Kitchen of the Week: Off-Cut Cabinets Create a Rainbow of Wood in Edinburgh
Architecture Office founder Alexander Mackison and glass artist Juli Bolaños-Durman had something of a creative meet-cute. The two became acquainted while running a lecture series at Custom Lane, a collaborative center for designers and makers in Edinburgh, where they both have studios. They remained friendly, so Alexander eventually learned of Juli’s plans to renovate an apartment nearby. “Just through casual conversations, I became integrated into the project,” he remembers. “Then she formally approached to ask if I’d get involved, which obviously was a pleasure to be selected.”
Alexander was flattered to be chosen for the job—but he was also energized by the assignment: Juli wanted a home that reflected the sculptures she creates with found and reclaimed objects. “Her ethos in her artistic practice runs through her personal life as well,” he says. The duo brought in Silvan Studio to build a bespoke kitchen using only surplus timber from past projects, knowing there wouldn’t be enough of any one species to craft uniform cabinet fronts. Instead, slabs of brown oak, classic oak, cherry, Douglas fir, and ash are arranged in a gradient, forming a rainbow of wood that honors Juli’s commitment to sustainability and matches her colorful spirit.
Let’s take a look.
Photography by Richard Gaston.
Above: In Juli’s first-floor Victorian flat, off-cut ombré cupboards mix with old wood floors that Alexander discovered beneath 1970s carpeting. The duo declined to sand away the tar adhesive residue, simply washing and oiling the planks to maintain their splotchy patina. “With the resourcefulness of Juli’s practice in mind, if you can celebrate a material, you may as well do that,” he says.
Above: The countertops, as well as the vertical dividers and toe kicks, are made of Studio Silvan’s leftover ash stash. “Obviously they didn’t have enough material to make the whole kitchen out of one timber, but they had most of ash,” Alexander says.
Above: Clean lines and flat planes allow the woods to shine. “It was an intentional decision to keep everything quite minimal in detail, so you’re really drawn towards the tactile nature of each timber—the knots, the striping, and the color tone,” says Alexander.
Above: For the cabinet interiors, Studio Silvan utilized their extra Valchromat, a thick MDF. “It’s super high quality and quite unorthodox to use internally, but it’s very playful,” Alexander says. “So it’s quite muted on the outside, then we open it up and there’s a pop of color, which is a nod to Juli’s character and Costa Rican heritage.”
Above: Alexander eschewed upper cabinets in favor of a single floating shelf that displays colorful glassware by Juli and her friends.
Above: The other side of the room is dedicated to dinner parties. “A big part of Juli’s personality and heritage is about hosting, so you can be in the same room cooking for people,” says Alexander. “The table’s a very simple sheet of plywood with an antique tablecloth on top.”
Above: Tucked into the concealed alcove, there’s another countertop, washing machines, and garbage bins. “Everything that is working hard has a lovely sheer curtain in front of it so that space can be closed off,” explains Alexander.
Above: Inspired by the corteza amarilla trees found in Juli’s hometown, the duo coated the hallway in a golden yellow hue from Little Greene’s Re:mix collection, which reformulates unwanted paints. “We thought the living spaces should be neutral, warm, and slow, which lends towards being muted, earthy tones,” says Alexander. “And then the hallway, which opens out into each room, could bring some excitement, bring some joy with a punchy color.”
Above: When a door is open, “a little tongue of the hallway spills out, impacting the light and coloring of that room ever so slightly,” says Alexander. “Juli’s carefully positioned some of her work or friends’ art so it’s like looking through into a gallery almost.”
Above: A monolithic mantel, which exhibits Juli’s sculptures, was crafted using three salvaged stone slabs from local mason A.B. Mearns. “We didn’t over-engineer them or overfinish them, so that’s why the edges are all rustic,” Alexander says. “One of the legs we turned 180 degrees on purpose just so you appreciate the moment between the clean cut and the rough cut. It works quite well.”
Above: The patchwork stone counters and backsplash in the bathroom are an amalgamation of offcuts of Frosterley, Ledmore, and Stoneycombe from Britannicus Stone.
Above: Alexander and Juli in her kitchen. “Everyone that has visited has commented that it feels very much like Juli’s home, which I think summarizes a successful project because it’s exactly what we set out to do: reflect her professional artistic practice and her personal ethos as well,” he says.
For more kitchens that make use of scraps and surplus, see:
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