CLASSIC SHAKER

Awkward space to stunning one of a kind kitchen in Desford

Some spaces arrive with their own agenda. This Victorian property in Desford came with exposed oak beams, a pair of original brick arches, an Aga that wasn't moving, and ceiling heights that varied considerably across the room. The brief was to design a kitchen that worked around all of it — and felt like it had always been there.

What Sherwin Hall delivered is a bespoke scheme in the Charterhouse door, painted throughout in Little Greene Rolling Fog. The cabinetry is ash, inframe, with Perrin & Rowe drawer pulls in English bronze. The worktops are Calacatta Oro quartz with a double bevel edge — warm against the painted timber, calm against the beams above.

Banquette Seating

The corner of the room presented a familiar problem in older properties: an irregular junction of walls with a ceiling that drops away, too awkward for a standard dining table and chairs and too valuable to waste.

The solution was a fully bespoke built-in banquette. The seating is panelled in tongue and groove to match the kitchen's character, with the seat height set at 460mm — confirmed on site during the fit, as is standard practice for banquette work. Under-seat drawer storage runs the full length of the run, accessed from the front. A solid oak trestle table completes the dining area, with bar stools on the island side creating a second, more informal eating position.

The result turns what would have been a difficult corner into the most used spot in the room.

Designing Around the Original Arches

The two brick arches were the defining feature of the space — and the first question in the design process. Plastering over them was never an option. Instead, they were put to work.

The larger arch frames the Aga alcove. A full-height Calacatta Oro splashback was fitted within it, with LED strip lighting at the base to pick out the stonework and illuminate the cooking surface. The arch does what it always did — it just does it better now.

The second arch became the drinks and coffee station. Bespoke cabinetry sits below, sized precisely to the arch opening. Above the worktop, open oak shelving follows the curve of the brickwork, with LED strip lighting running the full arc. Closed up, it's a beautiful period detail. Open, it's a fully functional part of the kitchen.

Both arches required individual templating — no standard unit dimensions would work here. Every cabinet in these alcoves was made to measure around the existing masonry.

A Working Kitchen

The island is the practical heart of the space. A ceramic white Shaker double sink sits centralised within it, with a Perrin & Rowe Ionian deck mixer in English bronze above — porcelain lever handles, sympathetic to the period feel of the property. Five drainage grooves run toward the sink. There's a pull-out bin concealed in the base, and a tray unit and chopping board drawer in the run opposite.

Appliances are Liebherr and Siemens throughout — a BioFresh Professional fridge, a NoFrost IceTower freezer, a Siemens iQ500 microwave, and an integrated dishwasher. The customer's own Thornhill range cooker, set within the arched Aga alcove, anchors the cooking zone.

Storage throughout was a primary focus. A 400mm pull-out larder is integrated into the run, alongside cutlery inserts, a utensils drawer and internal oak pull-outs. The tall dresser run — with its base shelf set at 470mm from the worktop — runs from floor to beam height, built to a custom dimension to sit cleanly within the ceiling structure without cutting into any of the original timbers.

Kitchen Gallery

Photographs only tell part of the story, but they come close here. Browse the gallery below for a full look at the finished kitchen, including the bespoke arch alcoves, the built-in banquette seating, the Calacatta Oro island and the full-height dresser run designed to sit cleanly within the original beam structure.