bespoke kitchen design Archives

Bespoke Kitchen Design Tips

Posted in Apr 2023

How We Approach The Bespoke Kitchen Design at Artichoke

Artichoke’s approach to kitchen design is far more architectural than most, and we are highly experienced in resolving how interior space is organised by furniture.

Before any drawing work is done, it’s important for us to gain a thorough understanding of our client’s domestic arrangements. Gaining this knowledge helps us design spaces that work effortlessly. It is the key to providing functional solutions for our clients.

The Birth of Modern Kitchen Design

In order to design kitchens of the future, it helps to understand the kitchen design of the past. By doing so, we believe we can help clients with large country houses understand how their houses were initially intended to be used, and in doing so, how we can improve how they are used in the future.

The Artichoke team pays particularly close attention to how country houses were originally intended to operate, and how changing socio-economic environments have affected this use over time. There have been huge cultural changes over the last 150 years.

Read more about The Birth of Modern Kitchen Design

General Requirements for The Bespoke Kitchen Design

The key to a successful outcome is to establish a clear brief for the kitchen and surrounding areas of the house.

Who is the client? Is the person providing us with the brief for the kitchen the person paying for it? To us it is vital to establish a relationship with all interested parties.

Who will be using the kitchen and how does the household operate? This might sound like an odd question, but often, the person who will be using the kitchen is not the same person paying for it. For instance, some clients have housekeepers, so it’s vital to understand their needs within the kitchen.

How many people does the kitchen need to serve on a daily basis?

What is the largest number of people the kitchen needs to cater for on a semi regular basis?

Does the client have a budget? It is vital to establish a budget for the kitchen early on. Setting financial expectations from the outset will help control the kitchen specification.

What are the client priorities for the kitchen: Quality / Cost / Function / Aesthetics / Deliverability? The prioritisation of these five topics will have an impact on the kitchen design.

What is the time frame for the project? The sooner we can identify and consider the risks to the project; the more effective we will be in providing for them. Quite often for instance, the builder will be screaming for positions of gas, water, extraction and drainage before the design has even been started.

Does the kitchen need to accommodate religious dietary needs such as ‘Kosher’? This is important as some religions have very specific food storage needs.

Is the property listed? What are the listing restrictions and do any apply to the kitchen space, ducting routes etc?

Where is the kitchen located within the house? Has it been nominated enough space?

Is there a requirement for the kitchen to be supported and serviced by others rooms such a scullery, cold room, dry larder, wines cellar or butler’s pantry?

What is the route in to the house and kitchen for groceries, and what is the route out for waste? Where is the location of waste for recycling? Understanding this can have an important influence on the position of fridges, bins and internal doors.

Is there an existing kitchen, and are its contents relevant? Quite often there is a real benefit in surveying the clients’ existing contents and existing storage volume as this can have a direct bearing on how the new bespoke kitchen is designed.

What is the floor finish? We need to first consider the setting out of the floor in relation to the kitchen plinth lines to ensure joins don’t clash or look ill-considered.

What is the structure of the flooring proposed? The weight of the kitchen furniture and kitchen appliances are significant as they will deflect the sub floor and compress the floor coverings if they are not correctly engineered.

What are the window furnishings? Do they need to be accommodated into the design?

What are the heating requirements for the kitchen and how is the space to be heated? If the kitchen is under floor heated, BTU calculations should be made by excluding the kitchen furniture foot print, otherwise too much heating might be installed into the room. Heating underneath fine furniture is also likely to cause timber movement and potentially structural damage.

What are the general ergonomics of the client? Are they exceptionally tall, and what is the height of their partner? Do they have any disabilities to consider?

Appliances and Kitchen Equipment

What fuel type is available? Often in rural locations, natural gas is not available which means LPG needs to be considered as an alternative. If the LPG route needs to be taken, checks need to be made to ensure that chosen gas appliances can be converted to LPG.

What is the oven capacity needed and how many hobs are required?

Does the client prefer a range oven or ovens in column? Understanding the age of the client is an an import factor when choosing positions of ovens in a kitchen, flooring types, access, waste routes and so on.

