Marianne Suhr: Completing the kitchen extension

THE PROJECT: Turnpike House, a Grade II listed, 17th-century, three-storey timber framed house undergoes a kitchen extension
THIS MONTH’S CHALLENGE: To complete the fitting of the new appliances and bespoke units

This is the last instalment of the smoothest running building project of all time. I must say, I feel humbled to have witnessed it: a kitchen extension to a period house that never strayed from budget or slipped on programme. No builder sucked their teeth before delivering those dreaded lines, ‘I’m afraid it’s going to cost you, love’. Neither dry rot nor death-watch beetle was discovered during the opening up, and not a single expletive was used to describe any one of Kerry and Nick’s various contractors.

Going with the flow
The only event that verged on the unexpected was the discovery of an old brick lined well, uncovered while digging the footings for the new extension. But even this Kerry turned to her advantage by rebuilding the upper section of brickwork to create a garden feature.

I joined Kerry and her family for a cup of tea and couldn’t resist stroking the smart new granite worktop and coveting the impressive eight-ring range cooker (two more rings than our own – this was designed for serious cooking!). There is something very special about a new kitchen. Maybe it’s the knowledge that there are no rogue lumps of casserole hiding down the back of the cooker, or the fact that the third drawer down doesn’t yet contain a plethora of useless objects. The cutlery drawer isn’t full of crumbs and the grouting to the tiles isn’t irrevocably stained by splashes of spaghetti bolognese.

I asked Kerry if she was pleased with the result. She admitted that it was even better than she had expected. She had found it quite difficult to visualise how the finished room would look, and had agonised over which units should be painted, which ones should be left as oak, what handles and tiles to go for and so on. But she was pleased she had stuck to the basic oak, black granite top and off-white units. ‘I knew that would give me the chance to reinvent the space every few years by changing the colour of the accessories,’ she told me.

Fitting the kitchen units

ABOVE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: The bespoke units are delivered to site and fitted; A plywood template is fitted, then taken away and used to cut out the exact shape of the granite worktop; Once fitted, all the units are painted by hand; The new range cooker is connected to the gas.

Quality results
The success of the project has to come down to the fact that Kerry has employed a good architect to design an extension that really adds to the house, rather than detracts from it. She has used high quality materials and skilled craftsmen throughout with no cutting of corners and no stinting on the finished product. In just six months she’s changed the way the house functions, by creating a room that is no longer just a place simply for cooking in, but an area for the whole family to gather in throughout the day.

I think she’s achieved a fabulous contemporary space with a mix of traditional elements in a style that will endure, adding her own little part of history to the evolution of the building. When asked if she had any regrets, she had just one: ‘We should have done it years ago so we could have enjoyed the space while the boys were growing up.’ Better late than never, say I.

Tidying up the old well; Kerry and Marianne in the kitchen

ABOVE, LEFT TO RIGHT: The old brick-lined well is tidied up and turned into an appealing garden feature; Kerry and Marianne in the kitchen.

Marianne's Checklist: Choosing a New Kitchen

First decide whether you want a modern or traditional style – both can work well in an old house.
Look through lots of magazines and create a scrapbook of the things you like.
Draw out a plan of your space on graph paper and play around with unit sizes and locations. There may be limitations on where you can site sinks and cookers.
Locate your fridge, sink and cooker in a triangle, with easy access to each. This is the golden rule of kitchen design.
Make sure you have lots of worktop areas in the right places – especially to the side of the hob and next to the sink.
If you have an awkward corner, look for clever space-saving designs.
If you’ve got room, a larder or pantry is an ideal place to store cans and jars.
If you’re not confident with design, take advantage of services that come free with your kitchen supplier. Go to more than one if you can, but always question their design and make sure it works for you.
If you know what you want, a joiner may be able to create a bespoke kitchen more cheaply than a kitchen specialist.