Snaresbrook Blue

When this client in Snaresbook approached me they had a kitchen that was untidy and surprisingly dark considering how much natural light the room had. The kitchen had a large peninsula that was getting in the way and the clients growing family needed more space.

I noticed the couple had a healthy love of house plants so wanted to build space into the design for these. The vaulted ceiling gave us the perfect opportunity to try something a bit different. I had been watching a few music videos of 'myanalogjournal' on youtube and this inspired me to create a bulkhead holding the extractor ducting that house plants could sit on. It works fantastically with the high ceiling. I did away with the island completely and decided to build a bench along one wall with a hinged seat. This would be ideal for storing the kids toys etc when they come in from the garden. Clad in solid walnut with a raked back rest it creates a dramatic focal point at one end of the mid century dining table. Open shelves above it ensure no space is wasted. To the right of this I designed two very practical pantry units. One with lower drawers and a worktop for the toaster with adjustable shelves above and the other for the wine collection.

The L shape of the kitchen base units has the hob and ovens centred on one wall with the sink opposite the door as you walk in. This keeps the often dirty sink area that bit further out of view and the clean induction hob and ovens immediately to your left. We used a beautiful Porcelain by Ariastone called Paonazzo in a natural finish. This is a more matt finish which helps to see the marble like veining in a room with so much natural light. (Polished surfaces tend to work like a mirror so you see the reflections more than the worksurface colours and details!) We used the same porcelain for the high backsplashes in the room which because of the diagonal veining also draw the eye up toward the extractor and plants above.

to the right of the hob run is an integrated fridge freezer and a tall le mans corner cupboard. This beast of a cupboard holds it all. So much storage in an area that is often underused.

Now the kitchen feels light and airy and the vaulted ceiling has become a real feature in the room. Further accentuated by painting the doorway wall in Farrow & Ball Dix blue and adding an angle-poise style ceiling lamp above the dining table.