What type of cooking does the user of the kitchen do? Knowing this will effect the choice of appliances. Oven types can vary from conventional, fan assisted, grilling, baking, steaming, microwave and multi-functional options whereas hobs now come in a dizzying variety, including ceramic, induction, gas, wok, grille, steam, fryer, Teppanyaki, domino.

What are the kitchen extraction requirements? Where is extractor motor located? Ideally in-line or externally as this will be quieter. Does the client fry a great deal on a Teppanyaki type hob? Knowing the size of the room in cubic metres will effect the size of the extractor motor.

What type of lighting is integrated into the extractor system? Does this co-ordinate with the task lighting throughout the rest of the kitchen?

Refrigeration

What volume of refrigeration and freezer is required?

Is there remote cold storage available? There is little point in taking up critical space in the main kitchen with long term storage.

What wine storage and cold drink storage is needed?

Is cold water and ice making required?

Water, Sinks, Dishwashing and Waste

Is there enough drop? It’s important to consider waste water routes when siting sinks to ensure enough drop is available to deliver grey water into the drainage.

Thought should be given towards the material of the sink. Consider the suitability of the kitchen sink materials from a functional and aesthetic perspective. Options include ceramic / cast iron enameled / stainless steel / wooden / corian / synthetic / stone. If there is crystal being hand washed in the scullery sink then wood is more appropriate than cast iron.

Consider the different uses of a sink. Preparation of food, drainage for cooking liquids, and scullery. In larger kitchens that serve large volumes, it helps to separate these functions. In smaller compact spaces it may be necessary to combine all these function into one sink.

Thick worktops When specifying thick kitchen worktops, consider the fixing of taps; it may be necessary to undercut the worktop to accommodate the thread length of the tap.

Solid Stone Sinks: when specifying stone sinks it is well worth understanding their weight, depth, support and how to integrate ‘over flows’.

Matching metal finishes. When specifying taps and sprays it is important to consider the metal finishes available. Is it possible for the taps to match the wastes in the sink? Will they have to be custom finished?

Dishwashers: Dishwashers have a minimum height beyond which they cannot be compressed. With integrated models it is important to ensure the height of the plinth and length of the integrated door is considered so the geometry of opening door works. Particular care should be taken with ‘in frame’ doors. If the kitchen caters for large parties, are two dishwashers needed?

Bin Drawer Doors. Dishwashers and bin drawers are the most frequently used moving parts of a kitchen, and therefore need to be robust. Does the adjoining furniture need to be protected from steam and water? The design of a bin drawer needs to facilitate easy cleaning and sorting of waste for recycling.

Waste Disposal. Is kitchen waste disposal needed? Switched or continuous feed?

Consider the storage of waste. If possible, do not store waste within the kitchen but look to a transitory location for larger volumes between ‘bin days’. Dealing with waste is an essential process within a household and a holistic strategy needs to be developed that works.

Kitchen Equipment and Gadgets

There are a never ending list of kitchen gadgets and equipment for food preparation. It is worthwhile finding out which ones need to be stored in and around the kitchen; here is a check list:

Integrated and worktop coffee machines.
Air Fryers
Sous-vide.
Multifunctional taps (and affiliated reservoirs).
Bar top bottle coolers.
Ice cream makers.
Bread makers.
Fish kettles.
Rice steamers.
Food processor.
Mixers.
Juicers.
Coffee grinders.
Sandwich toaster

Moving a Kitchen in a Listed Building

Moving a kitchen in a listed building is a common requirement among many new country and listed house owners, and it’s becoming increasingly popular as family lifestyles continue to become less formal. Listed Building Consent may be required to create a new kitchen or alter an existing one if your house is a Grade 1 or Grade 2 listed building.

Read more about Moving a Kitchen in a Listed Building or for further information, call us on 01934 745 270 or email newprojects@artichoke.co.uk

All images are of Grand Family Kitchen in Regency Country House in Hampshire.

Artichoke Features in Country Life Top 100 (2023)

Posted in Mar 2023

‘One of the best country house specialists in Britain’

We are delighted to be included for the 5th consecutive year in the Country Life Top 100 and be recognized as the widely respected in the design and manufacture of joinery-led rooms for country houses.

