My Kitchen Favourites in Our New Build Home

Creating my favourite space in the house.

When we were deciding on what kind of layout we wanted in our kitchen, it was important to us to have a space that would fit our lifestyle and provide a comfortable social space for us. Growing up we always had a separate kitchen and dining room and whilst this was lovely for things like dinner parties, it also meant that you didn’t have anywhere for guests to sit while you cooked or made them a drink. 

When I moved into my condo in Canada a few years ago, I got my first experience of what it was really like to have a breakfast bar area. As someone who lived alone at the time it meant I could still entertain guests while I prepared food for them. When it finally came round to deciding what kind of layout we wanted for our kitchen together I knew I wanted a breakfast bar in an open plan kitchen/diner and I do not regret that choice at all.

Decorating in a new build is a slow process especially when you have to let everything dry out and settle over a few months. Until we can fully decorate we’ve tried to get that cosy, modern, country kitchen feel with each purchase we make.

Here’s some of my kitchen favourites so far:

QUINTESSENTIALLY ENGLISH JAM

Ok this one is a bit of a splurge but so worth it! My partner, Danny, is a huge lover of jam and his favourite comfort food is a jam sandwich. While we were in London recently, he popped along to Fortnum & Mason in St. Pancras Station and picked up a few. With these being slightly more special jams, we felt like they deserved their own little countertop spot. We picked up a little wooden tray from The Range so that we could display them nicely without taking up too much space. The design on the front of these jars is so quintessentially English with delicate drawings of their ingredients. Eventually when we’ve emptied them, I’ll reuse them for things like dried flowers and have them displayed on a shelf somewhere in the house.

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OUR JAM TRAY

COOKBOOK STAND

This was one of the first things we purchased for the house. An odd choice I know especially for it being the first item we bought.- We had been discussing what style we wanted to go for with the decor and when we spotted it in John Lewis I fell in love with it. The stand is sturdy and it can hold a decent thickness of cookbook when closed. The detail on the wood carving is beautiful and fits in with the house style perfectly. This piece is a standout feature on its own even when you don’t have a cookbook to rest on it.

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FOR OUR COOKBOOKS

BAR STOOLS

There are so many bar stools in existence that I just find so uncomfortable to sit in. When we were searching for them, they had to fit into our very specific needs. They had to look more rustic, have an upholstered seat cushion, have a back, and four legs. These bar stools from Next fit everything we were looking for and I use them now at least twice a day without feeling like I need to get up and move shortly after sitting down. I could happily sit on these for a full three course meal and still be comfortable.

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FOR SOCIALISING

KNIVES

I feel so posh whenever I get these knives out. Danny really wanted a set of quality knives, not because he’s a great chef, but because he loves to chop the ingredients while I manage the cooking side of things. We found these gorgeous knives in Pro Cook and stumbled across a gorgeous rustic leather case for them. I don’t like knives on the countertop (especially living with a cat and potentially future children). The case seemed a bit of a showstopper piece that would look lovely as well as be functional. We’ve very good about cleaning and drying them immediately after use and storing them away quickly so that we don’t have very sharp knives lying around in the kitchen sink area.

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FOR PREPPING

WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR KITCHEN FAVOURITES? AS WE'RE STILL DECORATING, I'M OPEN TO MORE IDEAS ON HOW WE CAN MKAE OUR KITCHEN A COSY, MODERN, COUNTRY STYLE.

Nyssa x