With a young child and another on the way, home owners Anne and Mark approached SpaceCraft Joinery to design a more functional kitchen in their Torrensville, South Australia bungalow. 

SpaceCraft firstly identified the opportunity to move the family’s kitchen for better flow and function. Its new position at the front of the home replaces two previously separate rooms, while the previous kitchen was converted into a bedroom. 

‘The kitchen is now situated at the front of the home that opens out onto the verandah and front lawn area, creating a space that flows from kitchen to dining, living to outside,’ explains Bre Tarca, designer at SpaceCraft Joinery. 

Aesthetically, Anne and Mark were interested in a retro-inspired kitchen with Scandi elements, without compromising on durability. They pointed to a previous SpaceCraft project as inspiration.

The answer to achieving this outcome – melamine. SpaceCraft selected the equally stylish and practical melamine surface Wilsonart Khaki for the tall cabinetry, alongside Wilsonart Rosy for under the bench tops and kitchen island. The remaining cabinetry is Polytec Polar White; bench tops are Laminex Fresh Snow; and solid Tasmanian oak timber features throughout as a bench top edge, island leg, rail detail, and open shelving. White square tiles by Cerbis Ceramics on the splashback, coffee nook, and island bench tie the entire scheme together. 

As a result of this project, Anne and Mark have gone from a dark space with no dishwasher, connections to the living space, or room for a dining table to a showpiece kitchen able to support family living for decades. 

‘What we got was way beyond anything Mark and I could have pulled together. We love the curves, pink cabinetry and the tiled kitchen table is amazing!’ says the owner, Anne. ‘The new space makes sense, everything now has a place…The island has been used for wine nights, birthday parties and kids homework.’

If there’s one thing Bre hopes others take away from this project, it’s the potential of laminate as a practical yet stylish interior surface. ‘I think this project can change people’s minds about melamine kitchens!’ she says.