We often think the kitchen is just a place for cooking, but nowadays in most households the kitchen has become the centre attraction of the home, often it being called “the hub of the home”.

In the 18th century, the kitchen was a very modest space with an open fire and not much else. Following the creation of the Range Cooker, kitchens suddenly became more important to the efficient running of a home as they became the centre of the homes abode. In today’s home the kitchen has been turned into an open-plan space that embraces cooking and prepping of food as well as a place to relax to after.

A handmade kitchen designed and built by us here at Nicholas Bridger will give the best overall function of the room. Our show stopping kitchens will fill your heart of the home with love and style and create an all important multi-functional room.

Below we have put together a few of the points which we think make a multi-functional kitchen be at its very best.

The island

The invention of the kitchen island began as a simple design for more preparation space for the chef, since then it has become more of a stylish design and more multi-functional as it can serve many needs. The island now can home delicious wine, provide additional storage, house cooking appliances, and work as a seating area. In an open-plan space they can form as a boundary between the cooking zone and living/dining area. With a kitchen island from Nicholas Bridger it can be as multi-functional as you like.

In our Hutton project below this is a prime example of a perfect multi-functional working island. It is 3m in length with lots of storage and creates the perfect divider between the living area and kitchen. It houses the Wolf Transitional Induction hob and the Wolf Downdraft extractor, and comes complete with a sawn oak seating area attached to the island to create the perfect entertaining and dining space with 5 chairs for all the family.

The kitchen triangle

First developed in the 1940s, the “working triangle” is also known as “the kitchen triangle”, where the three main areas of the kitchen such as the sink, refrigerator and stove work in a streamline workspace for the 3 fundamental tasks performed in the kitchen. If you drew lines from each appliance they would all connect to create a triangle, hence the phrase “working/kitchen triangle”.

Below is a great example of a kitchen triangle we incorporated into our Epping project. Our client who is a professional chef knows exactly how the kitchen triangle works. The huge 1524mm Wolf Dual Range Cooker with chargrill & griddle, the Shaws 900mm double butler sink and the 914mm Sub-Zero Built-in French Door fridge/freezer are laid out into the three points of the working triangle, all close together making the ultimate multi-functional kitchen and a delight to cook in.

Open-plan space

The way in which we use the kitchen today has changed dramatically through the years, from just a room for cooking to a space where it’s inviting to cook, eat and gather with family and friends to relax and entertain. An open-plan space can give you a flexible and relaxed feeling that a modern home today provides.

Below in our Stamford project, an open-plan space is well designed here with our classic shaker style. A supporting pillar separates the kitchen and dining/living, complete with storage for snacks and cookery books. The handmade kitchen has also been hand painted in a two-tone colour scheme that maximises the space and zones the different areas which helps you move from one activity to another without the feeling of being in the kitchen the whole time.

Storage

There are many storage solutions for your multi-functional kitchen design. At Nicholas Bridger storage is one of the most important discussions to have when it comes to the design of your handmade bespoke kitchen. We will design storage solutions to suit your requirements, whether it’s drawers, doors, high mounted long-term storage, corner cupboards or something else like a pantry.

Pantries have become increasingly popular in recent years at Nicholas Bridger where it’s a handy spot to keep cooking ingredients all in one place. It has changed the way a busy family works and lives out of the kitchen just like the day pantry below in our Harringay project. Spices are kept all in one place with the handy spice door racks, and open shelving shows the homeowner what they have in stock and to select quickly for that tasty mid-week meal.

The breakfast pantry seen below in Balham, South West London has been designed with bi-fold doors allowing it to be fully opened when preparing the breakfast and shut away to create a minimalistic look to match the rest of the kitchen when breakfast has finished. Additional counter space known as a ‘cold shelf’ was added to prepare the perfect cup of coffee and that plate of delicious crisp toast.

Open-shelving is also a great idea to add to your kitchen design to keep your cookbooks near you. They can make a striking statement and are a great way to keep your guests entertained while they wait for dinner. Overhead storage is another storage solution which is great in providing a perfect multi-functional kitchen. With its dampened hinges ensuring smooth operation they are magnificant for our clients that don’t mind having to use a stool or for items that are less often used.

In our Bishop’s Stortford project below the tailored storage solutions are endless. With a relatively compact space we have managed to use the space perfectly to suit our client’s way of life and requirements. With overhead storage maximizing the storage and cabinets that are nearly floor to ceiling, a perfect multi-functional kitchen sits here.

Appliances

We are proud to be a Sub-Zero Wolf premier dealer and we absoutely love these special appliances. Creating the ultimate cooking experience in the hub of the home is key, and with a Sub Zero Wolf appliance your kitchen will be even more multi-functional too. Leading chefs and celebrities choose Sub-Zero Wolf for their robust, industrial feel which deliver fantastic results every time, to a similar performance as in a professional kitchen. The Wolf’s convection steam oven may be, quite simply, the world’s most versatile oven, as well as the most intelligent.

Below in our Hadley Wood project lies the the award winning Wolf M-Series black gloss built in oven which is an oversized 762mm width and the Wolf black glass Induction hob in 914mm width. With a flare for cooking our client can host the perfect dinner parties from the Wolf appliances and have envy guests enjoying their delicious meal.

Contact us today for more information on creating a perfect handmade multi-functional hub of the home- we look forward to hearing from you.

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