A little bit traditional, a little bit contemporary and certainly not afraid of colour. Our project in Margate is a wonderful example of what can happen when a client's creative vision meets bespoke design and craftsmanship.
There are some kitchens that are impossible to forget, and this is certainly one of them.
Set within a beautifully renovated Victorian home in Margate, Kent, this colourful kitchen combines warm orange cabinetry, striking black joinery and carefully considered details to create a space that is both playful and practical.
Working closely with homeowners Hannah and Matthew, our team at Collins Bespoke brought their ideas to life, creating a bespoke kitchen, walk-in pantry and utility room that reflect the character of the property and the personalities of the people living in it.
Somewhere Between Traditional and Contemporary
One of the things we particularly love about this project is that it doesn't sit neatly within any one design category.
As Hannah explained:
“We wanted a design that sat somewhere between traditional and contemporary, blending features like the leggy island and cabinet hinges with flat fronts and cutout handles.”
And that's exactly what makes it interesting.
The island, with its slender legs and furniture-like proportions, introduces a more traditional element, while the clean lines of the surrounding cabinetry give the kitchen a contemporary feel.
The circular cut-out handles, backed with oak, are another lovely detail. A deliberate nod to retro design, they bring warmth and personality to the cabinetry without compromising its simplicity.
It's a kitchen that brings together different influences, rather than following a particular trend or style.
A Confident Use of Colour
Of course, it's impossible to talk about Cornwall Gardens without mentioning the orange - Malahide, by Edward Bulmer.
Hannah and Matthew wanted to introduce a warm colour into the kitchen that would work with the rest of their home. The result is a wonderfully rich orange, balanced by the darker cabinetry and the light, open feel of the room.
The contrast is particularly effective against the Farrow & Ball Off-Black cabinetry, which adds depth and gives the brighter elements room to shine.
It's bold, certainly, but it doesn't feel overwhelming.
We often talk about designing kitchens that reflect the people who live in them, and Cornwall Gardens is a particularly good example. There is no reason a bespoke kitchen should have to be neutral or conventional. Sometimes the most successful designs are those that embrace something a little unexpected.
Beautiful, but Hardworking Too
For all its visual impact, this is very much a working family kitchen.
One of Hannah's favourite features is the storage, which was designed around the family's equipment, ingredients and everyday routines.
As she put it, it's the “heaps of clever storage that makes sense of all our equipment and ingredients.”
This is where bespoke cabinetry really comes into its own.
Rather than adapting the way a household works to suit standard kitchen units, we can consider what needs to be stored, how frequently it is used and where it makes most sense to keep it.
The result is a kitchen that feels intuitive to use, with practical details that are every bit as important as the more obvious design features.
Beyond the Kitchen: A Walk-In Pantry and Utility Room
Our work at Cornwall Gardens extended beyond the main kitchen to include a bespoke walk-in pantry and utility room.
The pantry provides a dedicated space for ingredients, kitchen equipment and everyday essentials, with cabinetry designed to make everything accessible and organised.
Its darker finish creates a striking contrast with the brighter main kitchen, while maintaining a sense of continuity between the spaces.
The utility room was designed with the same attention to detail, providing practical storage and a dedicated space for the less glamorous, but equally important, jobs involved in running a busy home.
Together, these rooms demonstrate how bespoke joinery can bring consistency to a home without requiring every space to look the same.
The Details That Make It Bespoke
It's often the smaller details that give a kitchen its character, and Cornwall Gardens has plenty of them.
The circular cut-out handles, with their contrasting oak backs, are a particularly lovely example. They introduce a subtle retro influence while keeping the cabinet fronts beautifully simple.
Elsewhere, traditional cabinet hinges sit alongside contemporary flat-fronted doors, and the island has been designed with the proportions and appearance of a freestanding piece of furniture.
These aren't details you'd necessarily find in a standard kitchen range. They are the result of designing cabinetry specifically for a particular home, bringing together different materials, influences and practical requirements to create something individual.
A Kitchen Worth Celebrating
Cornwall Gardens subsequently received national attention when the property was featured as Home of the Week in The Times in June 2022.
The feature explored Hannah and Matthew's extensive renovation of their Victorian home and included a mention of the £70,000 handcrafted kitchen by Collins Bespoke.
It's always lovely to see a project we've worked on receive recognition, particularly one with such a distinctive design.
But perhaps the most rewarding feedback came from Hannah herself:
“Our kitchen is both a show piece and extremely hard working, and Collins understood our needs to deliver both of these things. They understood our creative ambition for the kitchen (and pantry and utility) and worked with us to get the look just right, and the result has been delightful.”
For us, that's what bespoke design should be about. Listening carefully, understanding what a client wants to achieve and having the experience and craftsmanship to make it happen.
Considering a bespoke kitchen or joinery for your home?
At Collins Bespoke, we work with private clients, architects and interior designers to create beautifully considered kitchens and fitted furniture, designed and made in our Kent workshop.
Whether your vision is understated and timeless or something altogether more colourful, we'd love to hear about it.
