How To Create A Modern Country Farmhouse Kitchen

Who doesn't love a beautiful 

Modern Country Farmhouse Kitchen? 

Cosy, warm and inviting...

Yes, the trendies might all be crying out for paleness and hard lines but farmhouse kitchens will still be looking as good as ever, white or otherwise, long after the last of the steely grey paint has been scrubbed away....

So what are the top ways for getting the Modern Country Farmhouse Kitchen look?

1) Consider your colour palette carefully to bring this look right up to date. Muted shades reign supreme here.... muted neutrals and soft stones and sages pull this look into the 21st century.

2) Look around for inspiration from companies such as Mark Wilkinson, Moore and Bradfield, Martin Moore and Chalon for styles that won't ever date. Farmhouse kitchens work best if they appear as though they have been gently pulled together over years and years, rather than being victim to the latest fads, which come and go faster than you can imagine. 

3) Kitchen units, which need to last for many years, are not the place to try out fancy impulses. You need to live with those hot pink units and lime green floors for the next twenty years! Far better to stick with a look tested by time. Choose Shaker style units for the Modern Country Farmouse Kitchen and, instead, play around with accessories. 

4) You most definitely need shelves in any self-respecting Farmhouse kitchen. Open shelving is a fantastic way to display your most prized possessions: your Emma Bridgewater mugs, that Le Creuset casserole dish, your mum's hand-me-down teapot. Pick items that get use, and used a lot, to ensure that each treasure is cleaned regularly. This will stop the inevitable grease and grime build-up that tends to accumulate on shelved items.

5) Really go to town on your lighting. This is the place to splurge in a Modern Country Farmhouse Kitchen. We're talking rise and fall lights...

We're talking opulent chandeliers.....

And there's plenty of space here to go contemporary. I love throwing in a bit of nickel loveliness...

6) When it comes to fabrics, choose with care. The Farmhouse Kitchen doesn't have to be top to toe in chintz, although a bold print can look fantastic. Think about bringing a bit of French chic here. Try mixing old sacks, faded mattress ticking and tumbled linens for an updated version of this classic look.

7) Include lots of older items. Maybe a confit pot for holding your wooden spoons. Or an old jug for serving the gravy. This will add an extra layer of authenticity, even if your 'farmhouse' is on a new estate! Mix in weathered wood and you have the beginnings of the wow factor. In fact, as many materials as possible should be genuinely reclaimed or repurposed to add a sense of history and depth.

8) I've said it before and I'll say it again: it's hard to beat a good flagstone for a Farmhouse Style Kitchen. Just take a look at some of the beauties I'm sharing today.



Yes, the Modern Country Farmhouse kitchen will be a much-loved favourite for life. Simple colours and time-worn accessories will allow warm, rustic beauty to shine through.

Add a dash of vintage and a touch of history and you'll have yourself a gorgeous farmhouse kitchen, whether or not you have actual cows mooing in at the window!

Take Care Until Next Time,
Sarahx 

Images via: Pepperbox Interiors, Daily Mail, unknown, Chesterfield Kitchens, unknown, Davenport Kitchens

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Colour Study: Farrow and Ball Blue Gray (Updated!)

Well, bonjour, my bonbons,

Isn't it wonderful having all this Spring in the air? Are you feeling the love? Let me introduce you to a particularly longstanding love of my life: Farrow and Ball Blue Gray, inspired by the gorgeous Georgian I shared with you..

I'm thinking it's time for an updated Paint Colour Case Study. Today, it's the turn of Farrow and Ball Blue Gray, which is one of the colours we chose for our old kitchen makeover.



I have a question for you, Mr Farrow and Mr Ball....You're the epitome of an British company so why do you insist on spelling 'grey' the American way? Yup: Blue Gray. That's how they spell it. English company, American spelling? Not sure what's going on with that....

When I put together a case study for you, I source as many pictures as I can of the paint colour, from our home, here in the Cotswolds, and from a variety of different sources, in lots of different situations and lots of different lights so that you don't just have to rely on a teensy little square of colour on the tester card before you splash out on yet another sample pot.

Bankruptcy by sample pots?
You know its coming....!

Basically, I hope these Farrow and Ball Case Study posts can do all the legwork for you so you can see at a glance whether the colour is going to work for you in *your* house with *your* lighting conditions. Here's a list of other Colour Case Studies for you to peruse...

