Our client was looking to modernise their heritage listed home in Sydney‘s Hunters Hill. The home was large and had a great outlook from the family room. The house is well-presented with manicured gardens and generous living proportions. The kitchen was to cater for a family of four (2 adults and 2 chlidren).
The client had a few specific requests :
• We want a walk in pantry (requested by the male cook of the house!) as storage was a problem in the existing kitchen. The family prefers large grocery shops and needs storage.
• A large freestanding stove is a must (again the male cook).
• Lots of bench space to serve food.
• Space for the 2 children to sit whilst the adults are preparing meals.
• The kitchen must look sympathetic to the home‘s existing architecture, but also be slick in it‘s presentation, nothing too ornate. A mixture between pared-back hertiage and hamptons style. Top quality joinery was a priority.
• Not just white!
Design Challenges
• The existing kitchen did not have a walk in pantry so a space had to be created for this.
• The wall between the kitchen and family room needed to be demolished, impacting on the adjacent family room and a layout for this needed to be considered too.
The final space for the new kitchen was significantly larger than the old one. Additional space was gained from structural changes to the kitchen and family room. By removing the dividing wall a large open plan kitchen/dining area was created. A walk in pantry was built and the gorgeous outlook the home had was now visible from the kitchen/dining room. Once the space was created the most significant design recommendations related to workability of the space and the visual aspect of the kitchen. In particular:
• The walk in pantry allows for plenty of food storage and food preparation with much bench space and a second sink and fridge.
• A large island for seating whilst the adults were cooking. The island was done in a striking dark colour (Dulux Klavier) to address the client’s brief “not all white!” and in keeping with the requested Hamptons style.
• The main kitchen doors were done in a heritage profile in keeping with the room’s existing entry doors and fulfilling the need to remain sympathetic with the homes existing architecture.
• The detail of the proud kick boards, end panels, pelmet and capping all meet the client request for heritage but not over the top ornate and ensure a quality feel to the joinery in keeping with the home’s status.
• The stone top selected was central to the look the client wanted meeting the requirements of heritage/hamptons, bringing in warmth to the stark contrasting cabinetry colours.
