Journal
Deep in the rolling English countryside sits the most beautiful home. A home that has been painstakingly restored and re-built, like a phoenix from the ashes. Driving through the woodland, along the winding private driveway, you are immediately transported to a magical world. Private, sheltered, utterly unique and simply magnificent.
Commissioning Guild Anderson to design a kitchen befitting this striking new home, Nick Anderson and his team have embraced the enormity of the challenge with passion. With ceiling heights exceeding 3 metres, the scale of the kitchen design needed to be grand enough to fill the space, and yet retain a very pared-back Scandinavian aesthetic, as requested by the clients.
Nick advised the clients on Guild Anderson’s Bucknowle kitchen; a beautifully elegant design with turned legs, posts and trims, and panelled doors. All panels are consistent and aligned perfectly, creating a seamless line. This design originated in a dressing room, but has adapted wonderfully as a kitchen style. Accents can be in solid wood, or painted, and the style lends itself perfectly to a beautiful island; a true centrepiece of any large kitchen.
Nick filled the scale of the space by creating 4 distinct zones. The dishwashing area with Belfast sink, Fisher & Paykel dishwasher drawer, and tall cabinetry to house the crockery and plate racks. The main preparation and cooking area combines base and double height wall cabinets with a magnificent island. The double width island houses utensil and bread drawers, a dishwasher, rubbish bins, warming oven and bar area.
An Everhot; https://everhot.co.uk/, along with both an induction and a ceramic hob, and Smeg extra-large oven; https://www.smeguk.com/ovens/extra-large-ovens, offer a selection of cooking options, as well as an integrated Miele Mastercool fridge; https://www.miele.co.uk/e/mastercool-1022130-c. The marble lintel above the Everhot cooker was sourced exclusively by our clients from a European reclamation yard.
Away from the main preparation and cooking area there is a bespoke tea and coffee making zone with open shelving, cabinets, drawers, a Quooker tap; https://www.quooker.co.uk/ all hidden behind bespoke cabinetry in the form of bi-fold pocket doors which slide back in to the cabinetry allowing this prep area to be left open if need be for ease of access. Fridge drawers sit underneath the counter for easy access to milk and cold drinks. Rarely are we asked to create a bespoke tea and coffee installation!
Finally a kitchen of this scale is not complete without a walk in pantry. Again double height, large enough for small appliances, a hostess trolley, steps and of course all manner of cooking ingredients. The inside is fitted with the clients own reclaimed mahogany shelves, restored and fitted by Guild Anderson.
In the preparation zone Nick incorporated a unique work surface. Here he made use of a felled Yew tree, found in our clients’ parkland grounds, the wood has been used sympathetically to form the end grain worktop and integrated compost bin.
Yew timber is incredibly strong and durable. Traditionally, the wood was used in turnery and to make long bows and tool handles. One of the World’s oldest surviving wooden artefacts is a yew spear head estimated to be around 450,000 years old.
Into this yew work surface we cut a small circular hole, removing a section to be used as a lid to a compartment that will house a compost bin below the surface. However it did not go unnoticed that yew wood is also toxic, and so a full toxicity report was obtained from Kew Gardens to ensure that the wood was safe to use!
This is just one way that we added bespoke design and precision carpentry skills to the kitchen; but ultimately we are adding sustainable composting benefits for our clients garden too!
The Scandinavian styling was brought together by the colour scheme. All the base and wall cabinets are painted in a light and airy colour from Paint & Paper Library ‘Salt I’, https://www.paintandpaperlibrary.com/, while the island is Farrow & Ball’s ‘Inchyra Blue’; https://www.farrow-ball.com/paint-colours/inchyra-blue, finished beautifully with antique brass edge pull handles from Joseph Giles Ltd. https://www.josephgiles.com
The owner has married these two colours together beautifully in her chosen soft furnishings and the Swedish bureau and hardwood breakfast table gives warmth and contrast to the room’s overall feel.
Guild Anderson’s cabinetry sits beautifully in its surroundings. This home is a stunning example of how a respect for tradition can be married to a sophisticated contemporary aesthetic, bringing out the best of both. Incredible attention to detail is apparent in every corner of the house. Guild Anderson view every commission as an honour. To be part of a project on this scale and ambition is a rare privilege.
