Blending heritage & modern living: A bespoke kitchen for a historic toll house

James Latham supports Prestige Interior Projects in specifying premium Cleaf surfaces for a unique renovation challenge.

When Prestige Interior Projects took on the renovation of a private residence incorporating a historic toll house, the brief presented an unusual design challenge. Working closely with James Latham, director Bradley Jeffries specified two complementary Cleaf melamine finishes: Azimut (S022 Portland) for the tall units and Cheope (FB49 Glauco) for the base units.

The materials needed to balance contrasting client preferences while delivering a contemporary kitchen that respected the character of the original octagonal building. The result is a carefully considered design that seamlessly bridges heritage and modern living.

Where heritage meets contemporary design

The clients wanted a kitchen that would feel at home within their modern extension while remaining sensitive to the character of the original toll house. Adding to the complexity, the two clients had opposing aesthetic preferences: one favoured darker tones, the other lighter finishes.

The kitchen forms part of a bright, open-plan living space with plentiful natural light, yet the kitchen area itself has no direct window. Compounding this, the design needed to complement a premium stone surface the clients had purchased several years earlier – a material that had already become central to the overall design of the home. Bradley Jeffries knew that selecting the right materials would be critical to the success of the project.

From design challenge to technical excellence

Bradley specified Cleaf Azimut (S022 Portland) for the tall units – a lighter panel with a natural timber grain – and Cleaf Cheope (FB49 Glauco) for the base units, a darker panel featuring a subtle diamond pattern.

This pattern subtly echoes the octagonal geometry of the original toll house, creating a visual link between the old and the new.

“The diamonds in the FB49 complement that odd octagonal shape of the old toll house,” explains Bradley. “It’s a subtle little detail that pulls the toll house into the new extension.”

The dual-colour approach achieved multiple objectives. Using the lighter Portland on the larger tall units helped maintain a sense of openness, while the darker Glauco grounded the base units, creating balance and satisfying both clients’ colour preferences. Importantly, both finishes harmonised perfectly with the pre-selected stone.

Technical excellence in fabrication

Beyond aesthetics, Cleaf delivered unexpected technical advantages during fabrication. Bradley found the boards significantly outperformed the standard materials he typically uses for internal components.

“It’s a very strong, solid material,” he says. “It’s heavier than some of the more recognised melamine brands, and crucially, it stays straight when cut.”

Unlike lower-cost boards that can bow or distort once machined, Cleaf maintained its integrity, resulting in cleaner lines and a superior overall finish. The deep textured surfaces also add depth, with subtle undulations that catch and reflect light across the grain.

The art of grain matching

One of the most impressive technical achievements of the project was the precision grain matching across multiple boards. Several kitchen runs exceeded the length of a single sheet, requiring meticulous alignment.

Bradley successfully grain-matched both the Portland’s timber grain and the Glauco’s diamond pattern, vertically and horizontally, across doors formed from multiple sheets – a detail that elevates the finished kitchen and reinforces its bespoke quality.

A 12-month journey

From initial discussions to final installation, the project took approximately 12 months. This allowed Bradley, Leonie Jeffries, and the wider Prestige Interior Projects team to fully develop the design, source premium Cleaf materials through James Latham, and deliver the installation with exceptional attention to detail.

The result is a kitchen that successfully bridges two architectural worlds, balancing light and dark, heritage and contemporary design, while delivering the lasting quality Prestige Interior Projects is known for.

Looking ahead

Based on the performance of Cleaf in this project, Bradley now recommends it for all display applications where quality and longevity matter.

“I’d always offer Cleaf for anything that’s on show,” he confirms. “It’s a premium brand product, slightly more expensive than the alternatives, but the quality justifies it. For high-end projects where clients want furniture that lasts, it’s the right choice.”

To find out more about Cleaf surfaces, visit www.cleaf.it/en and to discover more about Prestige Interior Projects, see www.prestigeinteriors.co.uk.