One thing you quickly realise walking around the Second Nature showroom is just how much choice there is. Doors, colours, worktops, handles, storage, appliances, finishes… and that’s before you start thinking about the rest of the room. Choice is a good thing. But too much of it can also make planning a new kitchen feel…
A beautiful kitchen starts with a great design. But what happens next? Following my recent visit to PWS in Newton Aycliffe, I went behind the scenes to see the British manufacturing, cabinetry production and worktop fabrication behind many of the kitchens we design at Palmer & Palmer. I brought plenty back from my visit —…
There’s no substitute for seeing products properly. So I recently spent a day at PWS in Newton Aycliffe, catching up with Sales Manager Ben Jones, exploring the latest Second Nature collections and getting behind the scenes to see how some of the kitchens we supply are actually made. For me, good kitchen design starts with…
Big kitchens can be brilliant. They can also be noisy, awkward and not that soulful. The answer isn’t more cabinetry. It’s better zoning. By Ewan PalmerQualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer A large kitchen sounds like the easy brief. Lots of space, room for an island, plenty of storage, maybe a dining table…
Kitchen islands are still one of the most requested features I design. But an island only works if the room has earned one. By Ewan PalmerQualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer Kitchen islands are still hugely popular, and I can see why. Done properly, an island can transform a room. It can add…
Two of the most useful kitchen layouts — but one badly placed corner, an awkward appliance door or an unnecessary run of cupboards can make all the difference. By Ewan PalmerQualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer L-shaped and U-shaped kitchens are two of the layouts I design most often. They’re also sometimes treated…
Compact kitchen ideas, clever layouts and the new appliances that can make a tight space work surprisingly hard. By Ewan PalmerQualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer I love designing smaller kitchens. A big room gives you options. A small one makes you think more and helps you make better decisions. There’s nowhere for…
Before you decide on an island, galley or an L-shape, start with the room itself. By Ewan PalmerQualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer When people start planning a new kitchen, they tend to start with the things they can see. The door style, colour, worktop and so on. Perhaps the range cooker they’ve…
By Ewan Palmer Qualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer Start with the room When people start planning a new kitchen, the first instinct is usually to start looking at kitchens. Shaker or contemporary? Painted or timber? Light or dark? I tend to start somewhere else. Before we talk about doors, colours or worktops,…
Kitchen Trends 2026 – part 3 By Ewan Palmer Qualified Interior Designer & Founder, Palmer & Palmer Contemporary is getting warmer For a long time, contemporary kitchen design meant one thing. Clean lines. Flat doors. Handleless cabinets. Lots of white, grey and gloss. There’s nothing wrong with any of those things. But contemporary design is…