This represents the ultimate recognition of our expertise in working on fine English houses and an acknowledgement of our mission to create Britain’s future heritage.⁠

Artichoke interiors, which are joinery-led, fulfill the unique promise of architectural joinery, which is not just to embellish rooms, but to give them their status and their role in the life of a household. Explore the extend of our services.

Architectural joinery achieves something no other trade can, in creating liveable, elegant and architecturally authentic houses. This puts us in a unique position, filling the gap between architects and interior designers, creating the interior structure that makes sense of a house.

Artichoke looks backwards to take our clients’ houses forward, recoupling exceptional artisan skills to design expertise. We are makers and creatives working as one to achieve the remarkable for our clients and their houses. Read about how we work.

We have been lucky to work very closely with Country Life magazine in recent years and to be part of this list, standing shoulder to shoulder with some of the most incredible companies of designers and artisans in the country which makes us very proud

The full Country Life Top 100 2020 list can be viewed here

To see some of the stunning work we have completed please click here.

We’d love to hear more if you have a project in mind. Whether it’s a single room – maybe a kitchen or a dressing room, or a whole house project, please do get in touch – speak with a member of our team on +44(0)1934 745 270 or email us at newprojects@artichoke.co.uk .

What is the best wood for bespoke joinery in kitchens?

Posted in Jun 2022

With decades of experience in joinery led interiors and wooden kitchen design, it’s fair to say that Bruce Hodgson, our Founder and Creative Director is a connoisseur of wood. Here he shares his thoughts about which is the best wood for bespoke joinery in kitchens.

Photo courtesy of Country Life magazine.

A luxury experience

Kitchens are first and foremost practical spaces. Therefore, satisfaction will come not only from how the fitted furniture looks. Just as important is the tactile experience a user has when they interact with the cupboards and drawers. The weight of the chosen wood is therefore key. Just as a high-quality car will have a weightiness about the door when you open it – the same goes for kitchens. The more substantial the material, the higher quality it feels.

The carcass

Even in the most luxurious timber kitchen design, hardwood is very unlikely to be the best choice when it comes to the carcassing. Wood is hydroscopic and therefore moves according to temperature and humidity. A carcass made from solid wood will therefore move over time which is a problem. Man-made board is more stable and we therefore favour it for carcassing. It does however, need to be the highest quality man-made board.

As the thickness and weight significantly affect the feel of the cupboard, we tend to use the finest 19 mm thick Finnish birch ply which is veneered with timber or craft paper which we then paint. Like solid hardwood, it’s very dense and strong and therefore takes screws well. For a sink cupboard or an area which will have particularly heavy wear we use laminate on the ply to make it even more robust. We have on occasion lined under sink cupboards with stainless steel.

The proof

An early Artichoke project – the magnificent Elizabethan Manor, Parnham House, provides a fine example of the durability of the high-quality plywood we favour. Tragically the manor house burnt to the ground some years ago and yet, on a recent tour with the new owners, we were delighted to discover that amongst the rubble and carnage, our kitchen cupboards were still standing!

An education in wood

Bruce is passionate about wood and very much enjoys sharing his extensive knowledge with his clients. He knows about the different timbers, the different cuts of the tree and how its stability is affected by which part of the tree it comes from. Not only is the type of tree important but where it was grown. This knowledge is invaluable when selecting materials for bespoke joinery.

Sustainability is key

Timbers go in and out of fashion. For example, there is a trend now for designers to specify rift cut wood for bespoke joinery. However, rift cut wood has little figure and is very wasteful as many of the beautiful elements of the wood are discarded. Our view is that if a tree is felled to build a cabinet, we owe it to that tree to make the finest possible cabinet with as little waste as possible.

Finishing bespoke joinery

As specialists in bespoke joinery, we are expert in timber finishing. Our choice of wood is often informed by the final aesthetic we are aiming towards in terms of grain and colour. For example, we might choose sweet chestnut to achieve a greyer version of oak. Whilst sweet chestnut is sometimes referred to as ‘Poor Man’s Oak, we hold it in high regard – it is a beautiful timber. In turn, grey elm creates another colour tone. Bruce is very fond of the nut woods for their colours – a particular favourite is European walnut because of its tones – the colour is nuttier and less red in tone than other nut woods.

