We work in the domain of the custom-made kitchen, an important part of the extended field of interior design. This brings us close to very interesting people, so close that we get to know them right in the middle of the private space, inside their own house.
Our access to this private space is total and immersive. The doors open to us from the initial stages of a project – starting with the consulting discussions where we find out what a client wants for their home kitchen, to the measurements stages and the actual design proposition, followed by the kitchen assembly, when our team comes home to bring the project in reality.
We get to know people from various fields of activity, each with their own story, each with their own vision of home comfort.
Alina is one of those very modest people who does not try to impress in the first interactions regarding their professional life or does not have any eccentric requirements for the personalized kitchen. Where some people would like a more direct, “client” control over the design process (with numerous changes, new requirements, decisions, and indecisions), Alina trusted our vision for her new kitchen.
After all, why not trust the expertise of a paid designer to help you?
The creative process of designing the kitchen was wrapped up in 2 meetings, one for consulting, another for presentation, then the project went into production with congratulations from Alina.
At a creative level, we started from the open space plan on the ground floor of the new house and drew an all-white kitchen configuration with a peninsula and snack table that emphasizes the available space and defines 3 areas of interest – the kitchen area, the dining area, and the living room area.
Alina needed a lifestyle change and moved from the apartment in Bucharest to a newly built house in the suburbs, in a residential neighborhood with streets named after birds. The road to the office may be a little longer, but the proximity to the forest, the complete silence, and the clean air provide all the necessary compensations.
She bought the house when it was still in construction in early 2021 and moved with her cat Peppa in mid-September 2021. This was not her first experience with work teams, suppliers, construction, assembly and suppliers, and the process was quite simple, even the developer delivered the house a week earlier.
The new kitchen was the icing on the cake, the last piece of the residential project, the piece meant to finish off the interior design of the ground floor space.
What inspired the shape and choice of kitchen materials?
I know that the shape follows functionality, so the generous space on the ground floor dictated the U-shape of the kitchen, which was designed to provide a framework for the kitchen activities, as well as a separation from the living room area.
Speaking of colors and materials, my cat Peppa who’s white, fluffy, and full of personality, was, to a certain extent, the inspiration for the chromatic of the kitchen – a kitchen white as the morning light. Everything is white, from the sink, the faucet, including the napkin dispenser, and this chromatic, in contrast to the wooden snack table Noce Canaletto, makes me feel good every day.
What challenges did you face in the design process?
The boiler had to be incorporated in a column, but we installed the boiler after the first project variant and we called the MyKitchen Studio team to redraw the initial measurements to frame the boiler. Apart from this technical issue, aesthetically we did not change a thing from the initial proposal.
How was the first cooking experience in the new kitchen?
After a few weeks of dining at the restaurant and ordering food at home, putting the stove and the oven into operation turned each dish into a special occasion. Following the installation of the hood, the final stage of the kitchen works, it’s as if I started a gastronomic engine with the key, and now I’m enjoying the road ahead.
About Alina
Alina works as General Manager for the main stationery and office supplies import and distribution company in Romania. She has been working for the company for almost 20 years and wants to continue working for the same company for the next 20 years. Together they reached 101 employees and a turnover of over 18 million euros.
What attracted you to the stationery and office supplies market?
It is a well-established and sort of traditional market, with many small and medium-sized businesses nationwide, family businesses with generational continuity. Interactions within this market are more direct, person to person, we get to know our clients very well. We have multi-channel distribution, we work with small and large bookstores, national redistributors, hypermarkets, including e-commerce retail.
After 20 years of activity, where do you get your daily inspiration for the job?
I am a collector of writing instruments, especially fountain pens. We have a premium range of fountain pens in our portfolio, and in terms of pencils, we have 2 ranges of professional pencils with 120 shades each. We have pencils in 8 types of gray, and as life itself is a palette of grays, I find an existential implication in what I do every day.
What is the perfect pencil for you?
The perfect pencil must be soft to slide nicely, it must be pigmented to leave its mark and it must smell nice because that’s how wood smells.
