The Cozy Kitchen Style That's Replacing Modern Farmhouse
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If you’ve been craving the warm, laid-back feel of an English kitchen, you’re not alone. Maybe it’s the fact that many of us have been binge-watching series filmed in old Britannia (please hurry up, Bridgerton season 4!) or that these trying times call for a comforting cup of tea. “The English-style kitchen oozes conviviality and relaxation, with sleeping dogs and warmed by range cookers,” says Patrick O’Donnell, international brand ambassador at beloved British paint brand Farrow & Ball. English expat designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard adds: “A British country kitchen vibe is filled with nostalgia, practicality, and great personal style.”
Even if you’re not planning a full kitchen remodel, here’s 12 ways to give your own kitchen an English accent:
Start with a Saturated Color Palette
Chalk it up to all that misty weather, but moody tones reign in English cook spaces. “Deep, dark paint shades that lend some gravitas—like a deep blue-black or green-black—are currently fashionable,” notes Ben Kendrick, homes and style director of Country Living UK. “The key is to get a dullness to the color so it doesn’t shout bold or brash but warm and rich and soft,” says Helen Parker, creative director of deVOL Kitchens. The paint finish matters, too. “We believe in a hand-painted finish, as brush strokes are part of the appeal,” says Imogen Pritchard, U.S. design manager for Plain English.
Focus on Patina
Gleaming finishes and glossy metal fixtures are as unappetizing to these cook spaces as a cup of tepid tea. Britons favor simplicity in their rural cottages; it’s the countryside, after all, and it should look like it. So go for surfaces that look like they’ve been around a while. Paint your cabinetry by hand with an actual brush, as opposed to opting for a sprayed “factory finish,” for instant authenticity, and consider studding your ceiling with a few exposed beams that look like they were felled with an axe a few hundred years ago.
For faucets and drawer pulls, go for unlacquered metals and hand-brushed finishes that glow with age-old artistry your grannies would recognize. “We adore aged fittings,” says Helen, adding that brass and bronze work beautifully because they soften the look. Another storied metal: wrought iron, which adds a “simple, practical element to a room.” Don’t feel like splurging on new hardware? Pick up burnished copper pots and pans from a local junk shop and hang them overhead.
Unlaquered Brass Ball Cabinet Knob
Unlacquered Brass Bin Pull
Unlacquered Brass Drawer Pull
Unlacquered Brass Cupboard Latch
Choose a Workhorse Table
No British cook worth their Maldon sea salt would abide by a teensy workspace, which is why so many English country kitchens have an oversize wood worktable (a holdover from the “downstairs” lairs of manor houses) that’s been lugged into the middle of the room. “The lack of uniformity is a must,” says expat designer Kathryn Ireland. “No islands for the British! A wonderful oak farmhouse table is a given.” Plus, swapping your built-in kitchen islands for a standalone table is totally on trend for 2025.
Install a Larder
Imagine a wood refrigerator that requires no electricity yet keeps things cool, not cold, and in a slightly removed spot from the kitchen, and you’ve got yourself a larder. “Preferably a larder cupboard is a separate room or created to feel like one,” says designer Cath Kidston, who lives in a 17th-century manor house in Gloucester, England. “Apart from storage, it keeps all the clutter away from the kitchen space.”
Called a “larder” since its early days in France, when it was where cooks preserved meats as long as possible, it’s now the place Britons keep their potatoes, onions, breads, and spices tucked away in cool air. Martyn notes they sometimes feature quaint cutouts in their cabinet doors to allow for air flow but not light—a genius move that smacks of old-world invention.
Go for Low-Luster Counters
No glossy quartz in sight here. British kitchens give new meaning to the term au naturel. “Matte and muted is a way to instantly achieve a more lived-in look,” says Helen. “The warmth of a wood butcher-block island is often juxtaposed with thick, honed white marble countertops,” says Martyn. Using honed marble for countertops is like driving a pickup truck with hints of rust on the paint job: It says you appreciate beauty with flaws.
