Walk-in larders & bespoke pantry cupboards - A classic feature revisited
The Treske design team take a look at the growing trend for bespoke pantries and walk-in kitchen cupboards.
Larders & Pantries
A bespoke larder cupboard can be an extremely useful kitchen storage solution, adding a great deal of functionality, as well as creating visual impact when both open and closed.
Originally larders were a cool place where lard-covered raw meat was kept cold, along with other stored produce. Pantries were initially used to store bread, but the terms larder and pantry are now seen as interchangeable across a range of different types of storage. The modern kitchen now often has a larder cupboard as either a freestanding piece or as part of the fitted kitchen, but increasingly, where there is space, kitchen design is evolving to accommodate a walk-in pantry or larder cupboard tailored to the specific needs of the client and their lifestyle.
Photograph - Classic 'Press' repurposed, taken from Treske's Easingwold Kitchen case-study.
Why have a Larder cupboard?
Having been part of most homes kitchen storage larders were largely replaced by fridges and fitted cabinets. The resurgence of larder cabinetry is a design feature and incredibly practical way of storing dry food, cereal packets, and appliances that would live out on worksurfaces such as toasters and coffeemakers, to containing cool surfaces dedicated to pastry rolling.
In the modern busy family kitchen, the ability to open the door and use, or close, tidy and forget, is a great benefit to having a specific larder cabinet.
Photograph - Concealed door pantry cupboard, taken from Treske's Northallerton Kitchen case-study.
Freestanding or fitted
With super storage capacity and easy access to essentials, the rest of the kitchen storage and surfaces can be freed up. Larder cupboards can be freestanding items or fitted depending on where in a kitchen design they are placed. When installing power access is useful, not just for internal lighting for when the doors are opened, but also for any powered appliances that are planned for use on concealed surfaces.
Photograph - Freestanding pantry cupboard, taken from Treske's Showroom.
Kitchen Pantry Design
A larder cupboard is an excellent design opportunity, blending the immensely practical with a real feature when both open or closed in the overall kitchen design whether the design is shaker or a bespoke arts and crafts style.
Walk-in larders often combine food preparation with storage, sinks, coffee making, fridges, cool vegetable storage, and pickled items all in their right places for the organised cook or starving teenager.
Photograph - Walk-in pantry cupboard, taken from Treske's Osmotherley Kitchen case-study.
Cupboard Lighting
Showing off the well-organised larder is a great feature of kitchen design, not only in the right place for ease of use, but displayed to best advantage. Key in this is lighting – led undershelf or vertical strips to illuminate the interior also act as a way of highlighting the organisation and glamour of the cabinet.
You can find more examples of Treske's bespoke pantry cupboard design in our Be Inspired section.
Photograph - Pantry cupboard lighting, taken from Treske's Townhouse Kitchen case-study.
