Adelise Morgan-Scully, Senior Design Manager at Elementi Cucina has given her insights into the industry. Elementi Cucina was created by our Design Director Katie Lusty. Katie's life changed suddenly due to devastating personal circumstances and a move back to Wales, from London was necessary. Katie has a wealth of experience in the Interiors industry and set up Elementi Cucina in Cardiff as a one woman show, quickly gaining clients locally with her passion, flair for design and exceptional interpersonal skills. Danni joined shortly after when the projects really started to roll in, a welder by trade, she is the glue of our operation and keeps the wheels turning in the ordering department. Adelise followed 3 years into the business, an award winning, experienced designer and is based covering our London and Southeast Projects.
Elementi Cucina is quite unlike any other interiors company, we are studio based in central Cardiff and Windsor. We travel to meetings on site armed with an array of samples and bring the showroom to our clients, even going so far as to fly them out to Italy to view the production set up and select their finishes and visit the stone yards in the UK to personally hand select their beautiful granite or marble stone cladding.
We predominantly work with developers, interior designers and architects and have built the business on repeat clients and recommendations. We focus on these relationships whole heartedly, developing them into friendships thus making work lots of fun and not really seem like work at all. This gives us freedom and keeps overheads low allowing us to be exceptionally competitive in our pricing. Personally, overseeing each project and working closely with our clients and their clients the end users too.
The brand Elementi Cucina is very much based around stunning high end Italian Design, when Elementi Cucina was in its infancy Katie wanted to create a design team that were highly skilled and experienced giving our clients a luxury service and making the project experience with us a seamless and enjoyable one. Relationships over her vast career in the industry and her experience were the key to this, in securing the right partners to work with to give our clients the choice, quality and stunning interior species from concept to completion.
Due to being a completely independent company we can supply and create totally individual interiors, tailored to the clients wants and desires perfectly. An example of this was a recent project in Dorset. The client came to us with the following brief - 'I want a truly bespoke reclaimed wood and galvanised steel kitchen, reminiscent of outback buildings back home in Australia,’ before adding ‘Fully loaded with uber cool Wolf & Sub-Zero appliances, concrete worktops and a walk-in larder’. The brief was detailed yet open to Katie's creative input in terms of colours, finishes and the small yet important details, such as the seating area, integrated chopping blocks and storage configuration. The client had been to numerous Interior design companies before approaching Elementi Cucina and was told the same thing 'Sorry we can’t do that' Katie Lusty, Design Director at Elementi Cucina, on meeting the client said 'Hell yeah! We can do that’ and then set about designing and creating a truly unique, showstopping kitchen, with the client on board for the entire wild ride from conception to completion. The kitchen won a national award and truly showcases just how bespoke you can go.
We believe that with a combined 45+ years in the industry, Adelise & Katie, bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to each project, we ensure that we keep up to date with the current trends, technical innovations and bring these to our clients creating beautiful yet well thought out and workable interior spaces.
We often get involved in project at an early stage and love working and collaborating with Interior Designers and adore the fact they come back to us time and time again, forming lasting relationships and friendships too! We truly do collaborate in terms of working together to creatively fuse together ideas and create functional spaces for our joint clients to enjoy for years to come.
This would have to be us winning a prestigious design award for the truly unique project Homestead Farm. It was a real honour to be not only nominated as a finalist but to win the award and get recognition for the hard work as an all-female team. It really did boost us all and we are so proud of what has been achieved with Elementi Cucina since we started 8 years ago.
Our recent trip to the Milan 2024 design fair kept us up to date with the up and coming trends, we even took clients out to Italy with us to the fair, there were some absolutely amazing new innovations which our clients are now including within their stunning Welsh new build project, the most stunning is a beautiful timber wall with a hidden door… which we predict will be huge in coming years, it was so technically brilliant yet, sleek discreet and looks beautiful!
Although recent years have been challenging with the housing market, were seeing a strong growth starting to come back this year, we are constantly evolving as a company and introducing new innovations for our discerning clients. We believe the industry is a constantly evolving one and the trends from our Milan trip are now coming through to the market, with deep rich burgundy colours with stunning textured woods, giving an atmospheric and tactile look to interiors in the coming years.
