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Inspiration

A Tudor Country House Kitchen

Situated just north of an ancient Roman road, Stane Street, sits a substantial country residence in the quiet village of Stebbing. The building is nestled within its own grounds surrounded by acres of English countryside, and close to the bustling market town of Great Dunmow.

The property itself is a Grade II Listed Tudor country home situated at the end of a long drive, lined with fields, that has been beautifully restored and renovated by the current owners to create a warm and homely space despite the building size. A large open-plan kitchen is one of the main rooms of the house and clearly the heart of the home. 

The homeowners' lives are very much centred around their children and grandchildren whom they love to entertain, along with friends and their dog who enjoys roaming around the large mature gardens. For this reason, it was especially important that their kitchen had lots of space and storage. The current kitchen, although large, wasn’t ticking the right boxes, so the couple approached The Handmade Kitchen Company  to help with a redesign.

Due to the property’s listed status, no walls or period features could be removed or altered, including the exposed wooden beams. The couple also didn’t want to change too much of the character that had made them fall in love with the property on that first viewing; they just wanted to improve it to fit in with their lifestyle. With this in mind, and considering the age of the property, a traditional handmade bespoke kitchen was the natural choice.

The owners immediately fell in love with the home when viewing it, picturing summer days sat-out by the pool and family games of tennis on their own courts.

After several design consultations, traditional Shaker cabinetry was chosen.

Cabinetry with raised and fielded front panels and an angled skirting plinth was considered the most appropriate solution to fit with the property’s heritage and wider interior design aesthetic. It is installed in a galley layout with a substantial island centred in the space. The wall cabinets are hand-painted in Stony Ground No.211 and Lichen No.19 for the island, both by Farrow & Ball. The green and beige combination works beautifully with the original exposed Tudor beams to create an authentic country kitchen experience.

Perrin & Rowe cupped shell handles and contoured knobs on the cabinet doors and drawers are simple and practical, but at the same time have a sense of luxurious craftsmanship. 

A substantial Shaws Double Bowl sink is sensibly positioned to offer a wonderful view of the grounds.

The Double Bowl 1000 is in keeping with the principles of a hard-working kitchen in a large country manor house, and is one of Shaws' largest double bowl sinks. The sink is finished with a Perrin & Rowe Phoenician kitchen tap and rinse, with white porcelain handles that complement the glossy white fireclay of the Shaws sink.

A Lichen green range cooker looks beautiful against the Shaker cabinetry.

With any large traditional country kitchen needing a range cooker to be authentic, they opted for an Everhot 120i Range cooker with a Westin Prime 1100 extractor for the optimum cooking experience. The Lichen colour of the range is matched with the island cabinetry to help it blend in, rather than being a significant design statement in its own right.

Although not period correct, an integrated Liebherr Wine Cooler proves to be a useful feature when entertaining thirsty guests.

The cabinetry is crowned with Quartz work surfaces in Heartley Grey and with an Ogee edge detail by Sharpstone Granite. This matches the tiled floor perfectly and the hardwearing nature of Quartz certainly suits their lifestyle.

The owners also commissioned Handmade Kitchen Company to hand-craft a large bespoke Oak dining table, allowing the family to gather comfortably on a regular basis to make their kitchen the heart of the home, exactly as it would have been traditionally.

 

Images courtesy of Capture House