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Kitchen Tour: A Dark Green Painted Kitchen With a Gorgeous Pantry
The stylish walk-in pantry in this kitchen-diner extension does so much more than store the groceries...
Rear extensions are often gloriously light, but large ones can leave the back of the room rather gloomy. With this project, however, architect Kieran Hawkins of Cairn came up with an ingenious solution that has not only given the owners a gorgeous walk-in pantry, but created a lightwell that illuminates both the kitchen and the living room behind.
After waiting a long time for it, the owners had a very clear brief for their new kitchen-diner/living space. “They wanted to build something with natural materials that would age well,” Kieran says. “They were looking for extra space for their growing family, a stronger link to the garden, and a better connection between the areas for cooking, eating and relaxing – a space for the whole family to be together without being on top of each other.”
They were also keen to have a separate walk-in pantry and you can see in this photo that Kieran sectioned off a space at the end of the run of units. But the room doesn’t just hold groceries…
They were also keen to have a separate walk-in pantry and you can see in this photo that Kieran sectioned off a space at the end of the run of units. But the room doesn’t just hold groceries…
The ceiling is higher in the pantry, and the additional stretch of wall above the double doors contains a slim window (see next photo), bringing light into this area of the kitchen and through to the living room beyond the square Crittall window.
“The owners didn’t want the back of the kitchen to be too dark, which is often a problem with these extensions, so we used the pantry as a way of bringing light into the kitchen and the living room,” Kieran says. “It’s a top-lit little space and acts almost as a lightwell, because it’s flooded with natural light.”
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“The owners didn’t want the back of the kitchen to be too dark, which is often a problem with these extensions, so we used the pantry as a way of bringing light into the kitchen and the living room,” Kieran says. “It’s a top-lit little space and acts almost as a lightwell, because it’s flooded with natural light.”
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This view from the living room shows how the pantry roof is higher than the kitchen roof, so Kieran could insert a slim window.
“The pantry is one of the least occupied rooms in the house, but it’s actually one of the most important in terms of making all the others work; without it, the living room would be really dark,” he says.
This side of the living room is used as a home office and having this internal window also connects anyone working in here to the kitchen and garden beyond. “It allows a glimpse of the trees in the garden, so there’s a bit more for the eye to see,” Kieran says. “Also, even though it’s separated acoustically, anybody working in here can still feel connected to everyone in the kitchen.”
Living room walls painted in Setting Plaster, Farrow & Ball.
“The pantry is one of the least occupied rooms in the house, but it’s actually one of the most important in terms of making all the others work; without it, the living room would be really dark,” he says.
This side of the living room is used as a home office and having this internal window also connects anyone working in here to the kitchen and garden beyond. “It allows a glimpse of the trees in the garden, so there’s a bit more for the eye to see,” Kieran says. “Also, even though it’s separated acoustically, anybody working in here can still feel connected to everyone in the kitchen.”
Living room walls painted in Setting Plaster, Farrow & Ball.
The pantry makes good use of what is actually quite a narrow space, as next to it is the hallway storage cupboard, seen here on the left, which had to be deep enough to hold a pram.
On the floorplan, you can see how the roomy hallway cupboard (across from the staircase) steals space from the pantry.
The cabinets either side of the large fridge-freezer are almost a metre wide each; the left-hand one is a breakfast station. They both have pocket doors that tuck away neatly.
On the end of this run is a ladder that fits onto rails in the pantry (see the view from the living room) to access the top cupboards. “There’s high-level storage in the pantry, including a wine rack,” Kieran says. “It’s a tall room, as the floor is on a level with the kitchen, but the roof aligns with the living room ceiling.”
The washing machine and dryer are in a utility cupboard upstairs.
On the end of this run is a ladder that fits onto rails in the pantry (see the view from the living room) to access the top cupboards. “There’s high-level storage in the pantry, including a wine rack,” Kieran says. “It’s a tall room, as the floor is on a level with the kitchen, but the roof aligns with the living room ceiling.”
The washing machine and dryer are in a utility cupboard upstairs.
The off-white walls have a slight green hue, which tones with the dark green cabinets. “The palette is cool and green, which was [designed] to work with the garden and the natural light bouncing off the grass,” Kieran says.
Walls painted in James White; units painted in Studio Green, both Farrow & Ball.
Walls painted in James White; units painted in Studio Green, both Farrow & Ball.
