The renovation of a kitchen in an old Skiathos townhouse needed sympathy and modernising in a way that probably ended up making it look even more 'taditional' than before we started.

With kitchens it's important to keep them easy to use and functional but with this property I felt it was also important that the kitchen felt like it belonged to the house.

This was achieved in a very resourceful and yet very effective way by brick building shelves along the main kitchen wall, leaving room for a ceramic sink and a freestanding cooker and then rendering and painting. This is a traditional solution used in various old properties in Greece but gives a very effective and modern look. Tiles used as a work surface and splashback give a hygenic workspace and removable wooden shelves made it all easy to clean and refresh if needed with a new coat of paint. It was important to preserve as much original character as you can, this included the traditional open fireplace, original floor tiles and wooden ceiling which had to be taken down but we replaced exactly as it was before.

Before:

The owners of the townhouse currently rent the property at www.facebook.com/aethrea.townhouse or on airbnb if you search for Aethrea townhouse, Skiathos.