Maple from North America was very popular in the 1980s but as it oxidises to a yellow colour, we are reluctant to specify it in our bespoke joinery. Sycamore is another favourite wood for us in bespoke kitchens– it is home grown and starts off as a pinkie cream with a tight, close grain offering a lovely smooth surface with anti bacterial qualities. We therefore often use it for work surfaces especially in country house interiors.

Legend has it

Oak is very versatile, and we use it widely in our wooden kitchen design – usually sourced from Europe. Nowadays Europe is much more forested than the UK, but this was not always the case. Legend has it that a squirrel could leap from tree to tree from one end of the UK to another without touching the ground – certainly not the case today. Our woodlands have been depleted dramatically over the years. After the great Fire of London (1666) there was a shift towards building in stone, but country houses continued to be built of timber.

European oak, grown in plantations tend to be straighter and taller which is helpful when selecting timber for furniture making and bespoke joinery. UK timbers tend to be farm grown rather than plantation grown. Farm grown wood is more likely to have defects and a wider grain as the trees are more isolated, and the tree is exposed to the ravages of weather.

Painted kitchens

Tulip wood is a popular choice for wooden kitchen design with a painted finish. It has a dense, flat surface making it an ideal canvass. At Artichoke, we tend to use tulip wood grown in plantations in North America. Because it is slower growing it has twice the density of other tulip woods. If we want to bring texture through the paintwork, we use Siberian birch – its texture is pronounced so the pattern of the grain grins through the paint or finish.

Timber choice in the past

Historically furniture and bespoke joinery were made using timber sourced from local woodland. When we analysed the timbers used in the beautiful Lanhydrock’s cook’s table – the inspiration for several of our projects – we discovered it was made up of several different woods. The drawer boxes were pine, the legs elm, the main drawer fronts, and frame around the apron were oak while the work top was sycamore. The timbers would have been chosen for how they look and their practicality but also their accessibility.

Our passion for wood

Our extensive knowledge of timber is key to our wooden kitchen design. We fit kitchens for modern life without compromising their period charm. By choosing timber and appropriate finishes that will endure daily use and heavy wear, we believe our kitchens and bespoke joinery can form part of a building’s architectural heritage for generations to come.

If you’d like to discuss our approach to design and discover first hand our passion for brilliantly designed furniture and how it can improve your experience of living in a period house, please email newprojects@artichoke.co.uk or call +44 (0)1934 745270.

What Should be the Focal Point in Bespoke Kitchen Design?

Posted in Jun 2022

With bespoke kitchen design, there are so many approaches to deciding the focal point of a kitchen. It will depend on the house, its period, the requirements of the household – their habits and their desired aesthetic.

Historically, the obvious focal point in a kitchen is the solid fuel range to cook on. An Aga stuck in a fireplace is a quintessential focal point in a traditional English country house. The Aga or stove was critical not only for cooking but as a source of heating the kitchen. Its focus was accentuated further by a chimney cowl to ventilate it. The range remains an obvious and appropriate choice as the focal point of a kitchen, so much so that we create other features around the range to increase the focus.

Bespoke kitchen design with Artichoke's glossy painted cook's table — The beautiful stone mantel was introduced to create a focal point of the range cooker

Life with no heating

In other rooms in period homes, the fireplace was also the natural focal point – life without central heating was cold and therefore furniture was arranged in a way to take maximum advantage of the heat source. In new houses and with 21^st century technology like underfloor heating, this is no longer the case. This brings possibilities for alternative focal points like views or art in both the kitchen and the rest of the house.

Bespoke kitchen design makes the most of garden views and sunlight — The orangery kitchen makes the most of garden views and spectacular light.

Modern living

Family life has evolved so that kitchens and the way we use them has changed. Even in grand houses, they are not just the preserve of servants but tend to be central to family life. Kitchens are not simply practical spaces stuffed with cupboards. Kitchens have become more like living rooms.

Bespoke kitchen design in this London apartment creates a wonderful kitchen and living space — A kitchen that’s easy to live in.