Choose Classic Cookers
Love a cast-iron skillet? Meet the cast-iron range. “The Aga [cooker] is the ultimate jewel in the kitchen,” says Martyn of the radiant-heated gems. Heat-plus-food has a primal allure, and it’s not lost its appeal in the 21st century (though earlier versions remained on 24-7, newer models are indeed controllable). “They may not be the only source of heat nowadays, but the look isn’t the same with fitted appliances,” says Helen of the charming clunkers. Other tried-and-true classically designed stoves include Rangemaster, Falcon, (both of which are sold stateside through Aga), and Everhot. “The British have always tended to live in the kitchen,” says Kathryn. “Everyone likes to stand around the Aga and warm their bottoms.”
Pick Butler’s-Style Sinks
Everything in an English kitchen is hard-working, even the sinks. A commonly used one: butler’s-style sinks, which are large-basined numbers that echo the farmhouse sink style popular in the U.S. They’re extra roomy on purpose. Butlers of yore used them to do everything from wash clothes to scour vegetables in water they hauled in from nearby streams. “Ceramic sinks in a butler’s style reminiscent of an old-fashioned pantry are still popular,” says Ben. “Shaws of Darwen has an attractive fluted front finish, and Rangemaster’s shallower fireclay versions can come as a double sink with a slatted, wooden-topped draining section.” Founded on Valentine’s Day in 1897, Shaws sinks are still handcrafted by a guild of master craftspeople in Darwen, England. The underbelly of each sink is impressed with the name of the person who made it by hand.
Install Layers of Lighting
A bare bulb and/or lackluster pendant might give American kitchens a case of the blues, but the opposite is true in the British countryside, where kitchen light fixtures have the aura of history. If the sconce and pendant look like they’ve been there since electricity was invented, all the better. “I’m not a fan of too much overhead lighting, so I have one circuit for spots over the cooker and countertops where needed, and I have them on dimmers,” says Cath. “I then have a second circuit for table lamps, as they give a much warmer light to the room.”
Fluted Pendant Light
Colorful Ceramic Sconce
Pair of Ruffled Sconces
Marble Pendant Light
Fill Your Space with Freestanding Furniture
Gasp! Some English kitchens have no cabinetry at all, using freestanding furniture for storage and work spaces instead. “A classic English country kitchen has few built-ins, if any,” says Kathryn. “Period furniture (a hutch for all the cookery, an armoire for a pantry), a butler’s pantry, and a scullery make a British kitchen unique. And no big, flashy fridges that make ice cream! If adapting to today’s living, fridge drawers can be easily concealed.” Pieces to hunt for at your favorite flea market: Georgian or Shaker-inspired china cabinets, exposed shelving, and hutches with a nick or two.
Trot Out the Dish Racks
Eons before dishwashers had a “dry” setting, Britons had figured out another way: letting dripping china air out on the humble dish rack. The best ones let your tableware sit exposed to the room, a nice (and graphic) way to add a dose of needed visual clutter in a space that can easily read as too simple—“almost spartan,” says Helen. Facing china into the space on wooden plate rails, too, is a common sight, she says, alongside “a mass of copper pans and pots, vintage creamware and huge platters, and tables piled high with produce and accoutrements.”
Choose Clean-Lined Cabinetry
“Simplicity is an absolute,” says Helen. “The bones of the room must be simple, or you lose the authenticity of the look.” That’s one reason you’ll find fuss-free paneled cabinetry that looks like it was crafted by the Shakers themselves (the religion was born in 1747 in Manchester, England). Martyn adds that long open shelving is another historic detail, dating from the days when pots and pans would be stored on numbered shelving to correlate to specific dinners and dates.
Select Stylish English Sundry Accents
Don’t have the pounds (or patience) for a kitchen overhaul? Consider dotting your cook space with classic English accessories, as Kathryn did in her own kitchen. “Mixing in antiques and collectibles, from copper pots on a pot rack to antique plates mounted on the wall, all add to the eclectic beauty of the spaces,” says Martyn. “And let’s not forget the obligatory tea pot and kettle, not only quintessential, but also a necessary part of British life—wherever in the world it may be being lived!”
Copper Tea Kettle
$329.95 at williams-sonoma.com
Mason Cash Mixing Bowl
Cornishware Crock
Gingham Butter Dish
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