to start? We don’t blame you! They’re expensive, disruptive, technically tricky at times but nothing else will make more of a difference to your home.
By Kirsty Lake
When redoing a house and trust me, I know it always seems to come back to the kitchen. It’s the biggie, the thing that defines the entire project, the space that encourages radical changes of layout walls knocked down, extensions tacked on and where issues with making the sink-oven-fridge triangle work, and ditto the pain-in-the-neck that is efficient, unobtrusive extraction, can bring a raft of unexpected complications. It’s a room that has to be both the cosy, friendly centre of the house, but also a practical work space potentially conflicting requirements, but thrilling when you get the balance right. And that’s before we even begin to address the aesthetics of the thing.
Kitchens can feel overwhelming, the decisions to be made daunting and the possibilities intimidatingly endless. But here’s the good part: once sorted, everything else you do to your home will feel like something of a downhill slope.
Though kitchen trends are ever evolving influenced by changing preferences, technology, lifestyle needs one thing never changes: they’re a major investment, a serious hassle, and something you’ll want to tackle as few times as possible. While a few are lucky enough to have somewhere else to escape to, thus dodging the dust and mess, many of necessity stay put and have to live and work through the upheaval, eating microwave meals and wishing the washing up could be done anywhere but the bath. This, of course, means that good, solid planning is vital: mistakes will be expensive, and guarantee further disruption. Back to the bathroom you go with your dirty spoons.
The marketplace for kitchens is highly competitive. The big name brands discount or luxe fight for your attention with glossy advertising and cut prices. But there are alternatives, a personal favourite being the bespoke artisan approach, where talented craftsmen, working with beautiful materials, tailor each nook and cranny to suit your home, needs and style. Do you want a history-referencing country vibe, or something tech-heavy, awash with voice assistants and smartphone controls? The custom-made kitchen can, almost magically, combine the two.
Once you’ve made all your decisions on door styles, knob finishes, colours and worktops, in come the appliances another minefield, and one where good advice really does pay for itself. Stand out brands like Gaggenau and Sub-Zero offer technology to make you feel like a Michelin-starred chef, but for most of us, more accessible options still have their place (Neff and the like are a good place to start).
The dominant trend of recent years being to open everything up linking kitchens to dining and sitting areas and making this combo the social hub of the home has piled new demands on our kitchen spaces, and to make it all work zoning is key. Banquette seating areas can be a great use of space, bar stools at the island a wonderfully informal way to create a multifunctional area, while placing a large rug under a dining table brings focus to a separate spot away from the business end’ of the kitchen though be careful what you choose here. (In other words: think of the spills.)
The current trend for open shelves is Marmite; the idea of showing off your crockery collection will either fill you with dread (not least of the extra dusting required) or make you beam with pride. But these are the sort of detail you can take or leave; getting the fundamentals right first is paramount.
An oversized island may seem like the dream, but can you easily reach the other side, or will you be endlessly walking around a giant obstacle? And is the fridge so far from an unallocated surface that gathering ingredients for your evening dinner becomes a frustrating back and forth affair?
With kitchens offering so many opportunities, and so many pitfalls, one question looms: should you pay for design expertise, or will the in-store advice and a DIY approach get the job done? Of course, the answer lies in your budget, your availability, and your comfort with getting your hands dirty, but there’s more to it than that. Some kitchen companies help guide you through from start to finish, while others just deliver the components to your door and leave your trades to it. You will also need to consider who is filling in the gaps: a kitchen company is unlikely to select a floor finish or blind fabric, or instance, and manufacture it to fit your window. Who will pick the lighting and the furniture? And who will make a seat pad for your banquette?
Interior designers hold the solution for those who don’t want to take on the logistics of working through all these and many other seemingly minor issues where, nevertheless, decisions have to be made. With access to trusted trades, a designer can arrange the install, plumbers, electricians, carpenters, the lot and, in doing so, help control the timeline and budget. They fill in the gaps for the elements of the project you didn’t even realise you hadn’t thought about; hold your hand through some of the key decisions; and, yes, can even design them too, integrating the kitchen as part of your home as a whole, with a holistic approach and a single language.
Infrequently asked questions
More things I’m asked on the regular, with my current answers though, as with all things taste-based, these are subject to change.
What’s the secret to a well-decorated space?
For me, some of the most captivating rooms exist where decoration is a by-product of the owner’s passions in life.
And linked to that, what sort of clients do you most enjoy?
People who are open-minded, kind, and enjoy doing things that are a little bit different. You’ve got to find your own point of view. I like that one day I’m problem solving and designing a bathroom, say, and the next I’m working on lighting or a lugging furniture around and having a client you really get on with makes all this much more fun, and the end result usually better too.
How do you make a stylish interior perfectly Instagrammable?
The world of Instagram has made interiors both more and less accessible. You know in the back of your mind that no-one lives like the perfect rooms you see online, with nothing out of place and often no sign at all of human touch at all, so retaining a degree of cynicism about it all is vital. Yet, at the same time, Insta undeniably offers a wealth of great inspiration. If you want to shoot your home for your grid, create uncluttered vignettes, polished and packed with statement pieces, and hide any real chaos behind you and the camera! But at the same time, allow a little bit of eccentricity even mess at the fringes too. It’ll look much more real, much more you.
What’s your go-to for statement wallpaper?
There are so many but, in my own home, I would love wallpapers from Schumacher or Soane Britain. For bolder statements, the likes of Mind the Gap, Timorous Beasties and Divine Savages are fun too.
What’s an interiors trend you can’t get enough of?
I love old buildings, and items that tell stories; but at the same time I adore super-cool light-filled spaces and emerging art and sculpture. I enjoy an accessible kind of aspiration too the idea that the interior-design savvy from a multi-million pound house can be employed in much more modest homes too. Both can have the same level of design integrity, the same ideas speaking to everyone.
Finally, what’s the secret to running a stress-free kitchen makeover?
There’s no such thing, not entirely, but what’ll make stress levels acceptable is planning, planning, and yet more planning. Suddenly realising the tiler is coming in the next few days, and you haven’t seen a single tile yet, is never a good thing.
Caught my eye
Kirsty’s interiors edit for March
1. Ceramic mug by Rosa Furniture, in red, blue or ochre, £10 each; www.rosafurniture.co.uk
2. Danish dining chair by House of Mobel, set of 4 £1,350; www.houseofmobel.com
3. Arabescato Corchia natural marble by Bristol Marble and Granite, price on application; www.bristolmarbleandgranite.com
4. Kitchen by Nolte, prices vary; www.kitchensbynolte.com
5. Cabinet handles by Neptune, prices vary; www.neptune.com
Main image caption:
The main impression given by this Bristol kitchen, created by Sustainable Kitchens of Avondale, is of space and light, but the more you look, the more you see clever details. Plain walls need nothing else when interest comes from the play of light and shadow created by the triangular skylight, while interesting textures on the floor and ceiling (like a ’70s Scandinavian ski lodge, in the best possible way) bracket the room. Perhaps most intriguing is the wedge-shaped kitchen island, simple of line but unexpected of shape; as with everything by Sustainable Kitchens, it’s no off-the-shelf kitchen unit but designed specifically for this space.
Image Credits: See published article
Magazine Published by Media Clash, Bristol Life
https://issue.com/mediaclash/docs/brl348.final