Cotswold Country House Project | Main Kitchen

The kitchen of a large country house is not what it used to be. Dark, dingy and squirrelled away out of sight of the homeowners, the kitchen was purely designed to cater for the masses. Today, the ultimate country kitchen is a light, airy open room for actually living in, with space to relax and spend time in each other’s company while food can be easily prepared and served, and enjoyed all within a single space. And while catering for large shooting parties, and weekend entertaining is still essential, the kitchen also needs to feel homely enough for the family to enjoy themselves on a quiet mid-week evening.

This main kitchen of a large country house in the Cotswolds is the perfect example of a respectful renovation that brings an outdated layout up to date and provides an incredible open plan space for the whole family to enjoy together. When we design a kitchen, we want to capture the scale and proportion of the room while incorporating the client’s brief of how they like to cook, dine and live.

The huge bespoke chimney provides a central focal point for the cooking side of the kitchen and provides the perfect spot for the 1524mm Wolf range cooker with teppanyaki and chargrill. Powerful extraction is an essential here so the bespoke extraction designed by Peter Humphrey, Design Director and Founder of H|M, in conjunction with Westin was an obvious choice. Either side of the chimney countertop cupboards conceal a myriad of appliances to the left, with a countertop pantry cupboard to the right.

Refrigeration is courtesy of Sub-Zero and does not disappoint. Carefully recessed into the wall so as not to dominate the room, the tall integrated fridge freezer with Sub-Zero wine storage and refrigeration drawers below, provides all the immediate cooling space this kitchen needs. There is a huge amount of prep space on the island countertop with the under-mounted double sink, two integrated dishwashers and two pull out bins below for maximum convenience. Seating for four provides a perch for friends to enjoy a pre-dinner drink, or a handy spot for the children to do their homework or watch the TV concealed behind the Nickleby dresser.

The dining space offers informal space for the family to enjoy breakfast in the light, airy Orangery space so we designed the breakfast cupboard which is positioned close by to have everything to hand. The Miele nespresso machine is centrally positioned with space either side for storing cereals, mugs and teas etc, with a Quooker hot tap and prep sink below and also a handy spot for the Dualit toaster.

With all the perimeter cabinetry finished in H|M’s Tailored Grey, and the island finished in classic Brolly Blue, the colour palette balances really well with H|M’s walnut accent wood used for the cabinetry interiors and accents such as the integrated trays and the Havisham counter stools. Polished nickel hardware finishes the Nickleby cabinetry perfectly. The last design detail is the flooring – H|M’s Babington Limestone flooring is an excellent natural foundation for this kitchen design that feels incredible underfoot and works perfectly with the heritage of the house.