This summary provides information about a kitchen renovation for a Victorian home owned by an interior designer, Kay Lear, and her husband. They renovated the kitchen to meet the needs of their growing family of four children. The renovation included a contemporary open-plan kitchen designed by Kevin Robertson using high-quality Poggenpohl cabinetry. The kitchen features a large island, breakfast nook, and dining area to accommodate the family and entertaining needs now and in the future.

1. FUTURE
PROOFING
WITHSTYLEWith four growing children to consider,
this couple opted for a kitchen that
not only met their needs but the
future ones of their offspring.
Photographyby:JamieManester REAL
HOMES
THE owners
Interior designer Kay
Lear and her husband,
Simon, who is chief
executive of a property
development company,
own this Victorian house
in St Margaret’s, London,
with their four children,
Nyah, 14, Seb, 12,
Amelie, 10, and Aaron,
8, and their pet dog.
The property includes a
basement cinema room
and gym, and glass floors
creating solar tunnels
from the ground floor.
“We chose Gaggenau
appliances. As part of the
Poggenpohl package, a Gaggenau
home economist came to the house to show me
how to use the new appliances and get the most out of
them specifically for how I like to cook.” Kay Lear, homeowner

2. R E A L H O M E
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��
here are few bigger road tests to determine whether
a room works well for the purposes of entertaining
than a party for 50 teenagers, but this stunning
kitchen passed with flying colours. With four growing
children, Simon and Kay Lear, were keen to ensure
that a new open-plan kitchen and dining area for
their detached Victorian property, built in 1878, met
both existing and future socialising requirements.
“It was important that this could be a space for
our children to use as they grow older,” recalls
Kay. “For Nyah’s birthday, we held a party for fifty
thirteen to fifteen-year olds and it was perfect.”
The couple enlisted the services of Kevin Robertson,
senior designer at Ultimate Kitchens, to create a
contemporary Poggenpohl kitchen in a new extension
at the rear of the property, incorporating clean
lines that would not date but had a unique touch.
“We chose Poggenpohl because, when you think of
German kitchens, you think reliability, which is really
important in a busy family,” says Kay. “We looked
at a number of options, but Poggenpohl was the
one that combined robust construction with style.”
Kevin explains, “Kay and Simon wanted a stunning
family kitchen. With four children, there is always
a lot going on and the Lears also like to entertain,
so this needed to be a family room, dining
room, breakfast room, kitchen and party space.
The kitchen needed to be modern, in keeping
with the bright, spacious extension, but I didn’t
want to go all white as this can look cold.”
The chosen cabinetry features white gloss and
matt grey units with Corian worktops, with
the wall units set against a silver, mirrored
splashback to give the appearance of floating.
“We liked Kevin’s design for the space from the
start, but it was helpful that we could explore
different options. Kevin showed us visuals of how
alternative colours would look. The visuals were very
realistic and helped us decide on the final finish.”
T The exposed brickwork adds
texture, tone and warmth while
linking the modern extension to
the original Victorian property.
The enormous extension wraps around
the exterior of the house, with the original
brickwork adding texture and warmth.
“I love my breakfast cupboard. If I am in a rush in the morning, I just shut the doors on the mess. I also use it for dinner
parties - I pile all the pots and pans in there and shut the doors so that the kitchen stays tidy.” Kay Lear, homeowner
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3. “As well as the large, open-plan kitchen
and dining area, we created a cosy snug
with a built-in dual aspect fireplace”
Kay Lear, homeowner and interior designer
THE designer
“The challenge with a large kitchen is to not let the work
triangle extend too far; you don’t want to be clocking
up miles while you are preparing dinner. As a designer,
you need to keep the core function as tight as possible
without making the rest of the kitchen feel redundant.”
Kevin Robertson, senior designer, Ultimate Kitchens
“As there are many sky lights in the ceiling, it was a
challenge to get the extractor to fit without compromising
the position of the hob,” explains designer Kevin.

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THE details
Kitchen design by Kevin Robertson, senior designer
at Ultimate Kitchens using Goldreif Pureline
cabinetry by Poggenpohl poggenpohl.com
Interior design by Kay Lear kaylear.co.uk
Air Uno Otello 900 ceiling extractor airuno.co.uk
Gaggenau CX 480 111 full surface induction
hob, BOP 220 101 pyrolytic oven, BSP
250 100 combi-steam, and BMP 225
100 microwave gaggenau.com
Siemens CI30RP01 762mm wide fridge,
KU15RA51GB built-under fridge, FI24NP31
610mm freezer with ice maker and SN66P050GB
dishwasher siemens-home.bsh-group.com
Caple Wi 6132 wine cooler caple.co.uk
Corian M871R10 Mixa sink and bespoke
champagne ice trough corian.co.uk
Blanco BM 3650 BS mixer tap with
pull-out spout blanco-germany.com
Quooker 3NSSTL boiling tap quooker.co.uk
The design incorporated a breakfast cupboard,
concealed behind pocket doors when not in use, as well
as a large island unit with counter space for six stools
and a bar area with a built-in ice trough and smoked
glass wine store. A cosy snug was also created with
a built-in, dual-aspect fireplace and a separate utility
area. With the extension wrapping around the exterior
of the house, it was decided to leave the brickwork
exposed to add texture, tone and warmth as well as
linking the older property to the modern extension.
“I am one hundred per cent happy with this kitchen;
it is exactly what I wanted it to be - a family space
that makes everyone smile,” sums up Kay.
Kevin adds, “I’m thrilled to bits with this kitchen
- it is one of the designs I am most proud of.
When I went to visit Kay after the installation
was complete, she was hosting a kids’ party and
it was fabulous to see the kitchen in action.
“It was also great to see Kay’s design flair and
how she has personalised the space to make it her
own; features like the amazing choice of lighting
above the island and the shimmering, silver
wallpaper that echoes the mirrored splashback.”
“I really like the smoked glass splashback. When I am at the sink
chopping vegetables, I can talk to whoever is behind me and see them
in the reflection without having to turn my head,” says homeowner Kay.