The heart of the home

Traditionally kitchens were small, located in the back of the house for logistical reasons. The purpose of a kitchen was entirely functional. In our market, kitchens are much larger, often centrally located in the heart of the house. They enjoy the best light and the best views. Read more about how we move a kitchen in a listed building here. The generous space allows more room to absorb the many functions associated with storing, preparing, and cooking food. Kitchens such as these can afford to be more like living rooms. Therefore, a focal point may well be a beautiful painting or a view – features that are not related to functional cooking equipment or storage. Instead, the bespoke kitchen design deliberately emphasises a piece of art or decorative element like a fireplace.

Bespoke kitchen design creates an island in this Bristol kitchen. — The location of the fireplace interfered with the layout of this Bristol kitchen so we created a unique island as the focal point instead.

Ancillary rooms today

In large houses, ancillary rooms like pantries and sculleries can be useful in freeing up the kitchen, making it a more pleasant place to hang out and entertain. Kitchen storage, washing up, cooking and preparation can therefore be kept slightly separate. It is very much a speciality of Artichoke to design such rooms.

Bespoke kitchen design can involve ancillary rooms like this pantry — Artichoke’s hand finishing gives depth and character to the timber.

The scullery

Recently we have been treating the scullery as a secondary focal point in our bespoke kitchen design. Washing up is an important element of kitchen tasks and is often neglected. We believe, with a bit of flair and imagination, a scullery can be just as exciting a focal point.

Bespoke kitchen design can involve ancillary rooms like sculleries for washiing up — Tasks related to washing up are housed in this eye catching scullery.

Alternative focal point

An approach we sometimes take with our bespoke kitchen design is to consider each area with the same focus as might historically have been given to the kitchen range. This sink is expertly crafted out of a block of soapstone creating an unusual focal point at the window.

Material choice

Material choice is an important part in bespoke kitchen design and can create natural focal points. Making certain elements out of a very special timber or stone or highlighting particular pieces of furniture via a pop of colour can be very effective in creating a focal point. In this London kitchen, we have used marble with a striking figure to elevate the cooking area to be the focal point.

If you’d like to discuss our approach to bespoke kitchen design and discover first hand our passion for brilliantly designed furniture and how it can improve your experience of living in a period house, please email newprojects@artichoke.co.uk or call +44 (0)1934 745270.

Designing a Warehouse Industrial Style Vintage Kitchen in London

Posted in Sep 2021

Despite being designers ourselves, we are occasionally called upon by other designers to take their concept ideas forward to reality. Because we are both maker and designer we bring deep understanding of wood, the manufacturing process and period finishing to the conversation which enables us to add value to their ideas and create rooms of exceptional individualty and quality for their clients.

We were invited to do just this for the design team at Studio Indigo. The practice, based in Chelsea, is one of the best design companies we work with. Quite uniquely their teams are made up of both architects and interior designers, which gives their clients a really efficient service. We love working with them for this reason.

This particular project was for a Victorian villa in London which was to have a modern and fresh industrial style vintage kitchen at its heart.

Initial Conceptual Idea

Studio Indigo’s initial idea was for a U shaped island on one level at the centre of the room with an integrated central hob and preparation sink.

The original island featured a central raised bar which enveloped a supporting post at the centre of the room. The ovens were to be behind with tall refridgeration on a tall run alongside the main scullery sink.

Design Development

As is the case with most projects, as discussions with clients continue, ideas develop and interior architecture shifts. One of the principle issues we all had with the initial kitchen was there was little room for larder storage. To overcome this, we consulted with the team at Studio Indigo and commandeered some redundant space under the stairs behind the kitchen to the right which provided ample room for larder storage for the family. This freed up the main kitchen and allowed us to make some important improvements to the design.

Moving the larder storage out of the main kitchen freed up the design of the main run.

Once this was resolved, we could then turned our attention to the island, the centrepiece of the room. Our first collective decision was that we should raise the entire front face of the island to hide the main hob from the rest of the room; hobs can be messy spaces and rarely benefit from being on view. In rooms with tall ceilings such as this, we also find that raising an island’s height better serves the room’s proportions.

3D Renders

Once the design was agreed, a render could be produced to bring the elements of furniture to life. At this stage it was decided to add zinc to the raised island section which had the effect of turning it into a bar from its public side, a feature which suited the client and the relaxed intention for this social kitchen space.

