apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

The house has a trapezoidal floor plan meaning that none of the walls are at right angles to one another making fitting any furniture tricky. The living/dining/kitchen space is wide and dominated by two lovely large full height sash windows. The original kitchen had a screen wall that cut across the windows and spoiled the balance of the room.

The concept for the kitchen was to create a simple piece of white furniture designed as a 'box of tricks' that housed all of the unsightly household items (including washing machine, fridge, freezer, waste bin, ironing board, vacuum cleaner) and created plenty of storage. It was positioned at the back of the room opposite the windows so that it doesn't cast any shadows and lifted to make use of the 3-meter high ceiling, creating large amounts of storage space beneath.

The added benefit of this is that when seated in the living room, the top of the kitchen counter is not visible. The storage boxes beneath the kitchen slide out to form a standing deck in front of the sink and hob. The boxes have also been used as a bench along one side of the dining table for occasional dinner parties.

- Kristin Hohenadel blogging from rue Vieille du Temple, Paris, France. If you have an idea for a European kitchen tour, please write kristinh @ apartmenttherapy . com