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23 maximalist kitchens to inspire a loud refresh
Kitchens are the soul of a home. Yet when it comes to interiors, there is a tendency to put less focus on the decoration than in other spaces of the house. However, kitchen units, cupboards, tables and utility rooms can be brilliant opportunities to play with clashes of colour, bold patterns and patina as well as display flourishes of personality. As the maximalist trend has taught us, more can really be more. However well executed maximalism is never achieved by accident. The key is always in a sense of balance and knowing where exactly to stop. From chintz-filled larders to complementary-coloured cupboards, we look back at the House & Garden archive for inspiration on how to achieve a maximalist kitchen.
Michael Sinclair1/23“Every kitchen should have some marble. It instantly adds a sense of glamour,” says Martin Brudnizki. The kitchen of his 17th-century Sussex flat features swathes of Arabescato stone, combined with plenty of curved cabinetry painted ‘Invisible Green’ by Edward Bulmer. The clashing wall colour (Edward Bulmer’s ‘Dutch Orange’) adds to the maximalist feel, as does the collection of Choisy-le-Roi and pewter plates and a mix of fabrics – including blinds in ‘Bannister Hall’ by Christopher Moore and window seats in Marvic Textiles’ ‘Toile Carreaux’.
Christopher Horwood2/23This kitchen in an Arts and Crafts flat by Carlos Garcia uses traditional prints and colours in a loud and playful way. ‘Blackthorn’ wallpaper in autumn, from Morris & Co, is enlivened by woodwork painted in Fenwick & Tilbrooke's ‘Chanterelle’. A ‘Rise and Fall’ pendant from Broughtons of Leicester, dining table with legs in Fenwick & Tilbrook’s ‘Can-Can’ and wall-mounted shelf unit in Paper & Paint Library’s ‘Bluebird’ pick up on colours in the Morris & Co ‘Blackthorn’ wallpaper.
Mark Roper3/23A yellow kitchen isn't uncommon in our archives, but this one in north London stands out as being particularly punchy. Originally supposed to be painted olive green, designer Christabel Macgreevy ultimately ended up going for ‘Babouche’ in a gloss finish by Farrow & Ball, which tones with the leafy garden beyond. The marble backsplash and array of pots and pans feel both classic and elevated.
Owen Gale4/23Frida Kahlo and Georgia O’Keefe are Sandra Barrio von Hurter's "go-to artists, especially for colours and how they combined them,” she explains. In the kitchen of her London house, Sandra combines industrial-style metal cabinetry with bright, fruity colours inspired by her favourite artists. The tiles behind the sink were carefully placed in a random order, injecting more colour into the walls, which are painted an archive Farrow & Ball paint called ‘Orangery’.
Owen Gale5/23In the same kitchen from a different angle, you can see Sandra's hot pops of colour on the cabinets, Farrow & Ball’s ‘Calke Green’, Paint & Paper Library’s ‘Geisha’ and ‘Rowan Berry’ from Sanderson. The red artwork on the walls ties in with the retro red dining chairs.
6/23In this Mexico City apartment by Jessica Ayromloo, colour and pattern reign. In the petite kitchen and dining area, the floors and walls are clad in a patchwork of cork and tile by Rayito de Sol, the Art Deco pendant and 1950s chandelier are from La Lagunilla, and the 1960s mosaic dining table and 1950s Allan Gould scissor chairs are from Downtown.
Boz Gagovski7/23In collaboration with designer Benedict Foley, Max Hurd created a defiantly eccentric home in a London terraced house, which looks remarkably normal from the outside. Max decided to retain the original kitchen for now, to save time and money. The crenellation detail, designed by Benedict, and the oversized Victorian ceramic cabinet handles lend the existing kitchen units a playful feel. The lower cupboard doors were removed and replaced with a curtain made of Sibyl Colefax’s Teapots fabric.
Catherine Gratwicke8/23Ben Pentreath has created a masterclass in mixing colour and pattern at this diminutive early Georgian cottage in Highgate. Morris & Co's 'Blackthorn' wallpaper takes centre stage in the kitchen. The lower cabinets are painted in SC347 by Papers and Paints. 'Rocio BG' tiles from Milagros line the wall behind the range.
Paul Massey9/23Having outgrown their previous space and style, Sarah Corbett-Winder and her husband Ned have devised their own playful take on traditional grandeur in their north London house, combining handsome pieces with a bold, quirky aesthetic. Farrow & Ball’s ‘Broad Stripe’ wallpaper creates a strong look in an area of the kitchen where DeVol’s ‘Tuscan Farmhouse Arabescato Marble Sink’ doubles as a bar; leftover cornice has been used to create a shelf above the door.
Elsa Young10/23Designer Susan Deliss is well known for her skilled use of colour and pattern. At this writer's flat in Edinburgh, the eclectic kitchen fits the rest of the property's bold, pattern-heavy decoration.
