Essential Kitchen Bathroom Bedroom Magazine Oct-18 Back Issue

Once upon a time, kitchens existed simply to prepare and cook meals. They were often small, functional spaces designed purely to serve their purpose and certainly not somewhere for family and friends to congregate – in fact, I’m sure most of us can remember our mum shouting at us to get out of her kitchen every dinner time! But, these days, they’re beoming more and more sociable – first, it became popular to combine the kitchen with the dining room. But now, this blended living is being embraced even further by including the sitting area too, making kitchens a fully multi-functional zone which requires careful planning and consideration to get that allimportant combination of aesthetics and ergonomics. In our real-life case studies this issue, every one of our featured kitchens has welcomed a social space into the mix. In Blank Canvas on page 30, Michele’s Alice in Wonderland-esque scheme incorporates kitchen, dining room, living area and garden for the ultimate entertaining arena. With more of a focus on family life, in Journey to Success on page 46, Pam and Peter Eccles chose their kitchen design because it allows the children to sit at the island doing their homework whilst Pam is cooking. as well as being the perfect hub when friends come to visit. After living for too long with a conservatory that resembled a bus shelter, Pam Hines was keen to update her 200-year-old home with a new extension, and in doing so created a beautiful open-plan area to suit her love of socialising in Let Me Entertain You, page 58. If period features really appeal, turn to page 70 and you’ll be inspired by this personality-filled kitchen, dining and living area in New Old Fashioned whilst those with a smaller floorplan will be pleased to see you really can have it all, even in a Victorian terraced property – see Beautifully Balanced on page 82.