Makeover: Deborah Vos' Kitchen

When Interior Consultant Deborah Vos decided to fulfil a lifelong dream of building her home from scratch near the sea she was fortunate enough to start with a blank slate for her kitchen.

The space was designed to be the total hub of the new house. Not only does it sit right in the centre, but careful consideration was taken to make it the focal point as well. “You can see the kitchen as soon as you walk into the house and you can see it from the living space as well…..it is the linchpin of the property!” Deborah, who spends her time advising people on creating their dream homes, took care to ensure it was also designed to be a timeless space as well.

“My inspiration came from years of pinning amazing looks on Pinterest and gaining a huge amount of ideas from Instagram as well. Like most interior obsessives, I subscribe to various interior magazines as well and tear out any ideas that I truly love. I soon built up a look that I couldn’t ignore…..I haven’t gone for the latest trends but I have gone with what I truly love and I feel passionate about and is classic enough to stand the test of time.”

Her look is full of classics: wood, granite and plain black, but beautifully made kitchen cabinets. “I could never get bored of this look and keeping it to a neutral colour palette means I can accessorise with other items on and around the kitchen.”

It was important for Deborah that the kitchen looked beautiful, but was also practical: “I was trying to achieve a look that was classic with a modern twist that would stand the test of time”. Appliances had to be a big consideration too “I wanted two dishwashers just to make my life easier and less stressful. Having two fridges as well was essential to big scale entertaining…..my dining table can seat at least 14 people!”

“It was essential for me to have built in appliances as I wanted the kitchen units to do the talking in terms of the design. Sometimes freestanding appliances can look dated very quickly, so having them integrated was the key. It also creates a totally harmonious look to the kitchen, which to me is so important in the design process and the total overall look.”

“The process of designing this kitchen was simple really”, Deborah said. “It had to be practical, social, look fabulous and yet understated. I looked at what worked really well in my current kitchen and then arranged the layout accordingly. The ovens, hob, sink, dishwashers all had to be within easy reach of each other and the rest just falls into place. Having a large island unit was also essential for food prep and chatting around as I cook.”

Asked for her top five tips when choosing a kitchen Deborah said:

• Go with your heart and buy what you love….you will regret it if you don’t.
• Keep your sink, hob and ovens in the holy triangle……all within reasonable reach of each other.
• Try not to be swayed by trends, and stick to classic looks as kitchens are expensive and you want it to last.
• Work out what your priorities are for your kitchen space and start there.
• Try and integrate your bins as they always look ugly stuck at the end of an island unit or randomly placed somewhere in the kitchen

Deborah’s stunning high-end kitchen is a great example of how utilising built in appliances can help create something both functional and beautiful.

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