Country Kitchens - The feathered nest
When Val gave up her huge rambling home for a small flat in Grafton, interior designer Kerrie Dunn-Coves made the transition easy by creating a light, elegant and calming space – complete with a classically styled kitchen.
Story by Lauren Broomham and Kerrie Dunn-Coves
Photography by Simon Hughes
Val had been living alone in a large house on the outskirts of Grafton, a country town in northern New South Wales, but with four bedrooms, three bathrooms, huge formal and informal spaces, plus some wide verandahs and gardens to care for, it was no wonder it was all becoming a bit too much for an octogenarian living on her own. When a small flat came up for sale on the banks of the beautiful Clarence River, she loved the idea of downsizing to a low-maintenance space, but was worried about feeling cramped. This led Val to consult Kerrie, who was able to offer her advice as to whether the flat had enough ‘potential’ for her to leave her home of many years for the smaller property.
One of the main things that concerned Val was the thought of leaving her big timber kitchen. “It was large and sunny with a long kitchen bench that could happily accommodate lots of people around it,” says Kerrie. “It really was the focal point of her old home.” In contrast, the original kitchen in the flat was small, dark and poky, with worn lime-green laminex counters and dark faux-timber cabinetry, and was divided from the living room by a narrow doorway. At the back of the kitchen, another doorway led to the laundry. Both these areas were rundown and outdated, so they were ripe for Kerrie to work her magic!
The first thing to do was knock down the internal, non-load-bearing walls in order to open up the space, and rip out everything in the kitchen and laundry. “We installed ducted air-conditioning, insulation and downlights throughout the flat, and every set of lights had its own dimmer switch to enable variations in mood lighting – even in the kitchen,” explains Kerrie. Although Kerrie was keen on a white-painted timber floor, Val insisted on linoleum, which gave rise to the impressive flooring. Kerrie found a stone-look linoleum tile complete with a patterned border.
New timber cabinetry was also installed, featuring beautiful panelling and capping painted in a soft warm-white shade. “Accent colour was introduced above the capping in a warm ‘putty’ tone to accentuate the lines of the cabinetry,” adds Kerrie. In addition, Val had fallen in love with a soft ‘green-tea’ shade of polished composite stone by EssaStone, so this was used for the benchtops and splashbacks. “It provided a subtle yet distinct contrast to the cabinetry and the colours worked together beautifully,” states Kerrie.
Kerrie describes the style of the new kitchen, and indeed the whole flat, as classic, elegant and understated. Val affectionately calls the flat her ‘feathered nest’ and couldn’t be happier with the results of the renovation, particularly the kitchen. “She confided that, even after two years, she has yet to use the oven, the grill or two of her hotplates,” says Kerrie, “but she often jokes that she has given the fridge, the wine glasses and the island bench a good thrashing!”
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