Brisbane CBD - Apartment
This sky home with stunning views over Brisbane's CBD, the river and Kangaroo Point Cliffs captures the maturity now
found in inner city living in Brisbane. Originally from Melbourne and with his experience gain from extensive business
travel abroad, the owner of the apartment decided to transform his home to match the cosmopolitan lifestyle he has
enjoyed whilst living in these locations.
The original layout of the kitchen was typical for apartments built over 20 years ago. The space was restricted by a
collection of small rooms, two dining areas plus kitchen that did not take advantage of the views or the need for a strong
connection between living areas and the outdoors.
The new design has managed to still give definition to activities performed in the kitchen, dining and living but through
minimal detail the kitchen does not dominate the space which can often happen in an open plan.
A typical galley kitchen design was selected as it best catered for how the space relates to the rest of the apartment and
adjoining living space. An effortless workflow is created from the start point of the pantry, housing food stores as well as
small appliances, and refrigerator. These are within easy reach of the preparation zones and cooking on the island. Then
delivery to the dining area is seamless.
There are a number of key features used in the design to create the feeling of spaces whilst maximising functionality. The
mirrored kickboards reflect light (aided by the use of LED strip lighting to the underside of the cabinets) creating the illusion
that the cabinets are floating thus reducing the footprint in the design.
The simple design philosophy is continued with the use of Laminam, 3mm porcelain sheets to the vertical and horizontal
surfaces. This material is then mitred on the edges of all drawers and doors extenuate the seamless, minimalist, cube look.
A cantilevered bespoke silky oak timber benchtop placed on the island creates a small breakfast/coffee area whilst
increasing bench space and creating the illusion of more space. The stain and other features of this unique piece of timber
compliments the tones found in the porcelain skin of the kitchen.
The half wall built behind the sinks hides the entry point of the services into the apartment. This has been clad in a
complimentary laminate for the timber benchtop . Mirror splashbacks help reflect more light into the space. The cabinets
above the cleaning zone also appear floating due to the mirrored surface behind and the placement of LED strip lighting
used to highlight the perimeter.
A fully imported FALMAC Stainless Rangehood and flyer over compliments the plasterboard bulkhead that houses the air
conditioning whilst providing task lighting to the island.
Lighting has been used throughout the space to highlight and frame the design elements whist creating illumination for all
tasks completed in the kitchen.
Achieving "fluid motion" has been a major influence in the choice of hardware used in the design. Blum servo drive
electronic drawer opening systems have been used to counter act any issues that may be encounter by the added weight
of the porcelain used on the drawer fronts. These are then married with Blum Intivo soft close drawer systems.
The devil is in the detail with a design and space that is so low profile yet complicated in it's simplicity.
Steve Ryan - Rix Ryan Photography
Rangehood