Icon - Arrow LeftAn icon we use to indicate a rightwards action. Icon - Arrow RightAn icon we use to indicate a leftwards action. Icon - External LinkAn icon we use to indicate a button link is external. Icon - MessageThe icon we use to represent an email action. Icon - Down ChevronUsed to indicate a dropdown. Icon - CloseUsed to indicate a close action. Icon - Dropdown ArrowUsed to indicate a dropdown. Icon - Location PinUsed to showcase a location on a map. Icon - Zoom OutUsed to indicate a zoom out action on a map. Icon - Zoom InUsed to indicate a zoom in action on a map. Icon - SearchUsed to indicate a search action. Icon - EmailUsed to indicate an emai action. Icon - FacebookFacebooks brand mark for use in social sharing icons. flipboard Icon - InstagramInstagrams brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - PinterestPinterests brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - TwitterTwitters brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - Check MarkA check mark for checkbox buttons.
You are reading

Kitchen of the Week: The New Italian Country Kitchen by Katrin Arens, Scrap Wood Edition

Search

Kitchen of the Week: The New Italian Country Kitchen by Katrin Arens, Scrap Wood Edition

September 22, 2016

For 20 years now, Italy-based German interior designer and furniture maker Katrin Arens has been finding fresh uses for discarded wood. She’s still on the vanguard of the reclaimed movement: “I love reusing wood to make things that will last,” she tells us. “I aim for designs that are simple and clean without being cold.” Today we’re spotlighting a compact kitchen that Arens designed for a young restaurateur couple in Bergamo, in the Italian lakes region, where Arens herself has a second home and workshop. The landscape and architecture of Northern Italy, she says, serves as both her inspiration and her source for castoff materials.

Photography courtesy of Katrin Arens.

katrin arens kitchen 17

Above: Set in an apartment in a newly remodeled early 19th-century house in the center of Bergamo, the kitchen is built largely from salvaged scaffolding wood with a dramatic back wall of iron sheeting that wraps around the range hood. The dishwasher is to the right of the sink and there’s a freestanding fridge to the left, out of the photo frame.

katrin arens kitchen 18

Above: Arens made use of her clients’ Ikea sink and faucet from their former home: “Why not reuse something that’s nice?” (Note the top drawer, built around the plumbing.) The iron utensil rail was fabricated in Arens’s studio.

katrin arens kitchen 19

Above: Arens uses all-wood drawers and cabinets with basic carved openings in most of her designs. As for the various finishes, she explains, “We produce some in our studio using bee’s wax and pigments. All are the result of years of experimenting and we keep them secret. The white finish is a pigment that has to be brushed on the wood several times; otherwise it won’t last. The wood counters are sealed to waterproof them.”

Get the lowdown on wood countertops in Remodeling 101.

katrin arens kitchen 20

Above: In a narrow slot next to the range, three drawers are camouflaged behind a tall front.

katrin arens kitchen 21

Above: “When I started working with old wood, I had to find a way to make repeatable designs that someone could order in different sizes—without losing the unique aspect,” says Arens. Plentiful scaffolding wood became a favorite material, and the tall, narrow cupboard with cutout openings is one of her signature pieces.

katrin arens kitchen 22

Above: A cupboard just beyond the kitchen is patterned with a mix of raw and painted panels. See more at Katrin Arens.

Working on your own kitchen? Go to our Kitchen of the Week posts for inspiration and sourcing ideas. The Movable Kitchen from ModNomad Studio is another scrap wood design.

Designer and Hollywood house flipper Amanda Pays builds shelves from scaffolding wood; take a look at her 11 Money-Saving Remodeling Strategies.

N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on October 25, 2015.

(Visited 3,870 times, 2 visits today)
You need to login or register to view and manage your bookmarks.

Have a Question or Comment About This Post?

Join the conversation

v5.0