Renovating an workplace kitchen in a rented constructing isn’t actually a precedence if you first transfer in, however after a number of years of being in our Collingwood studio, I used to be keen to place a private contact on the The Design Recordsdata’ kitchen!

Regardless of our industrial workplace’s open-plan format and extensive home windows, the kitchen itself was very small and darkish. I’ve at all times needed our HQ to really feel purposeful and joyful, so once we returned to the workplace after Melbourne’s (many!) lockdowns it appeared like the proper time for an replace.

Now what the 2x3m kitchen lacks in area, in makes up for with color, heat and character! Right here’s the way it got here collectively.

The imaginative and prescient

I needed to make the stark-white kitchen really feel pleasant and welcoming – like a kitchen you’d discover in a house! The enjoyable factor about doing a renovation in your office (relatively than at residence) is you generally is a bit braver and extra carefree about it. At residence I’m a bit extra pared again, however for this area I needed heat and fairly wealthy colors.

The general palette was impressed by a wonderful portray by Lucy Roleff, which I’ve at all times hoped to hold within the area. The still-life paintings portray has a heat brown base with pink and terracotta particulars, in order that was the place we began. I went searching for tiles and a benchtop that might complement these tones.

The plan

I needed it carried out in three months, which was formidable! I feel it look about six months ultimately. As a result of it’s a small kitchen, I assumed it will be fast, however it was a bit fiddly. We would have liked plumbing work, electrical work and stonemasons for the marble benchtops, so it took a bit time to coordinate all of them.

The renovation

My husband Gordy and I designed the format collectively, then I did the color choice and sourcing of all of the supplies. Fortunately, Gordy is a cabinetmaker, so he did principally every little thing else! He re-built the partitions to increase the room barely, pulled out the door to make a wider doorway, tiled the partitions, painted the ceiling and partitions and hung the paintings. He additionally customized made all of the timber cupboards, utilizing American Oak veneer.

The lighting

The unique kitchen was actually darkish, so discovering small methods to herald extra gentle in was a precedence for the renovation. We determined to chop a bit sky gentle out of the ceiling, and this was a good way to assist the kitchen really feel extra linked to the broader workplace, which additionally has some sky lights overhead. We additionally purchased the gorgeous Ceto Wall Lamp by Ross Gardam in a smoked glass end, and it actually elevates the area.

This mixed with some easy LED strip-lighting below our new timber cupboards (and one other ceiling gentle) made the area really feel greater and brighter – although we solely prolonged it by a couple of metre!

The supplies

We went with these Moroccan Pink Zellige tiles from Tiles of Ezra for the partitions, and changed the generic and dated grey-laminate benchtop with a wonderful slab of Rojo Alicante marble from Daniels’ Marble Home!

To tie all of it collectively, Gordy put in Encompass by Laminex Batten 25 on the kitchen’s exterior wall – we wee particularly impressed when he managed to create a curve on this wall!  We painted the panelling with Dulux Clay Courtroom, and the ceiling additionally bought a complementary coat of blush pink with Dulux Piglet. It actually ties all of the terracotta tones collectively.

The end result

My favorite half is the view of the kitchen by way of the doorway! Wanting in and seeing the sunshine stream by way of the skylight onto the Lucy Roleff portray, with the tiles behind simply seems to be SO NICE. Makes me really feel actually fortunate to have a piece kitchen like this!

I additionally love seeing the staff get pleasure from utilizing the area a lot. Everybody used to stumble upon one another in there earlier than, however the built-in fridge and freezer from Fisher & Paykel actually maximises the area, and appears so streamlined in our small-ish kitchen. It feels actually good to supply an setting that individuals are proud to name their workspace!