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Behind The Scenes: My Kitchen in London

14/01/2015

One thing you probably don’t know about me is that I am a moaner. As much as I try to keep a cheerful and optimistic attitude in life (I know I’m a very lucky girl!), I also love complaining about things from time to time. Maybe this comes from being such a perfectionist in everything I do, but always notice when something is “not perfect” or at least is not “how I would like it”.

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Naturally it was never going to be easy for me to find the perfect home to buy in London. To find a nice two-bedroom property in this city you have to compromise on something: layout, space or location. Something I wouldn’t compromise on was having a modern kitchen with lots of light and luckily I found a flat that offered both.

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I spend a lot of time in my kitchen, at least 1-2 hours a day, usually more during the weekend. Our kitchen is an open space connected to our dining and living room, so now that I work from home it’s become even more important for me to make this space comfortable and functional.

Recently I was asked by Wren Kitchens, a UK manufacturer and privately-owned family business with 35 years of experience, to write an article on how I would improve the layout of my kitchen. I wouldn’t change a lot, I love the way my kitchen looks.

I love this space because it’s bright and modern; I love the wenge colour of the cupboards and breakfast bar table; I also love the gas hob and that there are many sockets to use my appliances.

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Then last Saturday I spent literally the entire day in my kitchen, prepping and cooking food for a large group of friends I had invited to dinner. So after spending 10 hours inside the kitchen I could certainly point out a few things that I would change about it!

What I don’t like about my kitchen workspace is that the counters are small, so when I’m chopping vegetables or making pastry I can never fit all the ingredients on the counter. And if I’m using the chopping board, there is no space for someone else (cue: my husband) to wash the dishes at the same time. We have a dish-washer but we barely use it, as I don’t have many pans so I often have to wash one and re-use straight away.

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One side of the kitchen is floor-to-ceiling windows, so we cannot add new cupboards but we don’t have enough storage space for all my props and appliances. I like a clean and minimalistic look, so I try not to clutter the kitchen counters with too many things, but at the same time I don’t know where to hide things anymore! Keeping pots and pans on the floor is never a good look!

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One thing that I love is our breakfast bar table, which is something we got custom-made as it wasn’t originally in the flat. It’s great when we have friends over for dinner: I always serve the aperitivo and drinks here, so my guests can enjoy a glass of wine and snacks while I finish cooking the meal.

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I have always wanted a kitchen space where guests can interact with me while I am cooking, but my breakfast bar is small and even though we can fit two stools, it’s a bit tight if two people sit together at the table.

I played around with the “design your own” function on the Wren Kitchens website and I came up with two layouts that I love for a bigger and more functional workspace. What I would really love – if I had the space – is a kitchen island in the middle of the kitchen, like this one:

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Wren Kitchens – The Linda Barker Collection

I love this kitchen island from their Linda Baker collection: it would be large enough for all my baking experiments and to have breakfast with my husband in the morning or for aperitivo with friends in the evening. I would remove the table and chairs from the side and just have bar stools like the ones in this picture. I love bar stools! :)

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Wren Kitchens – “Autograph”

Another detail I love about these kitchens is the white tiled wall, as it’s easy to clean unlike a white wall like the one I have in my home now.

This other layout from the Designer collection and it has everything I want: a kitchen island, long counters, plenty of cupboards and three wall shelves where I would show off all my props and accessories! :) I love the granite counters which would make a lovely background for my food photos!

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Wren Kitchens – The Designer Collection

Both kitchen layouts require a bigger space than the one I have in my flat, so I can only dream for now, but hopefully one day I will have a home with the “perfect” kitchen!

What would you change about your kitchen and which features are most important to you? I’d love to know your opinion, so please leave a comment!

Disclosure: this post was written with help from Wren Kitchens. All opinions are my own.

 

 

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[…] My kitchen is my favourite space in my home. It’s an open space shared with the dining and living room, which means my kitchen is the place I spend the most time in. Thus, making it attractive as well as functional, with sufficient storage and efficient appliances, is very important to me. Here are my tips on choosing the right gadgets to embellish your kitchen space. […]

Brian's Coffee Spot
26/01/2015 23:33

The biggest problem I have with my kitchen is light. Although I’ve got lots of windows, the main workspace is opposite them, so I’m always standing with my back to the light and between the light and whatever I’m doing. Yes, I could put lights up, but I’m not a great fan of artificial light.

I love the light in your kitchen and the wooden floor is amazing :-) I’ve got a stone-effect ceramic tiles which I adorn, but it’s so unforgiving when I drop things on it as I’ve found out to my cost over the years!

Brian.

Jeanne Horak-Druiff
16/01/2015 18:44

I love your kitchen – all that LIGHT! What is the splashback made of? I also dream of a centre island… but first we’d need a new house :( Great post!

mondomulia
16/01/2015 18:45

Thanks! It’s made of reflective glass I think, it’s on the walls by the stove and by the sink – very useful for cleaning! ;)

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Daisy Hayden
15/01/2015 12:28

Giulia I have breakfast bar envy – that one is my dream! Going to try and fit one into the tiny flat I am moving into so will update you when it’s eventually done.

mondomulia
15/01/2015 12:31
Reply to  Daisy Hayden

Breakfast bars are the best! :)

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