Influencer Sarah Evans in her charcoal and white Clerkenwell kitchen with island

Kitchen Makeovers

A Monochrome Kitchen Makeover With Sarah

Hoping to add a personal stamp on her 1930s home, renovation blogger Sarah Evans wanted to create a fresh and spacious interior with a minimalistic design. Embracing the calming concepts of the Simple Living trend, she was able to use matt surfaces, subtle colours, and uninterrupted lines to achieve an open and inviting environment.

Influencer Sarah Evens standing in Clerkenwell kitchen

About Sarah

In the midst of becoming a new mum, Sarah Evans began updating her 1930s London home in 2019 to overhaul the existing heritage look and meet her personal taste. After a testing year of renovation work, her Simple Living transformation is complete, along with a spacious five-metre extension. Featuring muted colours and finishes, the renovation converted her room into a clean and refreshing space.

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The transformation

Sarah Evans old U-shaped kitchen - Before shot

Cramped and outdated

With very little room for storing items or to cook comfortably, Sarah felt that this part of her home was far too small. It also lacked any connection to living areas, making entertaining and socialising difficult. The interior style was also in dire need of a makeover to take it from outdated to on-trend.

Charcoal Clerkenwell kitchen with white wall units and kitchen island

Simple and spacious

Opting for a “back to basics” theme, Sarah embraced a minimalistic aesthetic with a combination of white and charcoal cupboards using the integrated handle design of our Clerkenwell collection. The addition of an island introduced valuable storage to keep the room clutter-free and created a flow between cooking and relaxing.

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The design details

Clerkenwell kitchen with charcoal units and white wall cupboards

Smooth surfaces

Understated finishes are a core feature of Simple Living styles, which Sarah has incorporated with dark charcoal units and crisp, white wall cupboards. The softness of the matt finish retains a low-key appearance to balance out the bold two-tone scheme.

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Charcoal kitchen island with white worktop and wall units

Feature-filled island

Sarah says her new island is her favourite part of the renovation, as it offers plenty of space to keep everything organised. Keeping essentials close at hand ensures items are quick to access, while the work surface combines cooking and socialising for an open-plan feel.

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Walnut work space with charcoal Clerkenwell drawers

Bespoke working area

A desk area was custom made with our cabinets by her fitter, so Sarah could easily work from home, especially as a new mum. Placing it tucked away from the rest of the room makes it easy to separate work from her home life to create a healthy balance.

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Sarah Evans

We really like the simplicity of the Clerkenwell collection, which allows us to make the design our own. We went for a two-tone kitchen, and I think the white wall cabinets keep it looking fresh while letting our walnut shelves stand out.

Working with Howdens

Finding a fitter

Sarah’s fitter, who she found after reaching out for recommendations online, has worked with Howdens in the past. He spoke highly of his experience with us, from planning to product choice, and installation. This gave Sarah the confidence to choose our products for her home makeover.

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Product choice

Sarah did a lot of shopping around before settling on Howdens and found that our selection of products had exactly what she needed to achieve her desired interior. The Clerkenwell collection also struck the right balance between style and cost to suit her overall budget.

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Design service

Working alongside the experts at her local depot, Sarah collaborated with both her fitter and her designer to draw up different plans that brought her ideas to life. The flexibility in the process meant that she was able to make final changes without holding up the project.

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Installation

All the new units were supplied to Sarah’s fitter directly from local stock, which included a set for the corner desk. When some last-minute extra plinths were needed, stock was delivered direct to her door by her local depot to keep installation moving with minimal fuss.

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Get the look

Kitchen island with white worktop and dark charcoal units

Two-tone design

The contrasting colours of this two-tone look punctuate the minimal theme to add character to the design while also being pared-back. By opting for white, wall-mounted Clerkenwell cupboards to offset the bold black shade, Sarah has kept a spacious feel that creates a calming ambience in her home.

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Clerkenwell Super Matt kitchen white and charcoal cupboards

Built-in handles

An uncluttered atmosphere is vital for achieving an understated design, and choosing units with built-in, j-pull handles creates a look free of unnecessary embellishments. Without the need for extra fixings, Sarah’s cupboards and drawers have a sleek, linear style that retains the open flow of the minimalistic decor.

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Clerkenwell kitchen island with two drawers with deep storage

Deep drawer storage

Sarah wanted to make the most of her island using it to store cooking equipment and other kitchenware out of sight. She found opting for internal drawers made things easier to access, which helped to maximise space and keep it organised. This has meant that the new interior is more human-centred and highly functional.

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Sarah Evans

Working with Howdens was seamless. Their collaboration with our builder was fantastic and it meant we didn’t have to stress about any part of the process. Having a simple design that we could put our stamp on was important to us, and we couldn’t be happier!