Tile and wood kitchen with a handworked aesthetic

Textured tiles are matched with crafted wood cabinetry, stainless steel, and black steel accents in this kitchen and it's connected pantry room

The elongated island in this kitchen by BE architecture, countertop, floor, interior design, kitchen, gray — The elongated island in this kitchen by BE Architecture has a working zone and a social zone. The 3.5m long island is designed for casual gatherings at the end easily accessed from the living spaces.

This view is from the living area looking architecture, countertop, floor, flooring, interior design, kitchen, gray

Separate but connected while meals and drinks architecture, ceiling, daylighting, floor, flooring, house, interior design, gray, black

Smooth recessed cabinet handles in the floor-to-ceiling cabinetry angle, architecture, floor, flooring, interior design, laminate flooring, plywood, tile, wall, wood, wood flooring, wood stain, black, gray

This kitchen pantry, its adjoining kitchen, and ancillary architecture, cabinetry, floor, flooring, interior design, laminate flooring, wood, wood flooring, gray, brown

Stainless steel, textured white tile and wood joinery architecture, daylighting, floor, house, interior design, wood, black, gray

This pantry has the same black, white, and architecture, cabinetry, countertop, daylighting, floor, furniture, house, interior design, kitchen, loft, product design, black, gray

Plan of substantial kitchen by BE Architecture: 1 area, design, diagram, drawing, floor plan, font, furniture, line, product design, structure, white

Divide and rule, the saying goes a concept reflected in this multi-room project by architect Andrew Piva and the team at BE Architecture.

"The owner's brief was for a practical kitchen that would retain a tidy look even when in use," Piva says. "In response, we designed a clean-lined, expansive kitchen that looks the part from the adjacent living spaces and added a prep pantry room for the messier aspects of cooking."

In fact, the layout went further than that, creating two separate zones within the greater space, part of an addition to a period home.

"The owner wanted the circulation to respond to her movements separately to those of visitors, so two zones were created to achieve this. One route flows from her parking spot into the mudroom, and past a storage area and the pantry to the kitchen. A more public route leads from the formal entry to the living spaces and kitchen."

The kitchen and ancillary spaces there's also a small study annexed off the pantry are designed to complement rather than echo the look of the original residence. In fact, there are two looks' within the expansive kitchen and, while quite different, they both reflect attention to design detail and craftsmanship.

"The materials are honest and balanced but not to period," says the architect. "However, the design still needed to suit the age and style and context of the original building hence our emphasis on textural detailing.

"The kitchen and pantry walls are clad in a textured handmade white ceramic subway tile. In the kitchen, the tiling is punctuated with door openings in blackened steel, carrying the home's window detailing into the space. The two-tone effect is reinforced with the custom, slender blackened steel light over the island benchtop. The 3.5m long island operates as two zones one end for working on the other for seating."

The hand-painted beadboard ceiling and light-stained timber floors also add to the sense of a crafted aesthetic.

However, there is more to the demarcation of space in this design. While the business side of the kitchen is a picture of gleaming stainless steel appliances integrated into stainless steel cabinetry, the other side nearest to the living areas is finished in refined wood joinery.

BE Architecture's design subtly delineates connections and separations while evoking the feel of a working kitchen with an artisanal air.