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Adrian and Melanie renovated the narrow galley kitchen in their Shoreham-by-Sea home as part of a whole-house project costing £60,000. Their design paired oak and plywood with dark-stained oak, added a west-facing window, and retained the kitchen’s original configuration.
Adrian and Melanie have renovated the narrow galley kitchen in their Shoreham-by-Sea home, combining oak, plywood and dark-stained wood in a project that formed part of a £60,000 whole-house makeover. The design kept the kitchen’s original configuration while adding a west-facing window to bring in more natural light, according to Ideal Home’s report.
The couple moved into the West Sussex seaside house knowing it needed extensive work. Adrian described its interior as having “strange 1970s architecture” and said it was a “doer-upper.” The family’s aim was to create a brighter, more organic home, with the kitchen’s position and access among the issues they considered during planning.
Although they explored where the kitchen could sit to make better use of daylight, Adrian said they ultimately kept the original layout. They opened up a window to the west and changed the access instead. The room’s narrow galley shape made it difficult to add tall cupboards without making the working space feel tighter, he told Ideal Home.
Adrian sketched design ideas before the couple worked with bespoke kitchen company Wood Works Brighton. The finished scheme mixes natural materials and different finishes: oak and plywood, fluted wood, and black-stained oak. Oak window frames were chosen to match the cabinetry. A curved door and shelves on the end cupboard soften the run of units, while leather bar stools brought over from the couple’s previous home add a less formal element.
Making a Narrow Galley Work
The project illustrates a practical trade-off in a compact kitchen: storage has to be balanced against circulation space. Adrian said tall cupboards were hard to fit without reducing the width, so the renovation focused on the existing footprint rather than claiming extra floor area. That is relevant to readers working with a fixed, narrow layout, where changes to light and access may matter as much as adding cabinetry.
The west-facing window also shaped the material choices. Adrian said the couple felt the room could accommodate black-stained oak because they had increased natural light. That is the homeowners’ account of their design decision, not a measured assessment of the room’s brightness. Their combination of lighter oak, dark wood and fluted surfaces shows how they created contrast without relying on one uniform finish.
The reported £60,000 cost covers a whole-house makeover, not a separately stated kitchen-only budget. The distinction matters for anyone trying to compare costs: the article does not give a line-by-line breakdown for cabinetry, labour, windows or other work.
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A Whole-House Makeover in Sussex
The kitchen was part of a broader renovation after Adrian and Melanie bought their home in Shoreham-by-Sea. The couple live there with their two children. Ideal Home reports the total project cost as £60,000, but does not specify when the work took place or how that total was divided among rooms and trades.
The couple’s design direction drew on Melanie’s interest in Japanese style and their shared preference for natural materials and mixed textures. Adrian said the designers understood their vision quickly. The report describes the result as Japandi-inspired, but the project is a particular household renovation rather than evidence of a wider design or property trend.
““When we bought the place, there was a lot of strange 1970s architecture throughout the interior; it was definitely a doer–upper.””
— Adrian, speaking to Ideal Home
Costs and Layout Details Unreported
Ideal Home gives the overall renovation cost as £60,000, but does not identify the kitchen’s individual cost, provide a detailed materials schedule, or say how much was spent on the window and access changes. The report also does not state the kitchen’s measurements, storage capacity, or whether the work required structural alterations.
The completion date and the specific construction methods are not provided. The article offers the homeowners’ description of how the room feels and functions, but no independent evaluation, before-and-after measurements, or information about long-term performance. The reported details should not be read as a cost estimate for a similar renovation.
No Further Project Plans Given
The Ideal Home report presents the renovation as a completed project and does not announce further work or a next milestone. Adrian and Melanie’s account gives readers a record of the choices behind the finished kitchen, but it does not set out future plans for the home.
For readers considering comparable work, the main next step would depend on their own property: confirm the room’s dimensions and constraints, establish whether a window or access change is feasible, and obtain a project-specific budget. The source does not provide professional advice or enough cost detail to predict what another renovation would cost.
Key Questions
Where is the renovated kitchen?
It is in Adrian and Melanie’s home in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, where they live with their two children.
How much did the renovation cost?
Ideal Home reports a total of £60,000 for the whole-house makeover. It does not give a separate price for the kitchen.
What changed in the kitchen?
The couple kept the original kitchen configuration, opened a west-facing window and changed the access. The design uses oak, plywood, fluted wood and black-stained oak, with a curved end cupboard.
Why did the couple avoid adding tall cupboards?
Adrian said the kitchen’s narrow galley layout made it difficult to fit tall cupboards without reducing the available width.
Is the £60,000 figure a guide to a similar kitchen renovation?
No. It is reported as the cost of a whole-house makeover, and the source does not break down the kitchen’s share or provide enough detail to estimate another project.
Source: rss
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