Absolutely we have recently introduced some fantastic new Italian lines to our ranges, including Kitchens, Wardrobes, Bathrooms, stunning new innovative Stones and even Garden Kitchens! We’re using all of them on new projects and can’t wait to see the first installs coming up soon, watch this space...
For us it’s about belonging to a trade body that is recognised throughout the industry, but also that they support and promote great design and share their members achievements and projects so fantastically well, for us it’s an honour to be part of such a wonderful partnership and one we feel is hugely beneficial to us and our clients.
About Elementi Cucina LTD
Here at Elementi Cucina we create beautiful bespoke Interiors for your private residence, development, retail space or show home. Working with the finest kitchen, bedroom and lifestyle furniture manufactures, we can create timeless interior solutions for your home. Renowned worldwide for their design flair we believe that luxury Italian furniture & kitchen brands have it all. Flexibility in manufacturing, colour palette, veneers and high end quality. As designers, this gives us the ability to create truly unique spaces. As an addition to this Elementi Cucina has its own Taylor Made solutions made in the UK. By working closely with our design team and our highly skilled craftsmen/women we can produce one off creations for your space.
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The beautiful Contemporary New Build on an old barn site is a high end, low carbon family home. Encompassing an environmental architecture ethos, that’s fully accessible in a sensitive conservation area. Designed by Terry Pinto at PADD Architects Ltd.
Our wonderful clients Debra & Kim were a fabulous, creative couple. As a Horticulturalist (Debra) and Sculptor (Kim) they moved from London to Dorset to create their dream home and enjoy a slightly slower pace of life. Both were instrumental in the design process and wanted to create a unique personalised kitchen to enjoy for years to come. The Kitchen brief for this stunning New Build Home in the heart of the beautiful Dorset countryside was clear...
'I want a truly bespoke reclaimed wood and galvanised steel kitchen, reminiscent of outback buildings back home in Australia,’ said Debra. Before adding 'Fully loaded with uber cool Wolf & Sub-Zero appliances, concrete worktops and a walk-in larder.'
The brief was detailed yet open to Katies creative input in terms of colours, finishes and the small yet important details, such as the seating area, integrated chopping blocks and storage configuration.
Debra had been to numerous kitchen design companies before approaching Elementi Cucina and was told the same thing 'Sorry we can’t do that' Katie Lusty, Design Director at Elementi Cucina, on meeting Debra said 'Hell yeah! We can do that’ and then set about designing and creating a truly unique, showstopping kitchen, with the client on board for the entire wild ride from conception to completion.
Katie set about designing the kitchen with our joinery team, with the starting point of using reclaimed wood was sourced from an old school in Scotland, complete with the ink stains still visible on the planks, which we retained, of course. We teamed egger board carcasses in sultry graphite grey (well the inside needed to be as amazing as the outside), a mild steel was used to band the edges of the doors and stabilise the doors, rivet detailing was used as the frame for the reclaimed wood doors. Finally galvanised sheet material cladding was used for the island back units and cladding panels (outback building style, just like the client requested) also concealing the Sub-Zero wine fridge, all finished off with rusted mild steel plinth with a clear lacquer.
Next were the appliances and we opted for Sub-Zero & Wolf for the drama and industrial feel they brought to the space but also the practicality and functionality, as Debra is a very keen cook, and the kitchen is very much a stunning yet usable working space for her. The imposing freestanding Sub-Zero fridge freezer looks stunning and gives fantastic refrigeration storage space whilst the Wolf range with its iconic red knobs gives amazing function and stunning looks teamed with the Wolf extractor in steel to compliment the other appliances. A Sub-Zero wine fridge incorporated on the back of the island gives perfect wine storage for parties. The client re-used their own Neff microwave and Coffee Machine as they had been recently purchased for their old property and were keen to upcycle and re use.
Worktops were fabricated in poured concrete which gives an industrial feel to the space, with the large island most certainly the focal point, Antique Mirror was used as a splashback to reflect the stunning Dorset countryside and Debra’s beautiful gardens surrounding the property.
The brassware needed to look just as amazing, so the Watermark collection Elan wall mounted tap was used on the main sink with a Zip tap for hot, chilled, and sparking water at the touch of a button on the island, Debra also wanted the functionality of the Kholer tap on the prep sink.
