Dingy 1980's-installed basement kitchen transformed into an open plan family hub with one stand out feature - see how you can shop the look too

By NICOLE GRAY FOR YOU MAGAZINE

Published: 03:01 EDT, 8 March 2025 | Updated: 06:37 EDT, 11 March 2025

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The household

Lucy Ward, creative director of furniture brand Loaf, her husband Chris, creative director at a graphic design company, and their daughter Arla.

The renovation

The couple’s plan was to turn the dingy, 1980s-installed basement kitchen and bathroom extension of their East London Victorian terrace into an open-plan family hub with the help of local interior designer Laura Parkinson (palmerandstone.com). Before the new kitchen was put in, the space was taken back to a shell by knocking down the wall between the bathroom and kitchen and ripping out the shower, loo and plumbing. The cost

Quartz worktops: £4,000.
Double-glazed windows and doors: £9,000.
Bespoke kitchen carcass, shelving and banquette seating area with inbuilt storage benches: £25,000.
Fixtures and fittings (including all white goods, paint, flooring, pendant and wall lights): £10,000.

Total £48,000

THE EXTENSION

AFTER

The first thing Ward had done was knock through the wall separating the poky U-shaped kitchen and plug-on extension that housed a shower and loo. ‘The dividing wall was originally the end of the house, and the extension felt as though it had been plonked on the side,’ says Ward, who made it into one open-plan space.

BEFORE

Getting rid of the shower room extension elongated the room, but the dimensions were still narrow, so the cabinetry design integrated the dishwasher, washing machine, fridge and freezer (which are stacked on top of one another), boiler and bins. Parkinson also designed countertops 38cm shallower than the standard specification of 60cm to make the room feel more spacious. Open shelving is used to display everyday essentials such as plates and glasses, keeping everything accessible.

‘I’ve always been drawn to the clean lines of Shaker-style kitchens, but they are expensive,’ says Ward, who took pictures of kitchens she liked then hired carpenter Jonathan Currie (@jcurrie_designs) to build oak cabinets for a lower price.

THE COURTYARD

AFTER

The outside area has been redesigned for family life and social occasions. Ward added a built-in bench that stores cushions and throws, while a shelf underneath the new square kitchen window enables Ward to pass out drinks and nibbles. ‘It’s a small addition but one that makes a huge difference to how we use the outside area in summer,’ she says. ‘It also feels like an extension of the kitchen, which, again, makes the space appear bigger.’

BEFORE

THE COLOUR SCHEME AND FLOORING

AFTER

The cabinets and panelling were given a light coat of paint (‘if you look closely you can still see the wood grain’) in Studio Green and Lime White, paired with accents of sunny India Yellow (all farrow-ball.com). The reclaimed terracotta flooring is from floorsofstone.com: ‘I love it because it doesn’t stain,’ says Ward. The butler sink is from shawsofdarwen.com.

BEFORE

‘I spent ages trying to track down a reclaimed version, but they were all either chipped or had hairline cracks, so would need to be replaced down the line,’ she explains. ‘This one will last for years.’ The sisal rug is from loaf.com.

THE DINING AREA

AFTER

Installing a banquette seating area was non-negotiable for Ward. ‘I wanted a compact “gather zone” where friends and family could relax,’ she says. The multifunctional seats act as an integrated storage pit for Ward’s collection of glasses, bowls and table linen. The tabletop is a slab of iroko wood salvaged from a 1960s school science lab. Iroko wood, which is native to West Africa, is known for its durability and often reclaimed from municipal buildings such as schools and town halls. ‘I didn’t want to worry about red wine spills or sticky little hands,’ she says. The piece still has etchings made by bored school kids.