Kitchen Tour: Healthy Cooking Made Easy for a Family of Four
This Blue Mountains family cooks more than ever now that there's a beautiful, well-designed kitchen to do it in
After moving to the Blue Mountains near Sydney five years ago, and renting until they found the right building block for the house they had in mind, Libby Wyles and family found a flat site tucked down a laneway in scenic Wentworth Falls. Fast forward a year and they’ve built and moved into their light-filled farmhouse-style home, and couldn’t be happier with it. The open-plan kitchen/dining/living area faces north – blissful in icy mountain winters – and was designed with family togetherness in mind.
“It’s a kitchen that I really want to cook in and spend time in,” Wyles says. “There’s plenty of bench space and a big pantry and, being open to the living area, when I cook the kids always want to come and help me – they get involved; it’s nice.”
“It’s a kitchen that I really want to cook in and spend time in,” Wyles says. “There’s plenty of bench space and a big pantry and, being open to the living area, when I cook the kids always want to come and help me – they get involved; it’s nice.”
Wyles has injected colour in the form of furniture and artwork. “I like splashes of colour in the kitchen, but I’m glad I went with a fairly neutral colour scheme. I can add pops of colour without making it too chaotic,” she says.
Jasper sofa: King Living
Jasper sofa: King Living
The three-metre-long island benchtop is ‘London Grey’ Caesarstone. “It’s classic and won’t date; it’s hard wearing and doesn’t mark,” Wyles says.
Rather than designing an island with stools in a row, Wyles opted for an arrangement that allows friends and family seated at the island to more easily socialise.
Since moving into her new home late last year, Wyles says she spends much more time baking and cooking healthy meals. “We get takeaway much less often now; it’s a nice place to be, with plenty of natural light.”
It seems to be a common theme among renovators. In the newly released Houzz kitchen survey, 34 per cent of homeowners reported living a healthier lifestyle after renovating their kitchens.
It seems to be a common theme among renovators. In the newly released Houzz kitchen survey, 34 per cent of homeowners reported living a healthier lifestyle after renovating their kitchens.
The Ilve stove has a gas cooktop and electric oven. “I love, love, love it,” says Wyles. The drawer pulls too have been a success – she loves the look and feel of them and they’re easy to clean.
Shapely glass pendants add light without disrupting the scheme with any more additions of colour.
Fontaine glass and chrome pendants: Chic Chandeliers
Fontaine glass and chrome pendants: Chic Chandeliers
The kitchen servery connects the inside and out, and allows the space to be opened up to cooling breezes in the summer months.
“It’s great for entertaining and the kids love it; they think it’s like a cafe,” Wyles says.
“It’s great for entertaining and the kids love it; they think it’s like a cafe,” Wyles says.
Both Ben and Polly are gluten intolerant, but baking gluten-free treats has never been easier and the children often get involved in stirring, measuring and sifting.
“I find I bake a lot more now and I know exactly what’s going into what I’m making – I use all healthy ingredients and avoid all the sugar and salt that’s in so many of the gluten-free products you buy.”
The Houzz survey found over half of kitchen renovators spend more family time in the kitchen and more time baking.
“I find I bake a lot more now and I know exactly what’s going into what I’m making – I use all healthy ingredients and avoid all the sugar and salt that’s in so many of the gluten-free products you buy.”
The Houzz survey found over half of kitchen renovators spend more family time in the kitchen and more time baking.
The dining area on the deck adjoining the kitchen is well used, and is just the spot for kids’ birthday parties.
Opting for some open shelving in the kitchen, along with the wall cabinets, allows Wyles to display things she loves or uses a lot. “I didn’t want everything hidden away in the cupboards,” she says.
Canisters: Habitat
Canisters: Habitat
“My sister gave me all four of these; she has fantastic taste,” says Wyles of the canisters she proudly displays.
Canisters: Mr and Mrs Clynk
Canisters: Mr and Mrs Clynk
A pantry extends the length of the kitchen behind the stove and fridge, and provides storage for appliances and cookbooks as well as ingredients. “I don’t have to throw away food that’s gone out of date anymore, because I can always see what I have and use it,” Wyles says.
“I label everything,” Wyles says. “Even when it’s popcorn I put ‘popcorn’ on it; it makes me feel organised and I know at a glance what I need, so shopping is a breeze.”
A dedicated charging drawer keeps messy wires and gadgets out of sight.
“Even Dave, who has always liked to cook but didn’t do it often, now spends more time in the kitchen and has started getting more adventurous with his recipes,” Wyles says. It’s a winner for the whole family.
Who lives here: Libby Wyles and David Turner, and kids Ben, 10, and Polly, 7
Location: Wentworth Falls, Blue Mountains, NSW
Built: 2016
Designer: Melandra Homes
Joinery: Quality Kitchens & Joinery
In designing her kitchen Wyles says practicalities came first, so she put a lot of time and thought into working out distances between the stove, sink and prep areas, and what should be stored where. “I wanted a kitchen that was enjoyable to cook in and be in, but it had to be practical,” she says.
She chose a primarily white colour scheme, but decided against an all-white kitchen. The navy island is painted in Valspar ‘Ragamuffin’ to match the colour of the home’s weatherboard-look exterior. “I was hoping that the colour scheme I chose wouldn’t date, and the island works as an anchor for the room, a focal point.”