INTO THE BLUE
A COBALT KITCHEN WITH FLAMBOYANT TOUCHES FEELS RIGHT AT HOME IN THE VIBRANT RESIDENCE OF ARTIST AND DESIGNER LUKE EDWARD HALL
With cobalt cabinets and an imaginative space-savvy approach, this kitchen is surprising and unusual to the max
Unexpected colours and an off beat design unite in a scheme full of fun and surprises
It’s reasonable to assume that buying off-the-peg cabinetry might prove limiting or, at least, fraught with compromises. Think again. Artist and interior designer Luke Edward Hall has unleashed his full fantastical imagination on British Standard’s quality Shaker-style cabinets and the result is breathtaking. ‘These cupboards are very handsome, with wonderful proportions,’ says Luke. ‘And they come unpainted, which meant they were essentially a blank canvas for us to go crazy with.’
Luke (below right) and his partner, product and interior designer Duncan Campbell, visited the British Standard workshop in Stowupland, Suffolk, where the cupboards are handmade. With only one wall to play with – the room also accommodates dining and relaxing areas – the couple had to be space sav v y. Thankfully, the ceiling is high, so thanks to British Standard’s free design service, a two-tier run of units was devised, with an integrated fridge freezer at one end and a compact dishwasher at the other. ‘You can see the kitchen from the sofa,’ says Luke. ‘So although I like to have fresh produce and ceramics on display, it is nice to be able to put things away.’
Next came the opportunity to flex their maximalist wings. A local joiner was commissioned to create a striking pediment topped with ornate wooden finials. ‘We weren’t concerned about creating an accurately proportioned Palladian structure,’ says Duncan. ‘It was more fantastical and fun than that.’
To dial up the drama a few more notches, the couple opted for a deep cobalt blue from Papers and Paints, which looks seriously striking against the custom-mixed pink tone of the walls. ‘I’m drawn to quite jarring, odd colour combinations,’ says Luke. The worktop is elaborately patterned Marinace green granite, chosen primarily to swerve the now ubiquitous white marble, and because it’s not been fashionable since the 1980s – a point that proved irresistible to this unconventional pair. At the end of the worktop is a hardwood cabinet found on the streets of Camden. ‘We liked the idea of incorporating a freestanding piece into the design,’ Duncan says. ‘It was pure serendipity that it was exactly the right height and practically on our doorstep.’