Rather than one big skylight, Kieran fitted three at slightly different angles. “The owners wanted something a little unusual in the form [of the extension] to differentiate it, so the roof is a zigzag shape,” he says. “It gives it a bit of extra height, and a bit of extra interest, and it also makes a visual reference to the view at the end of the garden of the butterfly terrace rooftops beyond, so they chime.”
This plan shows the angled extension roof.
The planning department didn’t allow the zigzag shape to be visible from the outside, so the extension has a parapet to make it look like a flat roof.
The owners chose to have Crittall glazing across the back of the new space. “They wanted that [industrial] look, and also, because they were keen on a minimal frame thickness, steel was the only option,” Kieran says.
A striking pendant light zones the lounging area.
Pendant light, Lambert & Fils. Doors and windows, Crittall; painted in RAL 7021 Black Grey.
A striking pendant light zones the lounging area.
Pendant light, Lambert & Fils. Doors and windows, Crittall; painted in RAL 7021 Black Grey.
Kieran designed the patio. “The [owners] wanted it to be integrated into the overall look of the house,” he says. A strip of dark grey tiles just inside the doors emphasises the connection.
The couple like to entertain, and the table is positioned near the patio doors for easy access to the garden. “They like to have friends over,” Kieran says.
There are built-in speakers in the ceiling and a barbecue outside, set in a brick unit. “The couple didn’t want the barbecue sitting on its own out there – they wanted it built in,” Kieran says.
There are built-in speakers in the ceiling and a barbecue outside, set in a brick unit. “The couple didn’t want the barbecue sitting on its own out there – they wanted it built in,” Kieran says.
Wood shelves painted dark green provide a chance to display plants and favourite pieces. “We always try to minimise wall units, as they can really make [a space] feel smaller,” Kieran says. “We were lucky here, as a lot of storage went into the pantry, which keeps it out of the way but still accessible.”
Wall lights, Wever & Ducré.
Wall lights, Wever & Ducré.
The flooring is micro-cement, with mosaic tiles in the kitchen – off-white with a green flower motif to complement the units. “The owners wanted to keep the front of the house very much Victorian in character, so there we laid oak parquet and tiles, but they were keen for the extension to be more contemporary,” Kieran explains.
“They still wanted a connection to the rest of the house, though, so in the kitchen area there are Victorian-style mosaic tiles, which create a visual connection back to the hallway,” he says.
Mosaic tiles, London Mosaic.
“They still wanted a connection to the rest of the house, though, so in the kitchen area there are Victorian-style mosaic tiles, which create a visual connection back to the hallway,” he says.
Mosaic tiles, London Mosaic.
The flooring was actually the biggest challenge Kieran and the team faced, specifically the sequencing of the poured micro-cement floor with the mosaics and the kitchen installation. “Everyone wants to be the last one on site, as no one wants anyone else damaging anything, so the timing of all that was delicate,” he says.
In the end, the floor went down first. “It was difficult, because we had to integrate the tiling into the floor,” he explains, “so the tiles had to go down first, then the micro-cement was poured against the edge of the tiles, then the kitchen went on top. At that stage, the owner was about to give birth, so it was all slightly stressful at the end, trying to finish it off!”
Looking at the beautiful, seamless result, you’d never know.
Tell us…
What’s your favourite element in this kitchen-diner? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
In the end, the floor went down first. “It was difficult, because we had to integrate the tiling into the floor,” he explains, “so the tiles had to go down first, then the micro-cement was poured against the edge of the tiles, then the kitchen went on top. At that stage, the owner was about to give birth, so it was all slightly stressful at the end, trying to finish it off!”
Looking at the beautiful, seamless result, you’d never know.
Tell us…
What’s your favourite element in this kitchen-diner? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
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Who lives here? A family with (at the time of construction) a toddler and a baby on the way
Location North London
Property A Victorian terraced house
Room dimensions 6.5m x 5m
Architect Kieran Hawkins of Cairn
Kitchen cabinets Blakes London
Photos by Peter Landers
Cairn had previously done the upper floors of this home, but the owners hadn’t had the money to do the ground floor, too, so, rather than rush it, they’d installed a temporary kitchen to last them a couple of years. “When they bought the house, it was like a squat, so they’ve done it all bit by bit,” Kieran says.
The original kitchen was pretty small – just in the outrigger at the back of the house, marked now by the dropped, L shaped section of the ceiling. “It was completely separate from the dining space, which was in the living room,” Kieran says.