Graphite Handleless Kitchen
Caistor

The client is someone Sam has known for years. He wanted a new kitchen: modern, clean and properly fitted out, with a large island as the central feature and a small TV and storage area incorporated into the design. The existing layout was not working well enough, so the design started from scratch rather than working around what was already there.

The layout was completely changed. The island became the main working and social space of the kitchen, with seating, a large prep area, a wine cooler and the Neff downdraft hob all resolved within it. Positioning the hob on the island with integrated downdraft extraction removes the need for an overhead canopy or ceiling unit, which keeps the space above the island completely clear and the overall look of the kitchen clean and uninterrupted. 

On the back wall, the tall unit housing contains a single oven with a combination microwave oven directly above, a pull-out larder alongside it and an integrated fridge freezer to the right. The unit configuration was planned so the doors read consistently as a uniform elevation, with the appliance sizes resolved at design stage.

One of the more interesting practical challenges in this kitchen was a structural wall reveal on one run, where a wall had been opened up as part of the wider works. Standard-depth base units would have protruded beyond the face of the wall support, which would have disrupted the visual line of the cabinetry and created an awkward junction. 

The solution was to reduce the depth of the base units on that run to approximately 375mm (from the standard 600mm), matching the wall reveal exactly so the cabinetry sits flush. Häcker offer a range of standard base unit depths and will manufacture to bespoke dimensions where needed.

The cabinetry is Häcker Top Soft Graphite, a matte handleless range that suits the modern kitchen of this character. The worktops are Corian, chosen for its durability and the clean, continuous surface it provides across both the island and the back runs. Corian handles everyday use well and allows joins to be made virtually invisible. The 60mm thickness of the worktop was chosen for 2 reasons, first for the design to give a nice chunky appearance and secondly as the client is tall the raised worktop level gives a more comfortable working height.   

Appliances are Neff throughout, including the downdraft hob, single oven, combination microwave oven and integrated fridge freezer and a Quooker tap is fitted at the sink, avoiding the need for a kettle. The island drawers are designed with a two-drawer frontage for visual consistency, but with a clever hidden internal cutlery tray inside the upper drawer, prioritising function without compromising the clean two-drawer appearance of the island.

Sam remained closely involved throughout, from the layout redesign through to installation. The bespoke unit depth needed careful coordination between the cabinetry specification and the structural detail on site, and Sam oversaw the key installation stages to ensure the finished result reflected the design as planned.

The finished kitchen is clean and practical. The layout rethink gave the client the island he wanted, the architectural constraint on the back run was resolved cleanly, and the details (the hidden cutlery tray, the integrated wine cooler and venting hob) add up to a kitchen that works properly at every level. It is a straightforward modern design, done well.