Decorating & Design
January 7, 2022
These English Country Kitchens Will Completely Charm You
English kitchens are riding a huge high. Companies like deVOL, Sims Hilditch and Plain English embody their humble charm, and inject it with a ton of personality and yes, even eccentricity. More than just a spot for food prep, Brits decorate the kitchen as thoughtfully and completely as they would a living room. These Anglophile kitchens definitely give new meaning to Rule, Britannia!
Scroll down to see these charming English-inspired kitchens!
British fashion and interior designer Pearl Lowe — who is also the former singer in Britpop band Powder — was part of the infamous party crowd, the Primrose Hill set, which included the likes of Kate Moss and Jude Law. Things have calmed down a lot since Pearl relocated to Somerset 10 years ago. She and her husband, Supergrass drummer Danny Goffey, recently bought a beachside home in East Sussex and she’s unveiling her dreamy kitchen (see the whole thing here!).
“We installed a Bertazzoni and Fisher & Paykel dishwasher and fridge, all incredible! We have painted the walls in Farrow & Ball’s Pointing, and painted the floor in Little Greene Paint Company in Linen Wash,” notes Pearl on her Instagram feed. She used cupboards from the deVOL’s Real Shaker Kitchen range.
A Scullery Yellow prep table with a copper worktop helps define the kitchen from the sitting area, equipped with a comfy leather sofa. The whitewashed, wide-planked floors are dressed simply with softly worn rugs.
To bring a circa-1600s Dorset, U.K., farmhouse into the 21st century, interior designer Emma Sims-Hilditch devised a modern and practical kitchen layout that still preserved the property’s original charm. See more of this kitchen here.
“The owners love to cook so we were asked to design two islands that would be practical but also look beautiful,” says Emma. Featuring a gas cooktop, sink and plenty of storage underneath, the islands are ideal for facilitating food prep and cooking.
The dining zone is set off with warmer shades of the bright white and blue used in the cooking area. The large oak harvest table and banquette easily accommodate a crowd, while soft furnishings bring in texture and pattern to create a cozy look.
Located in the middle of the house, the moody color choice and warm flashes of brass keep this English kitchen by deVOL feeling cosy and intimate. Traditional details like a fireplace, beautiful plaster dental moldings and wide plank floors make it a place to stop and enjoy, rather than simply being a walkway to the next room.
The counter includes a butcher block prep area for chopping and rinsing vegetables. The bank of fitted cupboards includes a fridge, freezer, two pantries and four ovens. Everything is in one place, neatly housed behind simple doors. The island conceals a double Belfast sink, bins, dishwashers and wine fridge — again, all hidden behind the Shaker cupboard doors.
Silestone counters and sleek integrated appliances make this an easy space to cook in. Old-fashioned pulley lamps can be adjusted for task lighting over the prep surface, and brass cup pulls are the kind of vintage detail that give authentic charm to this kitchen.
Large spacious work surfaces offer plenty of real estate for food prep in this charming kitchen, which gets its authentic, rustic feel from a recessed backsplash and mauve-grey cabinetry. Classic materials such as marble and subway tile are accented by a display of battered sifters and wooden spoons on open shelving.
The kitchen in this converted barn in Wiltshire has an open layout to max out communal living. The wood ceiling adds warmth and texture, while pretty powder-blue cabinetry feels fresh. The farmhouse table is large enough to seat eight, and the woven chairs lend a garden vibe indoors. See more of this home here.
Upholstered benches and an old-fashioned rectory table in a mellow finish are placed near a cozy fireplace for casual, family-style dining. We love personal touches that reference the history of a home, such as the vintage portrait over the mantel.
Helen Parker is the Creative Director of British kitchen firm deVOL, which epitomizes the quirky, highly personal kind of farmhouse kitchens that have sparked 1,000 Pinterest boards. For her own Leicestershire kitchen, Helen was inspired by the Mediterranean and its plethora of old-style bars and restaurants. “Trips to Venice and Sicily were uppermost in my mind — and my absolute favorite places in the world,” she says.
A flourish of deVOL brass rails (with pots hanging from the ceiling), lacy café curtains, a giant terracotta urn planter and a French cooker help conjure up an authentically old school European look. “It’s almost too obvious to make your home feel as good as being on holiday, but seeing as you only spend two weeks away each year it’s silly not to try,” says Helen
A still life painting of a fish was the unusual starting point for the kitchen. “It gave me a color palette and made it much easier to navigate the minefield of options and colors,” she says. Helen settled on chequered marble floor by Floors of Stone. “This gave me the perfect base, it felt Victorian, grand and slightly faded. It’s not the cheapest floor but, in my opinion, this is a place that’s worth spending your money.”
