Country Kitchens - Irish Grace

With an Irish heritage and close family bond spanning continents, Michelle Hadley made her kitchen a 'home away from home'.

It is human nature to surround yourself with things you love – and that means family, friends, pets and even belongings. When it comes to decorating your home, including special pieces with sentimental value is paramount and the kitchen is no exception. Michelle is Irish and although she lives in Australia with her husband and four children, her 'other' family is still back in Ireland. But they are never far away, especially when she is in her kitchen.

Confessing to hate cooking but adoring her kitchen, Michelle has liberally sprinkled it with family heirlooms, gifts or other items from Ireland. The dainty tea set and silver teapot were her grandmother's and she uses them often. The intricate timber carving is an antique that belonged to her Great Aunty Grace. In fact, Grace had more input in the kitchen than she might be aware of. When building it, Michelle was adamant that she didn't want any overhead cupboards and opted instead for two massive floor-to-ceiling pantries. One is for food and the other is for all her crockery and glassware. "That wasn't my idea though," she admits. "Great Aunty Grace had her kitchen like that and it just makes good sense. It means you just go to one cupboard to get everything. Even when you're unpacking the dishwasher, you only have to go to one cupboard."

Michelle is the first to admit that her kitchen is far from perfect. "But it's a good place to work in," she confides, "and I think I have everything the way it suits me. Most importantly, it is the centre of my family home and full of special belongings – and I love having all that around me."

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