Dean Hearne11/23At her home in Highbury, India Holmes embellished the deep blue kitchen with a chintzy, custom redesign of ‘Porto’ wallpaper by de Gournay, where she is design director.
Simon Brown12/23At an open-plan London apartment by Beata Heuman, the kitchen was inspired by a trip she made to the grand Swan House in Atlanta. The colour is ‘Oval Room Blue’ from Farrow & Ball, and all the door knobs again are from Beata's own range. The butcher's block acts as a work surface but also is perfect for serving when entertaining. The lamps above the butcher's block were inspired by heat lamps in commercial kitchens. The central table is a Beata Heuman bespoke item with Carrara top, which the team made as the same height as the counters, so it can act as an extension of the work space, as well as for breakfasting.
Dean Hearne13/23Complementary orange and blue are happy bedfellows in the kitchen of Simon and Nicola Hutchinson's Yorkshire home. The blue is a bespoke colour made by Simon and was the colour he and Nicola painted the kitchen units in their first flat when they lived in London. “The blue works well with the orange and gives us happy memories of our London flat,” they say. The old dresser was from Facebook Marketplace, as was the footstool. The rug was bought from “a hidden gem of a shop” in the stables at Camden Market many years ago.
Chris Wakefield14/23At Sean Symington's Tetbury cottage, the kitchen features a built-in banquette painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Red Earth’, Vaughan wall lights with Pooky shades above it, as well as an artwork from Lorfords Antiques. The cushions are a repeat of ‘Squiggle Moss’ by Sibyl Colefax and John Fowler and GP & J Baker's 'Magnolia', as in the living room.
Rachel Whiting15/23Grand gestures were the operative words when it came to Beata's design of a London house belonging to artists. 'I haven't used wall cupboards because I didn't want the kitchen to read like a traditional kitchen or look too boxy,' explains Beata. The colour palette, which includes a Swedish green marble worktop and a bespoke copper cooker hood and island by Premier Building & Design, complements the garden beyond. It will acquire a greenish patina over time.
Simon Brown16/23Just because a kitchen is small doesn't mean it can't make maximum impact in terms of colour and material. And despite what you might think, white can also be a useful canvas for maximalists. Beata's design of this small flat proves this point.
Simon Brown17/23At Beata’s former London flat is a great example of her playful approach to design. Postcards and fridge magents are not only knick knacks, but a key design element. A green ottoman rhymes with the icy green walls.
Yuki Sugiura18/23At Matilda Goad's London home, a kitchen island was substituted for a gnarled antique butchers block, and walls of cupboards for a large Colefax-esque dresser, found for £100 at Ardingly Antiques Fair. The cupboard doors, painted in ‘Sage Green’ from Little Greene, are fitted with a mix of vintage brass handles, some from an old ship. The breakfast bar counter is, ‘made a little higher than it would usually be’, and is specially reinforced to accommodate the two articulated stools, ‘the kind you would usually find in sushi bars in Japan’, to engineer the most convivial spot possible for perching with a pre-dinner drink, or chatting over a cup of tea.
The most striking detail in the room though is the wall surrounding the cooker, picked out in red and white checkerboard tiles - ‘simply buy the cheapest tiles you can and alternate the colours’ - a homage to the Moroccan and southern European kitchens that were also the influence for the ‘raw plaster’ walls (‘actually a wonderful lime wash paint from a company by Bauwerk’).
Yuki Sugiura19/23In the larder Matilda Goad has used red grout between the white tiles. The curtain is in a Jean Monroe fabric from Turnell & Gigon.
Simon Brown20/23When redesigning an overly modernised London flat, Max Rollit's added a dose of his signature flamboyant flair. The kitchen features red cabinets and an island, contrasted with blue pendant lights by Holloways of Ludlow and check tiles. The red standard lamp is from Marianna Kennedy.
Christopher Horwood21/23At Emma Ainscough's pink cottage, the kitchen is equally storybook-esque. The design is bespoke by Emma, made locally in Shropshire, with a solid oak top island and ironmongery by Mark Lewis. The wall units are painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Yonder’ and the island in ‘Eating Room Red.’ The tiles are from Grestec Tiles and the walls are painted in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Slipper Satin.’
Paul Massey22/23Bridie Hall describes the kitchen of her London house as ‘typical Ben Pentreath country-house style’. Traditional cabinets with olive-green paintwork in a gloss finish provide a rich contrast with cheery red and white Marmoleum floor tiles arranged in a chequerboard pattern .
Paul Massey23/23Howark Design's brief for this family home in London was the house in Paddington, a terraced house in Notting Hill with a lemon yellow front. Appropriately then, the DeVol kitchen has been painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Babouche'.
