Renovating a rural Victorian kitchen

The day before renovations began, Cathy decided that she wanted the new kitchen to go into the room that used to be the dining room, and that the old kitchen would now become the new dining room. 

She'd already been in touch with local kitchen designer David Powles, whose work she had seen first hand and who also came highly recommended by the builder. When she told David about the change of plans, he didn't bat an eyelid, and set to work gelling Cathy's ideas for the space with his own experience of making awkward spaces work to their best capacity.    

"The room was quite long and narrow," says David, "so we had to be smart about how we used the space to really make it work, both aesthetically and practically."

Cathy knew that she wanted the stove and oven along one side, and she was keen on having a central island unit where the kids could eat breakfast and her husband could read the paper. David decided to put glass display cupboards on the other side for contrast. The colours were chosen to match the colours already in use in the house. 

"The earthy timber tones of the polished floorboards really go well in the space," says David. "The other colours are fairly bright and neutral and with the natural tone of the timber and the purple-grey colour of that feature wall you really give strength and character to the room."

David advised Cathy to select an overhead canopy for the stove that could stand alone as a feature on the wall. He suggested that she stay away from marble for the benchtop but use CaesarStone, which is more practical and has a similar effect.

"I'm so happy that I listened to him and took his advice," says Cathy. "I love my new kitchen. It has turned out exactly as he said it would. It's functional, it's modern, it matches the rest of the house and when people come around they say it's so lovely!"

The design was so successful that it eventually came runner-up in the 2005 HIA (Housing Industry Association) awards for the region.

David Powles

David Powles Kitchens

How did this particular job come your way?

The clients were renovating their house and the builder recommended me to them. I'd also done some work for the client's mother and the client had seen my work first hand and had liked what she saw. 

How did the space look before you started work on it?

The space that is now the kitchen used to be the old dining room. The kitchen was quite enclosed, and while the clients were changing the feel of the house into an open-plan design, it made sense for the kitchen to go into this other space. 

And what specific requirements did the client ask for from you?

She knew pretty much where she wanted the stove and oven units to go along one side, and she knew she wanted a centre island unit. We just had to work out how best to use the space to maximise it, and work out what to do with the other side where we put in cupboards that act as display cabinets.

Tell us about the thinking behind the polished floorboards.

It's practical, and the natural timber really leaves your options open for what colours you can put with it. The other colours are fairly bright and neutral and with the natural tone of the timber and the purple-grey colour of that feature wall you really give strength and character to the room. 

Were there any particular or unique design challenges with the project?

The room was quite long and narrow, so we had to be smart about how we used the space to really make it work, both aesthetically and practically. She's now got plenty of bench space and the room just functions the way she wanted it to. The design came runner-up in the HIA awards for the region.

Cathy

Why did you decide you needed a new kitchen?

We'd been living in the house for about 12 months and I really didn't like the old kitchen. It was a horrible mission brown colour and it was so large I got dizzy walking around in it, and trying to find everything was just so hard. And it was stuck out of the way at one end of the house.  

What were your priorities for the new kitchen?

To be honest it was a bit of a last-minute decision to put the kitchen where it ended up going. The room where it is now is much closer to the rest of the house, and I just wanted the space to be as functional as possible. 

What do you mean when you say 'functional'?

Well I'm very busy. I work several days of the week and have three kids, including one studying in Melbourne who I try and visit as much as I can. So I don't want to be slaving over the stove any more than I have to. I wanted the space to be practical and easy to use and easy to keep clean and tidy.

How did you want the kitchen to look?

I wanted it to be modern to match the rest of the house, with colours that are used elsewhere in the house as well. It was important that the features that were already in the room, like the cornicework and so on, still matched the new kitchen too. And I wanted a benchtop that looks like marble.

Would you recommend David Powles to your friends?

Very much. He was very patient and very professional, and he was honest too. He told me when he didn't think my ideas would work for the space, which I'm really grateful for now. Everything he said would happen has come true, and when people come into the kitchen now they say, oh it's so lovely!