Going bespoke helped Sarah and Mark Richardson transform their troublesome kitchen-diner
Feature STEPHANIE SMITH Photography DAVID GILES
REVAMPED EXTENSION
WHY DIDN’T YOU LIKE YOUR EXISTING KITCHEN?
In 2009, we put a big extension on the back of the house and installed a Shaker-style kitchen, but the rooms never quite worked. The kitchen part was in the middle of the house, built around the Aga in the chimney breast, and the living area was at the back, overlooking the garden. But there was still a wall in between the two spaces, and they were just too separate.
WHAT PROMPTED THE CHANGE?
It was basically during the first lockdown when we decided we had to change things. Mark and I were both working from home at various points, and the children were home-schooling, so we all spent a lot of time here, noticing the problems. We’re very sociable and love having people round, so really wanted a large and open central area where we could entertain.
HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE NEW PLAN?
It seemed obvious that we needed to take the wall between the spaces down and swap the two areas around. This way, the light-filled area at the back of the house became the kitchen, with a central island and seating area, and then the old middle section a cosy living area with a fireplace.
WERE THERE ANY PROBLEMS?
Yes – we knew we had lots of work on our hands! Our garden slopes, and the kitchen area was on a different level to the seating area, so that had to be levelled. Because of the garden, we couldn’t put bifolds on the back wall, but that left us plenty of space for units, so we had bifolds put in the side wall instead.
WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST ISSUE WITH THE REDEVELOPMENT?
The Aga was the biggest headache. But we found a great guy locally who renovated it, re-sited it on the back wall of the new kitchen, and changed the front and side panels from red to grey. Red really didn’t go with our new colour scheme, and we didn’t choose it in the first place, but I love cooking with the Aga and wanted to save it.
HOW DID YOU CHOOSE THE KITCHEN?
I’ve known and worked with the managing director of the kitchen company, Jamie Harding, for years, so it was an easy choice. I wanted to go bespoke, as we’re only doing this once, and of course I’ve seen plenty of his designs. We sold our existing kitchen online for £4,000, so that was a good start towards the
