The Wellfields

Our work on this Victorian house renovation project is another great example of a successful collaboration with Gagarin Studio. This major renovation was of an entire interior at a Victorian villa occupied by a young family in Leeds. The client was heavily involved in discussions around design and aesthetics, bringing their own unique tastes and vision to the job.

In the course of the design and planning it was decided that our popular signature style of birch-ply kitchen wouldn’t be quite right for the brief. Instead, in line with the wishes of the client and architect, it was decided that we’d create something a little more bespoke, opting in the end for a Fenwicks laminate overlaying door style on Valchromat carcasses. Interestingly, the units we created also feature actual protruding brass handles rather than our usual integrated or cut-out style. For us, this is quite literally a first!

On the strength of our work in the kitchen we were asked to create various elements of the property’s other living spaces, all in keeping with the look and feel we’d already established. These included an informal lounge area and TV room alongside a play area for kids, with shelving, sideboards, storage and media units all designed and made by us. We created an enormous and comfortable upholstered window seat too, consistent again with the style we’d developed elsewhere in the home.

We also contributed to the home’s bedrooms with in-built storage and wardrobes, a fun yet functional dressing area for the master bedroom, and even a cosy cabin bed with integrated desk in a child’s room. Meanwhile, in the formal living area we created a beautiful one-off storage and hearth feature, complete with Dekton ceramic top. Fully fitted bespoke boot and utility rooms completed our work in this property, but, in a two-bedroomed annex building which accommodates guests, we built another kitchen, this time far smaller and in our own signature birch-ply style.

We work to tight tolerances and pay famously close attention to detail in every project we do, but even by our standards this job really demanded it. Because we were creating highly bespoke units from scratch rather than fitting our own familiar, tried and tested designs, it was more necessary than ever to make sure everything was absolutely spot on – no margin for error whatsoever. This was essential for ensuring that all our units and cabinetry worked perfectly with the fabric of the building and the architect’s vision.

We overcame numerous practical and design challenges in this project: an inevitable part of creating bespoke interiors for unique spaces, and all the more so because we’d deviated from our regular house style. The point at which the ends of the tall kitchen cabinets meet the large wrap-around window is a case in point.

Overall, this was a wonderful project to have been invited onto by the good folk at Gagarin, and a fantastic opportunity to do something a little different to our norm. Thanks to a successful team effort by everyone involved – including the clients themselves – the end result is a gorgeous family home with a real sense of style and uniqueness. Even better: one which is as easy and practical to live in as it is great to look at.