Seating Area

The initial idea for the bench seat from Studio Indigo was to create a wonderful Victorian industrial booth seat with distressed bronze finish, leather seating and shelving. Their initial concept sketch to us below was incredibly helpful.

As research was undertaken into the best approach to take for this piece, it became apparent that to create the frame from mild steel, which is hollow and has rounded edges, would not deliver the crisp engineered look we were all after. It could also buckle if fallen into, creating a safety concern,. It was therefore decided to make the entire frame from solid brass bar. This provided the opportunity to create a really authentic engineered look, and it also allowed us to distress the surface of the brass to add patina to the piece.

The Completed Room

Some professional images taken of the completed work are below.

Photo credit Studio Indigo.

Further information regarding this completed kitchen space can be found here.

If you would like to discuss a kitchen or joinery design project with Artichoke, please email newprojects@artichoke.co.uk or call 01934 745270

The Case for Slow Making in a Throwaway Culture

Posted in Jun 2021

Slow making versus throwaway culture has been brought into sharp focus over the last year and a half as we have all begun to realise the impact that poor quality purchasing decisions can have on both our lives and the planet. With sustainability becoming an increasingly important factor in how we all behave, we felt it warranted further exploration.

If you type ‘How long should a kitchen last’ into Google, the accepted answer is around 20 to 25 years. Most commentators seem to feel this is some sort of benchmark to be celebrated. We don’t.

Cost efficiencies come at a price

There are two reasons why most kitchens have such short shelf lives. The first is quality of design. The second being quality of manufacture. For a kitchen to last 20 years, it must be of a certain quality but it won’t be outstanding. Market forces will prevent it from being such. It is impossible to make kitchens or architectural joinery of a quality that will last for generations at a price point that most kitchen companies like to pitch their product at. To provide a product which is commercially attractive to their market, something has to give. That something is time and the quality of materials. Time must be saved to reduce cost in order to reduce price. Cheaper materials are chosen to help the company reach its desired price point.

walnut and oak boards in Artichoke workshop — Responsibly sourced solid hardwoods, seen here in Artichoke’s workshop, will last forever.

Time costs money

Rooms that will last for generations need to be timeless in how they look and robust enough to endure decades of use. Achieving this requires time. And with time costing money, kitchen companies find savings. Pre-designed ranges achieve economies of scale. Cost efficiencies are found in a myriad of ways – by speeding up manufacturing processes and taking shortcuts in making traditional joints. By making doors thinner, by mechanising finishing and by using cheaper, often man made materials, This speeds the design and manufacturing process up and lowers the quality. This all sounds rather sniffy but it’s not meant to be. It’s simply economics. These companies are providing a product at a price point that is acceptable to their customer. However, it’s not our product and its not our market. We discussed this need for time with Country Life a few issues ago.

Designing for sustainability

For us, sustainability is central to our mission. We don’t design rooms to be trendy. Trend has a shelf life, and anything with a shelf life usually meets its untimely end in landfill. We owe it to the raw materials we respect so much to take a much longer term view.

By designing architectural joinery which sits elegantly and serenely within its architectural environment, and by using natural materials which have not been processed, we are able to circumvent the need to replace it because it’s gone out of fashion or because its deteriorated. Our clients want joinery-led rooms which will be admired in 200 years in much the same way that we all admire rooms designed and created 200 years ago. To achieve this takes time, investment and a desire by the client to create heritage for future generations to admire and take value from. You cannot achieve design harmony in a beautiful period house by picking a pre-designed item off the shelf and hoping for the best. It won’t work.

Slow making

The slow movement is based on these principles. Slow making is our expression of this philosophy. It is not about doing everything at a snail’s pace. It’s about seeking to do everything at the right speed to achieve the desired result. And in our case, the desired result is in the creation of this country’s future heritage.

If you’d like to discuss our approach to architectural joinery and our passion for how brilliantly designed furniture can immesurably improve your experience of living in a period house, please email newprojects@artichoke.co.uk or call 01934 734270

English Joinery – the lost art explored in Country Life

Posted in Jun 2020

Shining a light on the lost art of English joinery in a recent article in Country Life magazine, Interiors Editor, Giles Kime invites our founder, Bruce Hodgson, to explain how door casements, shutters, panelling, skirtings, architraves, cornicing and dados can transform a space.