The finished kitchen and the overall effect is simply very unique and the clients love the new space created just for them!
Mansfield House, our recent installation for a wonderful repeat client in Berkshire.
The clients wanted a contemporary and unique new kitchen to replace the traditional shaker style kitchen they inherited when they moved into their beautiful home, an old coach house with stunning views over a lake.
Everyone thought they were mad to take out the perfectly fine existing kitchen, cream shaker with granite worktops and Miele appliances, but the clients really wanted the kitchen to wow and work for them and their young family.
Having worked with the clients on their previous 2 kitchen projects we knew they were open to ideas and really wanted a much more contemporary cutting-edge space. The scheme had to look individual and stunning with cutting edge Gaggenau appliances throughout, for the keen cook in the house.
We teamed our sleek Italian handle less furniture units in dark soft grey with the stunning tropical storm granite wall cladding, its beautiful organic veining and iridescent properties just shine through and bring a unique, individual element to the project.
Then uber practical Quartz Rokface Luna textured worktops were used on the 5-metre island and hob run add depth and texture to the scheme. Brass accents finish off the look, featuring bespoke artisan painted bronze wall units with a pitted, aged antique brass finish and patinated brass Quooker tap and Dowsing & Reynolds handles on the larder unit to compliment the brass flashes. Gaggenau appliances were the only choice for this discerning client, we went all out with the with the 400 series used throughout, a coffee machine, warming drawer, oven, steam oven, Vario Cool fridge freezer and flex induction hob.
A wine room really ties the space to the dining and living areas and the clients absolutely love the space that reflects their family, as individual as they are.
From conception to completion, Elementi Cucina’s Creative Director, Katie Lusty, was on board with this new build project working hard with the clients to create their dream home.
The clients were a young family with uber cool taste who didn’t just want a standard boring kitchen, wardrobes and bathrooms, like many they had seen, but were looking for something completely different, a statement, a reflection of their personalities as a family, quirky, fun yet functional for their lifestyle, which in a day could involve messy breakfasts, hordes of kids running around, the space being used as a family gathering place and sophisticated evening adult soirees. The clients were totally open to ideas, the more individual the better, they put their trust in Katie and were a designers dream client...
The kitchen space was very large, and the clients wanted it to look contemporary but with personality, cutting edge appliances were a must along with a stunning selection of materials. The space needed to wow but also work as a functional family kitchen, they love cooking and entertaining, and the appliances and extraction needed to be able to handle this, the kitchen had to be easy to maintain and navigate also. A focal point and copious worktop space for the family to congregate were a must!
The kitchen ergonomics were considered first, followed by the finishes (no insipid colours allowed), a beautiful sultry, dark door gave the whole design depth and texture. The layout was key, so Katie designed a tall wall run encompassing in beautiful organic strips of wood, refrigeration appliances were hidden and a pantry/breakfast area behind secret doors in the strip wood was designed in (to hide the toaster and clutter if required) and finally tall units for ample storage. The sink run included a beautiful stone sink and a must have Quooker tap system. The oven appliances were strategically placed for cooking with set down space directly opposite.
The island really was the focal point and practically gave the clients a central beautiful working space, with acres of clear worktop run for cooking up a storm and plenty of large pull-out drawers for storage. Dekton worktops add to the depth of the room scheme, the stone encases the back, island worktop and sides giving a monolith effect. The kitchen is a truly unique and stunningly original installation, and our fantastic suppliers who supported us throughout the project, especially the team at Classico Marble who really did go above and beyond with the intricate stonework (caused a few sleepless nights for sure).
Once the kitchen was designed, bang on budget the bathrooms and wardrobes came next, again working closely with the clients to create unique, individual, and stunning spaces. The Master En-Suite and dressing room showcase a calm, soft yet incredibly chic design, perfect for this fashion loving client and her husband. The children’s en-suites were designed to grow up with them, the girls bathroom features a stunning rose quartzesque tile and gold brassware whilst the boys bathroom is totally batcavesque whilst being stylish and classic.
The challenges faced on this project were mainly down to supply chain issues however we worked hard as a team to manage this and can happily say the project was a success and the clients delighted. True Elementi Cucina teamwork at play, all pulling together to leave the clients with their house, like no other.
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