“Tiny flecks of pink within the marble were beautifully similar to my favourite Farrow and Ball paint color Setting Plaster, so the walls were now decided on too.” Helen had picked up a few vintage pieces from ebBay and the Cotes Mill showrooms (such as deVOL’s Curiosity Cabinet, which looks like a vintage find). They add that curated, heirloom look that she was craving.
Frieda Gormley and Javvy Royle are the founders of quirky British interiors company House of Hackney. The husband-and-wife team moved to Castle Trematon in Cornwall, which has exotic heated gardens full of banana trees and Indian pools, fruit orchards and Victorian greenhouses that are beautifully wild. They enlisted the help of British firm deVOL to help create a suitably whimsical kitchen that really captured our imagination.
They partnered with deVOL to create this stunning kitchen, which features an Italian cooker with a bespoke copper hood as the centerpiece. The dark original parquet floor is accented by moody handmade Zellige tiles on the backsplash.
The new deVOL Dairy Table is a handmade piece with deep drawers and a marble worktop. The inspiration for the table was taken from Lanhydrock House, a Victorian estate just a few miles down the road from Trematon. Striped drapes and matching lampshades inject a soft romance.
This walk-out beauty by interior designer Chris Graves of Clarence & Graves is located in Chiswick, London. Chris worked with iconic British firm deVOL Kitchens, which is famous for their rustic, welcoming aesthetic. “The craftsmanship is extraordinary, and the look is timeless,” says Chris. See more of this kitchen here.
“We’re very keen cooks, and the positioning of many ovens or hobs (stovetops) means the chef has their back to the room,” says Chris. “The island was designed with a sunken Barazza hob, so the cook can be facing and interacting with guests, friends and family. We designed this kitchen for sociable cooking.” The marble, steel doors and stainless steel oven contrast the softness of the weathered, Provençal-style tiles, beautiful woodwork and wicker pendants.
The palette was inspired by a love of Wes Anderson films. “The soft pinks are anchored by dark colors for a ‘Wes Anderson-meets-Provençal’ look,” says Chris. The bespoke deep green color was mixed especially for this project, and the wicker pendants are from Iconic Lights, to add a tactile note.
This mix of salmon and green balances out to perfection in this deVOL kitchen. A folk art-style portrait and chandelier are unexpectedly pretty additions that inject whimsy.
Battered surfaces and vintage finds make this Brit kitchen a standout. Details like the herringbone floor, reclaimed pendants, vintage accessories and brass latches make it feel authentically period.
What could be more English than a well worn leather tufted chesterfield? This Papilio Bespoke kitchen in Devonshire doesn’t shy away from integrating pieces of furniture that are typically suited for libraries, so the owner can enjoy the view of the countryside while having a cuppa.
Plain English makes functional spaces seem romantic. This kitchen’s medley of blues is a lesson in sophisticated layering, which contrasts the casually draped laundry line over the island. Surfaces such as the butcher block counter look better with wear and don’t require coddling.
In this kitchen, the genius lies in the mix. The faucet finishes are a combination of brushed brass and matte black. Even the countertops are a combo of wood and stone while the storage is a medley of open and closed options with old fashioned, apothecary-style glass drawers fronts.
Architectural features like exposed beams and trusses convey a ton of character, and display accessories such as baskets. Painting the chairs and legs of the dining table the same as the cabinetry paint color keeps the look cohesive. As for the window, it’s kept bare of drapery and accented by a simple canvas cushion on the window seat to highlight the purity of the architecture.
Nothing says Brit like Hunter wellie green. The brass rail on the picture shelf, filled with a quirky mix of art, is a fun design detail in this kitchen. A casual table instead of the standard island makes for authentically rustic dining.
This black beauty isn’t for the faint of heart, but you can’t deny the impact of a charcoal tone-on-tone kitchen (complete with an ebony Aga stove). The dark color makes the wood beams look richer, while burnished surfaces like the copper backsplash gleam and the light stone flooring pops in contrast.
Unfitted kitchens are a hallmark of country style. Here, a battered counter (left) and worn floorboards supply a sense of history. The farmhouse sink and bridge faucet are also classic touches. Showing off collectibles such as the ceramic canister set makes the space feel layered and personal.
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