Back to Classic
20th January 2016
This year is definitely going to be the return of the ‘Classic Kitchen’ and thankfully deVOL do it better than anyone, it’s what we started out doing thirty years ago, it was the reason it all began. The furniture was designed to be made in the same way as a traditional Georgian piece, it’s all about the proportions, you don’t know why it looks so right it just does. It’s good to know the thing that started deVOL is still as loved as it was then, in fact even more so, it gets harder and harder to find really beautiful English hand made furniture that is painted and looks so proper and unassumingly grand.
Our most recent Classic Kitchen photo shoot was in Pimilico and it was everything I wanted it to be, a good old fashioned kitchen in a lovely big family home. It had just the right amount of newness and traditional to make it feel modern and slightly above fashionable. I absolutely loved this kitchen, it was like the ones I remember from my early days at deVOL, such a great choice for this kind of house. Essentially it’s a galley kitchen, but unusually the room is open at both ends so it feels spacious and easy to be in, with views into the dining room and the back garden. The ceilings were very high so the wall cupboards were tall, the fridge and pantry were behind closed doors and the family had chosen integrated ovens. The whole room just seemed to work, I love it when you walk into one of our kitchens and everything is as you had hoped and more, you wouldn’t change a thing, very satisfying for everyone.
There are lots of ways to make a lovely house, there are lots of choices and there are lots of things that look amazing in magazines or look totally cool or unbelievably out of this world. This kitchen is not the show off kind it’s the quiet shy type that always wins the affections of everyone with its endearing style. I love it that we make kitchens to suit so many different peoples tastes, yet underneath the different colours and different worktops they are all handmade cupboards, made here in Leicestershire just as they always have been.
The bits I loved the most were the oak leaf chandelier in the front parlour, it looked exquisite against the terracotta walls and the stripped pine sash windows. I also loved the view out of the back garden, it was a tangle of steps and houses and roofs and gardens and plants sprawling up and down walls, I’m definitely a towny at heart! I also loved the delightful little curiosities that I found in the cupboards of this Kitchen, beautiful crystal glasses and pieces of china, collected I imagine over many years, there’s always something lovely about things that have a history. Check out the rest of the images from this photo shoot on our projects page they should be up very soon.
When we are on a photo shoot we get to spend lots of time in the kitchen, it’s a really nice way to understand what works in a deVOL Kitchen and in different houses. This kitchen made me want to bring out one of my favourite cookery books, Elizabeth David or Nigel Slater and just cook. Wander down the roads of Pimlico to a perfect little market selling proper fresh fish and vegetables, then saunter home, unload my goodies into the pantry and fridge, pop on the radio and just while away a few hours making comforting homely dishes to welcome home your loved ones, my perfect kind of day.
