Kitchen Inspiration in the Media

QUALITY THAT NEVER GOES OUT OF STYLE

A busy lifestyle, a passion for fine cooking and a love of traditional elegance led the owners of this home to transform their previous kitchen into a refined epicentre of family activity.

Enter Kitchens Victoria – makers of quality cabinetry for the discerning buyer. The company manufactured this beautiful kitchen, which was designed by Lindy McGrath from Watermark Design – designers of fine kitchens and bathrooms.

Using a Waratah door in an exquisite cashmere winter-white, and teaming it with an almost charcoal-black granite benchtop, Lindy took the client’s detailed brief and designed a kitchen of truly timeless beauty. With the formidable expertise of cabinetmaker/director Terry Steegstra from Kitchens Victoria, the owner’s dream of a beautiful new kitchen soon became a reality.

At centre stage, the ‘Black Pearl’ granite island can easily accommodate a variety of homework activities while leaving ample room for family engagement during meal preparation. The traditional Perrin and Rowe tap set framed by the lamb’s tongue benchtop edge makes the island a focal point in the open-plan living space.

Set to the side, a finely crafted writing desk and reference library places meal-planning and recipe-sourcing close to the cooking and living areas, well away from foods and valuable kitchen bench space.

Beyond the kitchen lies an organised butler’s pantry for refrigerated and room temperature food storage, overflow cookware and specialised cake-decorating requirements. As the ‘lady of the house’ is a designer of intricate cakes for formal events, she requested this specialised area to engage her passion. To utilise the available space, Terry at Kitchens Victoria designed and made a stylish ladder and slide rail to access the higher shelving.

The added benefit of this multi-use butler’s pantry is that it allows much of the day-to-day messy activity to be hidden from view and maintains the kitchen for ultimate presentation and enjoyment.

In addition, a separate ‘breakfast nook’ houses a microwave, toasting facilities and small-appliance storage, providing the perfect area to prepare a quick snack at any time without venturing into the kitchen or butler’s pantry.
For everyday dining convenience, or when guests join the family for dinner, a fully-integrated Liebherr fridge within reach of the dining table enables easy access to assorted beverages, while a general purpose twin pull-out pantry at the opposing end of the kitchen completes the desired symmetry.

Having collected an impressive array of music and music memorabilia over a number of years, the ‘man of the house’ dreamed of the kind of space in which he could relax and enjoy his collection, either quietly on his own or with a mate. With an ordered mind and a busy schedule, he wanted a cataloguing system that accounted for every item in his collection – something secure and accessible that would preserve the original (and in many cases irreplaceable) album, DVD or CD.

Two natural timber-veneer ‘Espresso’ furniture pieces were built to accommodate the collection. On one side of the room, the glass cabinetry envelops the storage drawers and provides display space for treasured items in an illuminated and dust-free environment.

A larger secondary piece of furniture built on the opposing wall houses the majority of the collection, where selectively switched LED warm-white ribbon lighting creates an enchanting variety of moods. With a matching television unit situated for reclined viewing in front of an open fireplace, the room has everything a man could want.

Watermark Design chooses to design exclusively for Kitchens Victoria – a leader in a diverse range of fine cabinetry.

Website: www.watermarkdesign.net.au

THE HUB OF A FAMILY HOME

Designed by Kitchens Victoria’s Terry Steegstra in conjunction with the homeowners, the stunning featured kitchen has an authentic provincial-come-Quaker style that blends with the rest of the clients’ circa-1910 home.

Boasting fantastic proportions, the kitchen is a true visual feast. Built with entertaining in mind, it provides enough space to cater for large numbers of guests and is also the ideal spot for the owners to share a cosy space to eat,
drink and chat with their children at the end of each day.

It was important for the clients that the kitchen design harmonised with their home, but they also required a kitchen with all the mod cons. Kitchens Victoria addressed this brief by building an authentic-looking kitchen with the state-of-the-art products and features required to make a kitchen functional and easy to use.

The main attraction in the room is the 40mm Carrara Marble benchtop from TTI Stone. This is where food is prepared and served, where drinks are poured and where homework is completed. The canopy above the freestanding oven adds a traditional touch, while the large stainless steel sink and ‘scrub’ taps – sourced by one of the clients from the hospital where she works – is one of the homeowners’ favourite things about the room. The sink and taps are not only functional, but they fit with the theme of the room and look great.

Doors were painted in two-pack Dulux Lexicon White Satin, as were the kickboards. Adding to the kitchen’s provincial aesthetic is the handles – pewter shell handles have been used on drawers and pewter knobs on doors.

With abundant bench space and workable areas in easy reach of each other, the kitchen is practical to work in. A large walk-in pantry has bench space for appliances, relieving any clutter that would ordinarily be in the kitchen.

A Whirlpool French Door refrigerator and Qasair rangehood were installed, and soft-close drawers, lever mixer taps and a twin slide-out waste disposal system contribute to the room’s practicality.

Kitchens Victoria was established in early 1999 by Terry Steegstra and Kevin Carnell. The company can design and build all types of kitchens, from modern and contemporary to provincial, classic and everything in between. Kitchens Victoria works with clients in metropolitan Melbourne and in some regional areas. Building approximately 180 kitchens per year, Kitchens Victoria also undertakes kitchen and bathroom renovations.

