A “Narrow, Dark, and Cold” Kitchen Gets a Bold, Sunny Makeover

Interior designer Natasha Landers’ East London Victorian home is full of color and personality. However, the kitchen, arguably the most colorful of all the rooms, wasn’t always this way. At one point, it was the complete opposite: “The kitchen was narrow, dark, and cold,” Natasha says of the original space. “It had an Artex ceiling and a huge chimney breast that made the room even smaller.” And that just wasn’t going to work.

Natasha didn’t shy away from an opportunity to refresh the kitchen — she affectionately refers to the house as a “doer-upper.” Her design aesthetic is special because she relies on unique, often storied materials, and the new kitchen would be no different. 

The new kitchen’s design inspo? “Industrial with an exposed brick wall, elements of copper and plywood,” Natasha says. “I wanted the room to be multifunctional. It’s used as a studio [and] meeting room, as well as a kitchen.”

Natasha hired an architect and builders to create a layout to work with local borough policies, which limited her new floor plan options. She went with a long, L-shaped extension for the space.

The kitchen renovation took around 10 weeks to complete, costing about £65,000 (approximately $82,000). While the walls are painted a calming shade (Craig & Rose’s Regency White), the rubber floors (yes, you read that right!) are an electric, happy yellow. Natasha calls the floor “a real showstopper.” 

The bright hue reflects up across the entire space, bringing light to the room with a yellow tint that makes everything a bit cheerier. It’s hard to believe that it was once a “dark, cold” space with dark tile floors.

But the yellow rubber floor isn’t the only stand-out material in the space. There’s also a light fixture made of copper pipes that was “loosely inspired” by the map of the London Tube. The sliding doors that hide the washer and dryer in the kitchen are another fun feature.

As you can probably imagine, the rest of Natasha’s home is full of vibrancy and pizzazz. To see more, visit the full House Tour on Apartment Therapy. 

This post originally appeared on The Kitchn. See it there: Before & After: New Cabinets and Bold Flooring Refreshes a Dark, Dreary Kitchen (It’s So Colorful!)