If you’ve been inspired to know more about the transformative impact of authentic joinery led interiors, please do get in touch and tell us about your project or read more about our services. To view the article in Country Life Magazine Interiors section, click here

Artichoke in Country Life Top 100 (2020)

Posted in Mar 2020

As the Country Life top 100 2020 is announced, we are delighted to once again be included for the third consecutive year. This represents the ultimate recognition of our expertise in working on fine English houses and an acknowledgement of our mission to create Britain’s future heritage.⁠

We are so delighted to be recognized once again for the quality of our work – achieving a fine balance between meeting the needs and tastes of owners and fulfilling the potential of a house without harming its architectural integrity. Over nearly 30 years, we’ve worked in houses of every architectural period and have built a detailed understanding of each. Artichoke interiors, which are joinery-led, fulfill the unique promise of architectural joinery, which is not just to embellish rooms, but to give them their status and their role in the life of a household. Architectural joinery achieves something no other trade can in creating liveable, elegant and architecturally authentic houses. This puts us in a unique position, filling the gap between architects and interior designers, creating the interior structure that makes sense of a house – and providing designers with the canvas they need.

The full Country Life Top 100 2020 list can be reviewed here

To see some of the stunning work we have completed please click here.

We’d love to hear more if you have a project in mind. Whether its a single room – maybe a kitchen or a dressing room, or a whole house project, please do get in touch – speak with a member of our team on +44(0)1934 745 270 or email us at newprojects@artichoke.co.uk .

Resurgence of the Cook’s Table

Posted in Oct 2019

The cook’s table was a classic element of a Victorian Kitchen and in recent years we have seen a revival of its popularity in the modern home.

One characteristic of country house style is simple but solid furniture – stand alone pieces like that of a cook’s table, that are incorporated for storage and display or food preparation.

Traditionally, country house kitchens were furnished by local craftsmen who designed cook’s tables and made purposeful pieces of furniture which were handed down from generation to generation. As a result, it is common to find a mix of period styles among the furniture of a country kitchen. Similar in their practicality and durability, but with subtle variations according to the period and the budget, such pieces complement each other well.

In the ‘back of house’ quarters of grand country houses, the cook’s table was a central piece of the working kitchen. It was used for food preparation but also sometimes as a dining table for the servants.

view of the Victorian Kitchen, showing cooks table and stove — The beautiful Victorian kitchen at Wightwick Manor, Wolverhampton

Historically, the cook’s table was made out of pine, oak, elm and a variety of fruit woods, oiled or polished to bring out the natural graining and features of the wood. Others were colour washed, or painted using primitive paints made from locally available materials such as buttermilk and eggs mixed with earth coloured pigments. Interestingly, in the Victorian era, a number of deaths occurred as the result of a popular shade of green paint and wallpaper. Scheele’s Green, which was made using copper arsenite, fatally poisoned a number of people until the connection was later realised. Nowadays, this green pigment is produced without dangerous toxicity.

A kitchen and cook’s table, designed and made by Artichoke. Read more about the inspiration behind this design here.

With sustainability in mind, at Artichoke we always focus on the practicality and purpose of design. It is true that while the island has become a popular feature of contemporary kitchen design, it can be obtrusive and can dominate a space. A cook’s table offers an elegant and less obtrusive alternative – just as practical but bringing a romantic aesthetic with its history and rusticity. It’s a testament to the beauty of simplicity, achieving elegance alongside functionally.

Artichoke’s wealth of experience and knowledge of period architectural detail and cabinet making affords us the specialist skills to design and integrate a traditional piece like a cook’s table into a country home. We design and curate a variety of styles in a single suite of domestic rooms to give the impression that the rooms have evolved through various owners over time. The style of the joinery, therefore, suggests the story of the house. Such specific requirements are a perfect demonstration of the truly bespoke nature of our work.

If you’d like to learn more about the transformative potential of well-considered and authentic architectural joinery, please do get in touch and tell us about your project. Email the Artichoke team at newprojects@artichoke.co.uk or call on +44 (0)1934 745270.