Farrow and Ball New White
Farrow and Ball Old White
Farrow and Ball White Tie
Farrow and Ball Blue Gray
Farrow and Ball Middleton Pink

Farrow and Ball Down Pipe

Farrow and Ball Pigeon

Farrow and Ball Hardwick White
Farrow and Ball Green Blue

Dulux Heritage Stone Green

Farrow and Ball Lamp Room Gray

Farrow and Ball French Gray (interiors)

Farrow and Ball French Gray (exteriors)
Farrow and Ball Mouse's Back

Earthborn Gregory's Den

Farrow and Ball Light Blue

Farrow and Ball Powder Blue

Farrow and Ball Hay

Let's begin by taking a careful look at the variations you can expect when you use Farrow an Ball Blue Gray as a gorgeous front door colour. In full sunlight, you'll see a warm medium teal but in the shade Farrow and Ball Blue Gray can take on quite a steely grey appearance. 

I've only selected pictures that I think are accurate reflections of what the colour really looks like, discarding those where the image has been tweaked beyond recognition or the flash has distorted the appearance of the colours.



And as a painted kitchen colour, I still think Farrow and Ball Blue Gray is one of the best shades out there. Classic, warm and timeless....

 

Farrow and Ball Blue Gray kitchen in warm artificial light

The main thing that I need to tell you about Blue Grey is its intensity accumulates more than any other colour I've worked with. Particularly around internal corners and with a lack of natural light.Look at the shadowy internal corner of the picture below. See how much darker and more intense the colour is than on the chimney breast?

Farrow and Ball Blue Gray in warm daylight

 And the second thing is that it's surprisingly green for a colour called Blue Gray. 



Farrow and Ball Blue Gray on Woodwork

Really surprisingly green. 

Farrow and Ball Blue Gray in the sunshine....aah.

...and Farrow and Ball Blue Gray in the rain.

It's the strongest, warmest colour that we chose for our old house and that's because it's in the room that gets least natural light. Anything cooler would have made the room look washed out and cold.

Farrow and Ball Blue Gray with light streaming in through the large windows

The more natural light you have in your room, the more of this gorgeous colour you can use.



It's such a lovely colour. Warm and welcoming.

Here you can see the same part of our old kitchen, with my lovely China Jack Mosaic, at three different times of day: morning, noon and evening, with the weather ranging from overcast to sunny.

It's astonishing how much Farrow and Ball Blue Gray changes in the light!

Farrow and Ball White Tie in overcast skies

Farrow and Ball White Tie In Sunshine

Farrow and Ball White Tie and Blue Gray in the evening

And if you're looking for a cheery place to lie in the sun, how's this...



This caravan is painted in Farrow and Ball Blue Gray and Strong White. Doesn't it look gorgeous? 

Now, anyone for another cuppa?

Farrow and Ball Blue Gray and Emma Bridgewater!

Take Care Till Next Time,

Sarahx

Images: Farrow and Ball, Daily Mail, Modern Country Modern Country Style,voysey and jones, flickr, fandb, riverviewredo, Farrow and Ball, Cheverellwood, decorpad, housetohome, Period Living, Homes and Gardens, Country Living, Our kitchen, Our kitchen, Country Homes and Interiors, Daily Mail, Our kitchen, Our kitchen, Our kitchen, Hilary BG, Modern Country Style

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Get The Look: Gorgeous Georgian Kitchen!

Wasn't that GORGEOUS Georgian Kitchen utterly scrumptious? Now it's time to weave that Modern Country magic I promised you...let's break the interior right down, so that you can see how easy it is to Get GORGEOUS Georgian Kitchen Look in any house.

Here's a reminder of just how heavenly it is...

Feast your eyes on an example of a similar kitchen but this time in a new-build. See how the flagstones are there, the wooden beam has been given a place above the AGA and the units on the right of the image have been given the look of a dresser?

BUT it's all been taken down a notch. The flagstones are smoother, lighter, softer. The paint choices are subtler, more muted (try Farrow and Ball Hardwick White and Dulux Dusted Moss for the island).There's no pretense here of trying to BE Georgian. Instead, there are careful nods to this look throughout: bringing character wherever possible.

So enough unpicking, on with the specifics!!!....

