Talking kitchen design with Guy Sebastian

Last week, I spoke to Guy Sebastian’s wife Jules about the décor in their Gerroa holiday home. This week, we talk about the kitchen – the main focus of the house– with Guy himself.

Q: What was most important to you when you were designing your kitchen? 

A: Definitely keeping the view as the number one focal point. We had to work the design around two structural poles so it had to have some kind of convenient workflow when it came to cooking too. Of course it had to look modern and slick too — tick, tick, tick!

Q: What were the benefits of working with a professional kitchen designer? A: Too many to list. Most importantly having someone to bounce ideas off and make me aware of what was actually feasible or not. There are things I didn’t even realise were available that our designer made me aware of that are now our favourite things in the kitchen, like the spice drawer and the corner cupboard with pull out shelves. Seeing a visual PDF of the design in context also took a lot of the “What if?” worries away.

Q: Why did you select the particular finishes and fixtures that you did?
A: The gloss black is something I haven’t seen in many kitchens. It’s also highly reflective which meant the rear cupboards reflect the views when my back is turned to the ocean while cooking. I can’t miss the dolphins now, can I? The fixtures had to be streamlined and practical as well as baby safe — our little boy Hudson is very curious and opens everything within reach!

Q: It’s often said that kitchens sell houses! What elements have you added to make your kitchen stand out from the crowd? 

A: The kitchen is literally the main focus of this house renovation. Walls were knocked out to make the living space one streamlined open living/cooking/dining area. That created a lot of pressure on getting the kitchen 100% right! The gloss black and the L-shape kitchen island just scream communal to us and we love that.

Q: Where did you skimp and where did you splurge?
A: I guess with any renovation there’s always areas where you know it’s wise to invest in quality and others where you can compromise. I feel we approached the whole kitchen as something to really invest in so we didn’t really skimp on anything. We definitely wanted to include Ceasarstone benchtops as they are such a quality brand. While there are some cheaper alternatives around, we wanted to go with the trusted name. Being a holiday house, we thought it was unnecessary to go over the top on appliances, however the Baumatic/Omega appliances we selected are excellent and of a very high quality. The suspended Elica exhaust hood was a pricier option but integral. Being a really high roof, I didn’t want to end up with a huge exhaust flue taking up views.

Q: What do you think is clever about your design?
A: Our designer nailed it with the L-shape bench top and incorporating the varying levels and colours in the benchtops. And I think it’s clever that there is nothing above bench level except for the back of the room where the fridge/pantry is, and even that reflects the view!

Q: What was the most challenging aspect of designing your kitchen?
A: Incorporating the poles and trying to find a good flow. It was definitely a success!

Guy and Jules’ kitchen was designed and installed by Freedom Kitchens.