A New Owner’s Guide to Listed Building Regulations, Kitchens and VAT

Posted in Oct 2017

Artichoke is regularly asked to design bespoke kitchens in listed buildings. Quite often these listed buildings have been purchased by new owners who are unclear about the listing process, what it means, and how it effects them financially if they are planning to renovate.

The rules were altered by HM Customs and Excise in 2012 and this short article will help explain what the listing process means and how it effects the kitchen in your listed buildings project.

Grade I Listed Buildings

These are of deemed to be of exceptional interest and sometimes considered to be internationally important; only 2.5% of listed buildings are Grade I. In these buildings it is typical for English Heritage to be adamant that the existing interior detail must remain unaltered and untouched (including architectural joinery, light switches, and plaster work). Designing bespoke kitchens into Grade 1 buildings can be full of issues, usually involving extraction routes, methods of fixing into the existing fabric of the building (which can often be made up of soft lime mortar and rubble walls), interference of the existing joinery and so on.

Artichoke was recently asked to design a kitchen for the West Apartment at Burley-on-the-Hill which was built in 1690 in the style of Sir Christopher Wren. In 1909, the West Wing was almost completely destroyed by fire and the joinery inside this part of the house has a very Edwardian feel. Despite the fact that it is modern in comparison to the rest of the house, it is still Grade 1 listed and the panelling in the kitchen could not be touched in any way.

Grade II* Listed Buildings

These are deemed by English Heritage as particularly important buildings of more than special interest (Grade II); around 5.5% of listed buildings are Grade II*. There are many reasons why a building can be awarded Grade II* status. It maybe that they are houses that while not particularly grand, are particularly important examples of local vernacular and they are in essence “Grade II but of particular significance” . It is likely that a Grade II* house will have a particularly special interior or interior features which will be treated in the same say as Grade 1 features in that English Heritage will not allow them to be touched or altered.

Depending on the features and their location, English Heritage can be more relaxed (although not much!) about designing kitchens and furniture into these properties. For instance, it maybe that a farmhouse has a particularly special roof structure which is the reason the house has a II* listing. In this case, English Heritage will be willing to discuss extensions to the house within reason.

Grade II Listed Buildings

These are buildings that are considered nationally important and of special interest; 92% of all listed buildings are in this class and it is the most likely grade of listing for a home owner. This is a good example of a recent Artichoke bespoke kitchen designed into a Grade II listed building.

While permissions for alterations are down to the discretion of the individual listed planning officer, in Artichoke’s experience it is the exterior of the building that they are focused on more. While the interior is still of importance, they are often a little more relaxed.

Regardless of the listing of your house, it is important to stress that Listing is not seen a preservation order preventing change. Listing has a reason, and that is to identify the life stages of a building and it’s various characters.

Listing does not freeze a building in time, it simply means that listed building consent must be applied for in order to make any changes to that building which might affect its special interest. Listed buildings can be altered, extended and sometimes even demolished within government planning guidance.

Listed Property, Bespoke Kitchens and VAT

Pre 2012 it used to be the case that a bespoke kitchen built into a new extension of a listed building was zero rated for VAT (or rather the built in/fixed items such as the Aga, furniture and extraction were zero rated).

Since 2012, the Government decided to “simplify” things, and sadly for many listed property homeowners, VAT relief on approved alterations was removed (although if you had applied for Listed Building Consent before 21 March 2012, zero rating will still apply for approved alterations until 30 September 2015.)

There are still VAT advantages available for work on buildings that have been unoccupied for more than 2 years, for a change of use from commercial to residential use and for a change in the number of individual dwellings within a property – eg splitting a house into flats.

Other than that, we’re sorry to say, it’s the full 20%!

We would caveat the above by stating that we are neither nor lawyers or accountants, but designers of fine bespoke kitchens. For a final adjudication on whether your project could be awarded reduced rate status, please speak with a trained professional! in the past we have found the HMRC team extremely helpful and they do publish a book which we have used to advise our clients ion kitchens in listed buildings. For more information on VAT in listed buildings, you can follow this link VAT in building and construction.

UPDATE 2020: Historic England has now taken on responsibility for listed buildings in England. We explore the difference between English Heritage and Historic England here.