KITCHENS TO SUIT YOUR HOME

Quality workmanship and classic style combine in this exquisite kitchen designed by Terry Steegstra of Kitchens Victoria, creating a space that breathes elegance. The homeowners wanted a functional kitchen, with lots of storage space and classic visual appeal. The result is an enviable Provincial design that ticks all the boxes.

The focal point of the kitchen is the imposing chimney mantle with an elegant arch panel and intricate rosette pilasters. The surrounding cabinetry beautifully accentuates the home’s traditional character and finishes, featuring Farmers ‘De Café’ doors and panels.

The Provincial theme is further emphasised through the highly-detailed dentil decorative mouldings. Solid timber benchtops and flooring also add warmth and texture to the classic aesthetic, while the forest green Falcon oven and undermount rangehood located beneath the chimney creates a striking contrast. Kitchens Victoria was established in early 1999 by Terry Seegstra and Kevin Carnell. The company designs and builds all types of kitchens, from modern and contemporary to provincial, classic and everything in between.

Working with clients in metropolitan Melbourne and in some regional areas, the company also specialises in pantries, vanities, laundries, entertainment units, wardrobes, study units and personalised cabinetry to suit your home, using high-quality materials and finishes at a price to suit your budget.

The Kitchens Victoria showroom houses an extensive range of colours for benchtops and doors, as well as a variety of storage solutions, drawer features and pantry options. If you are unable to attend the showroom, a member of the company’s elite kitchen design team will happily to come to your home to discuss your requirements and provide you with a quote.

OLD-WORLD CHARM MEETS MODERN CONVENIENCE

This is a finely-crafted Farmers kitchen, designed by Lindy McGrath of Watermark Design and expertly built and installed by the capable team at Kitchens Victoria. It is both refined and functional and creates a superb central focus within the family’s living area. Inspired by key elements from an earlier period of architectural history, this kitchen provides a sense of grandeur, symmetry, and visual balance within an exquisite family living space.

Flanked by a large handcrafted stone fireplace and privy to a remarkable view of the rear garden through a raked glass, stone, and timber wall, this kitchen is clearly an outstanding fit-out.

The owners wanted a timeless, high-quality Farmers kitchen – a kitchen capable of complementing their beautiful new home, while standing the test of time. The kitchen’s old-world charm coupled with discreet internal technological features provides the owners with exactly what they required.The owners’ criteria included task-specific areas for storing food and equipment within close proximity of usage, as well as a peripheral fridge location for easy family access. These were just two of the many important considerations Kitchens Victoria took into account throughout the design process.

The other main features of the kitchen include a grand ornamental chimneypiece to complement the high raked ceiling, a separate dishwasher, sink, and waste bin zone for efficient clean-up, walk-in pantry with microwave facility situated away from the main work area, and a large island bench with secret rear storage and ample space for meals and work. Attractive, internally-lit mirrored display cabinets on each side of the chimneypiece provide a sense of depth and visual interest.

Kitchens Victoria has allocated adequate space between the major task areas, resulting in a highly functional kitchen. All kitchen items are located close to their specific task zones, creating an ergonomically sound environment. The location of the island bench allows for plenty of free movement into and throughout the kitchen.

EXCEPTIONAL AESTHETICS

This kitchen truly has it all. While the clients’ priority was to have a design with impressive visual appeal, they were also keen to ensure their new kitchen opened up into the living area of their home and incorporated seamlessly into the rest of the house.

In response to this brief, Kevin Carnell from Kitchens Victoria designed this stunning space. Not only aesthetically appealing, the kitchen is also functional and accessible for the clients’ busy family. There is a place for everything, meaning the kitchen is uncluttered, spacious, and easy to keep clean and tidy. With a massive island bench spanning four metres, a walk-in pantry, a separate preparation area for meals, plenty of drawers for storage, and cooking and cleaning areas within easy reach of each other, the kitchen is a practical work space.

When Kitchens Victoria took on the project, the existing kitchen was in need of a facelift and was an essential link for providing a transition between the old part of the house and the new living areas in the renovated home.

A mix of different surface materials creates contrast and interest in the space, and also helps to define various areas. A white background has been created with Dulux ‘Natural White’ on the walls and ceiling and two-pack ‘White Satin’ on doors and panels. Benches are topped with stainless steel in some places and Corian in ‘Glacier White’ in others, while the island bench features Oak Rift Onyx Timber Veneer.

The lighting in the kitchen also adds a sophisticated touch. With glass and chrome pendant lights over the island bench, downlights and two skylights, the kitchen is light-filled and sundrenched, making it a bright, warm and inviting space.

Kitchens Victoria was established in early 1999 by Terry Seegstra and Kevin Carnell. The company designs and builds all types of kitchens, from modern and contemporary to provincial, classic and everything in between. Kitchens Victoria works with clients in metropolitan Melbourne and in some regional areas. Building approximately 180 kitchens per year, Kitchens Victoria also undertakes kitchen and bathroom renovations.


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