Mews house in Hampstead, North London

This designer/developer client was originally recommended by a friend to come to us. This was the third project we had worked on together and we are currently working with him on two others.

The property, an old mews house in Hampstead, originally had small rooms above and workshops below. The client completely gutted it, dug down, and created a fabulous four-storey building.

The open-plan, sociable family-living space provided the perfect environment for our projects. It was designed to maximise space and natural light and comprises kitchen, dining and soft seating, leading out onto an outdoor area.

In a large space with a sociable layout like this, it is important to make sure that everything flows for all users. The double island layout was perfect for the shape of the room. It provides the main preparation area in the middle and gives all-round, easy access to work surface. The cook is able to keep one eye on the hob, face out towards the light and communicate effortlessly with people in the rest of the living space. It also allows for several cooks to work at the same time and keep eye contact. The handless cupboards and drawers housed in the island are opened via recessed grips allowing easy access to anything from crockery to oils and spices.

The tall wall unit at the back provides easy flow from the main working area but also allows for other users to access fridges, wine coolers, raised dishwashers, cutlery and crockery drawers and the tea/coffee making area. The small appliances are stored out of sight in the shutter unit or on stainless steel pull-out appliance trays.

For the finishes we chose the bulthaup b3 clay coloured fronts for the islands, a durable and very warm colour, and used a graphite on the tall elements to contrast with the stunning, white-soaped Dinesen, wide-planked floor. To maximise the effect of the floor we raised the islands onto curved, beautifully engineered, matt steel legs. This provides the impression of individual blocks of furniture that integrate more comfortably into the living space.

This kitchen works so well as it provides a sociable, stunning and functional kitchen that will not only work well but will look as good in 10 years time as it does today.