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Kitchen Tour: A Stylish Plywood Design Transforms a Cottage
A reworked layout and attractive birch ply cabinetry turned a dated kitchen extension into a welcoming, sociable space
A 2004 extension to this cottage had created space for a kitchen, but the layout and cabinetry didn’t work for the family who live here. “It had a peninsula in the centre, so it was split into two zones. One side was wasted and tended to have things dumped in it,” designer Matt Higgins says.
The size and brightness of the room meant there was plenty of potential for Matt to design a more rational layout for the family and create a sociable kitchen with a contemporary feel that was sympathetic to the period property.
The size and brightness of the room meant there was plenty of potential for Matt to design a more rational layout for the family and create a sociable kitchen with a contemporary feel that was sympathetic to the period property.
Matt used bespoke plywood cabinets with exposed edges and painted fronts on the wall, and overlay varnished plywood frames on the lower run. “The two colours break it up,” he says.
There’s a mixture of work surfaces, too. On the island, Matt used oak. “It’s a warm material. You don’t want a cold surface for your elbows when you come down for a morning coffee,” he says. “It ties in with the new oak floor as well.”
The other worktop is engineered quartz. “It mimics concrete,” Matt says. “It’s not flat and glossy, but matt and textured, so it’s more homely and works with the industrial vibe of the plywood. It doesn’t stain, and doesn’t need maintenance.”
Unusually, the room doesn’t have an extractor above the hob, but has humidity-controlled extraction (seen as a white roundel in the ceiling). The owner doesn’t cook pungent dishes that require odour extraction, Matt explains, but this system does deal with the moisture created by cooking.
The room’s lights were part of the 2004 kitchen and are due to be changed.
There’s a mixture of work surfaces, too. On the island, Matt used oak. “It’s a warm material. You don’t want a cold surface for your elbows when you come down for a morning coffee,” he says. “It ties in with the new oak floor as well.”
The other worktop is engineered quartz. “It mimics concrete,” Matt says. “It’s not flat and glossy, but matt and textured, so it’s more homely and works with the industrial vibe of the plywood. It doesn’t stain, and doesn’t need maintenance.”
Unusually, the room doesn’t have an extractor above the hob, but has humidity-controlled extraction (seen as a white roundel in the ceiling). The owner doesn’t cook pungent dishes that require odour extraction, Matt explains, but this system does deal with the moisture created by cooking.
The room’s lights were part of the 2004 kitchen and are due to be changed.
The bar stools create a place to perch for coffee overlooking the cottage’s courtyard, with its mature fruit trees (there’s a separate space for dining).
In a reference to country cottage style, the sides of the island have a V-shaped groove finish that softens the look.
Biscotto Concreto worksurface, Arenastone. Masters bar stool, Kartell at Oskar Furniture.
In a reference to country cottage style, the sides of the island have a V-shaped groove finish that softens the look.
Biscotto Concreto worksurface, Arenastone. Masters bar stool, Kartell at Oskar Furniture.
The wall cabinetry mixes open shelving with hidden storage. The ply shelves are adjustable for flexibility, and allow the homeowner to show off the ceramics she’s collected. “Before, there wasn’t any space for them in the kitchen,” Matt says. “They add personality.”
The wall cabinets are a handleless, push-to-open design. “It means you have a solid colour feature piece as opposed to it looking like a door,” Matt says.
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Find a reviewed kitchen designer or fitter in your area in the Houzz Professionals Directory.
The fridge-freezer is integrated at the end of the run of cabinetry. “Otherwise, it breaks the look,” Matt says. “It makes a kitchen feel less kitchen-y, so when you’re sitting in here, you’re not looking at a stainless-steel fridge.”
The door beyond leads to the utility room. It’s home to the washing machine, as it was previously, but Matt created open plywood shelving for the room, so it’s now a pantry as well. “Before, the owner had scattered storage in lots of cabinets, but no real larder storage,” he says.
The door beyond leads to the utility room. It’s home to the washing machine, as it was previously, but Matt created open plywood shelving for the room, so it’s now a pantry as well. “Before, the owner had scattered storage in lots of cabinets, but no real larder storage,” he says.
An undermounted sink leaves a continuous line of worktop on show. “You can hide things in it when guests are round!” Matt says.
An upstand finishes off the edge of the worktop and conceals uneven walls. A splashback for the sink is yet to be chosen.
The base cabinets contain a dishwasher on one side and a pull-out, three-bin unit that allows recycling to be separated on the other.
An upstand finishes off the edge of the worktop and conceals uneven walls. A splashback for the sink is yet to be chosen.
The base cabinets contain a dishwasher on one side and a pull-out, three-bin unit that allows recycling to be separated on the other.
Matt reused the room’s existing oven and located it in the island to provide extra cooking capacity for larger parties.
The main oven is a range that complements its cottage location. “It’s a heating source and harks back to more traditional cooking,” Matt says. However, it’s electric and has an induction hob that makes it modern and versatile.
90i cooking range, Everhot.
90i cooking range, Everhot.
The homeowners have used the space above the range to hang artwork. “As a feature wall, it looks great,” Matt says.
Next to the range is a stack of push-to-open drawers that continue the cabinetry’s unfussy lines.
Tell us…
Which element of this kitchen do you like the best? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
Next to the range is a stack of push-to-open drawers that continue the cabinetry’s unfussy lines.
Tell us…
Which element of this kitchen do you like the best? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
Who lives here? A family
Location Oxfordshire
Property A period cottage extended in 2004
Kitchen dimensions 4.5m x 4.5m
Designer Matt Higgins of Sustainable Kitchens
Budget Approximately £40,000
Photos by Charlie O’Beirne of Lukonic
“Although the kitchen’s almost in the centre of the house, people tended not to sit in here,” Matt says. To make it more sociable, he provided an island where people can gather. A dramatic shade for this and the wall cabinetry adds interest to the space. “It’s such a bright room, it can handle darker colours,” he says.
And the plywood? “The owners liked the texture of the birch ply,” he says. “It has a lovely grain.”
Wall cabinets and island painted in Obsidian Green, Little Greene.