5 THINGS YOU WOULDN'T EXPECT IN OUR LATEST KITCHEN
BY LANA
I was hardly surprised when I got the call from Erin to let me know there was risky business going on in the kitchen at House 10. With the formidable force of Bonnie Hindmarsh and Sophie Bell on the design front, things were never going to be run-of-the-mill in this house.
I braced myself for craziness and was somewhat pleasantly surprised. Want to know what they got up to in this #mediterraneanfarmhouse kitchen?
1) we went crazy with concrete
We’ve used concrete-look stone on our benchtops before, but never the real deal. To add another ‘first’ to the long list of them in this house, we literally poured concrete right on top of the Carrera by Design joinery. I’ve got to say; the end result is pretty damn beautiful. The chalky white concrete encompasses the joinery and complements the white- stained American Oak timber veneer cupboards and drawers perfectly. Every day’s taco Tuesday ‘round here with the bling taco-shaped door handles – they make me hungry just looking at them.
That’s the Electrolux integrated dishwasher hidden to the left of the built-in microwave.
It automatically pops open when the cycle has ended to air dry and let you know she’s ready to be unpacked.
Even the sink is moulded in concrete.
2) Sophie said ‘Adios’ to the Fridge
“I don’t want a fridge in my kitchen” said no one ever! Except Sophie Bell. And while I was somewhat sceptical of this decision to begin with, I get it now. The Bells are one of those families who love to entertain #myworstnightmare But they’re tucked away in their #hinterlandhideaway, without any local shops, so they need to be prepared with a full fridge of food and bevvies for when the troops arrive.
Enter the big Mumma Electrolux fridge and freezer. They look like one massive appliance but they’re actually two single doors, positioned side-by-side. With a built-in ice maker in the freezer and water dispenser in the fridge. This dynamic duo is an entertainer’s dream
Peekaboo, I see you! The fridge and freezer are tucked away in the butler’s pantry.
3) Ditched the overhead cupboards
Sophie wanted to keep the kitchen light-filled and open, so decided to ditch any overhead cabinetry and stick with below-bench storage. Lucky for her, the concrete island bench is 5-whole-metres long, meaning there’s so much room for storage on both sides of it. It also means she didn’t have to obscure the splashback windows with overhead cabinetry, and instead chose to make a feature of them by creating white mullions (they’re the vertical bars between the panes of glass in a window).
Play School called … they want their arched window back.
Arch window designs like this are usually exxy when made out of steel, so we came up with this option of sticking with aluminium window frames and having the arch design laser cut from the same material.
4) I think they forgot the rangehood
I checked with Ez and the budget’s on track… I’m sure we can afford a rangehood! But apparently the girls decided we don’t need one. This could be even more controversial than not putting the fridge in the kitchen!
Sophie decided to forgo the rangehood altogether in this house. In her last reno, Sophie invested in a chef style oversized rangehood and after living in the house for a few years realised she only ever used the light on the rangehood at night for soft lighting and never the exhaust function! So with her forever home, having the view and clean lines was far more important than having the rangehood that she would never use. But if the aromas really start to work up a head of steam, she’ll just open the sliding doors for some natural ventilation.
Speaking of cooking, check out that amazing freestanding Electrolux cooker. It’s one of the items that really puts the ‘farm’ in this Mediterranean Farmhouse.
This Electrolux freestanding cooktop has a gas stovetop and electric oven – with pyrolytic cleaning!
5) PRETTY LITTLE NICHE
The saying goes “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade” - well we made a niche wall instead.
When we found out that some plumbing needed to run up the wall in the corner of the kitchen, instead of seeing it as a negative, we got creative and designed a gorgeous new feature that looks like it was always supposed to be there. Don’t cha love it when an unexpected negative becomes a positive?
I’ve got to say, I’m feeling it. The concrete, the functional appliances that are perfectly placed and integrated for the way this family lives and the minimalistic design are just spectacular. High fives all round!
BROUGHT TO YOU BY ELECTROLUX