Clockwise from top: The GORGEOUS Georgian Kitchen look suits newer Modern Country Style properties too. Paint a dresser in toning paint to that of your kitchen cabinets for a timeless, free-standing kitchen feel; try Farrow and Ball Railings, Farrow and French Gray, Zoffany Architect's White and Benjamin Moore Pewter for a contemporary take on these paint colours to enhance the Modern Country glow; simple rustic touches make all the difference here....the right flooring, carefully chosen simplicity, all add up to create a beautiful whole.

And another shot of this newer kitchen. I love how they've included lots f rustic materials: glass, metal, wood, stone. How can these gorgeous flagstones, laid in softly random rows, fail to add character to any property?

Now, here's a good rule of thumb. The newer your home is, the more restful and calm it needs to be in order to pull off this look. Of course, there are exceptions and, if you want a riot of colour then please riot away...

Clockwise from top: Even if you own a new-build, white walls and French grey cabinets is a scheme that suits any period of house...perfectly Modern Country; if you live in a more contemporary home, stick to simple, clean lines in your kitchenware; I love this palette of Little Greene Shirting, Benjamin Moore Doily, Little Greene French Grey, Earthborn Gregory's Den; Classic Country pieces in an unfussy, modern white bring this scheme to life.

You see? *sigh of relief* The GORGEOUS Georgian Kitchen look can be yours whether you have a derelict barn on waiting in the wings to be decorated or in the tiniest of cottages, or the grandest of modern homes.

Take Care Till Next Time,

Sarahx

Images via: Daily Mail, Fine and Country, Modern Country Style moodboard 1 (Border Oak, Pinterest, Garden Trading), Fine and Country, Modern Country Moodboads 2 (Sims Hilditch, The New General Store, Le Creuset)

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GORGEOUS Georgian Kitchen

We've got a complete kitchen renovation coming up this year.

{I know!! *Squeal!!*}

And so, of course, I have been obsessing over the end details when I have far more important mountains to climb. We've got a long build before us before we actually get to the pretty bits.....but a girl can dream, right?

And this feels more than dreaming. This feels as though the dream is starting to become a tangible reality. Plans have been drawn and builders are in place....it's time to get excited!

So, with dreams and visions given a firm thumbs up, let's turn our attention to this delicious offering. This is the kitchen of Cesar Perin Georgian home in Spitalfields, the super-trendy area in London's East End.

I absolutely love the original stone flags, the timber structural pillars and the mix of old and new. But most of all I am smitten with the mix of Modern and Country.

This kitchen positively exudes Modern Country Style.

How can you miss the Country elements in this kitchen, with its dresser, cooking area tucked into a chimney breast, butler's sink and beautiful original features - and don't get me started about those stunning original flagstones?

But look closer and you'll see there's plenty of Modern here too. The colour scheme - muted grey green (Farrow and Ball's Blue Gray) and cream and white is scrumptious. Little touches of stainless steel - the fridge, those gorgeous little pendant lights above the large sink - complete the picture.

+11

But, take heart!! You don't need a five storey home like this one to get a kitchen feel like this. Let's take a look at how you might draw inspiration for your own home.....

Take Care Until Next Time,

Sarahx

Images via: Daily Mail

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Winter Fashion 2018 with Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley

If ever there's a celebrity who knows how to dress well for Winter 2018 it's the lovely Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley. 

Isn't it frustrating when winter fashion ideas show scantily clad models who have seemingly zero idea of what it's like to do the school run in icy winds and driving rain?

We need coats. We need warmth. But, my Modern Country lovelies, we need to feel good.

Rosie Huntingdon-Whitley? Lead the way....

Key Looks For Winter 2018 can be summed up in two words: neutrals and naturals.

And Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley combines these two winter 2018 fashion must-haves to perfection.

Her love of good quality statement pieces in leather, wool and cotton beautifully fulfills the natural feel necessary.....

And the caramels, taupes, blacks and greys create a soft silhouette.

For those of you who prefer a little more colour in the grey winter months, accessories are your best friend. A brighter scarf or hat can take a neutral investment piece easily in a different direction from one season to the next.

{I'm not sure I could walk for long in those towering heels though...}

So then.....fabulous coat?

Check!

Gorgeous bag?

Check!

All in those key neutral natural fabrics?

Check!

Something tells me you are looking gorgeous and ready to go....

Take it away!!

Till next time,

Sarahx

Images via Cris Tamer, Daily Mail, Daily Mail, Rex, Rex, Rex, Harpers Bazaar, Who What Wear, Daily Mail, Shutterstock, Elle, Rex

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