If you’ve not discovered Victoria Magrath before, it’s our pleasure to introduce you to the talented lady behind award-winning blog Inthefrow. A force in the fashion, travel and beauty realm, Victoria has recently started sharing interiors too through a new Instagram account @frowhome to document the interiors and renovation of her beautiful countryside home that she shares with her husband Alex - and it’s every bit as stylish as you’d expect. We were delighted to see Armac Martin making an appearance in Victoria’s home and so we chatted with her all about the interiors for her striking open-plan kitchen. Here’s what we discovered when we caught up in the kitchen with Inthefrow…
Victoria, tell us all about your beautiful kitchen space…
The space already felt bright, airy and open and we knew our dream kitchen could easily come to life with the right team. We created a space with Coeur Kitchens that is full of depth, rich colour and more importantly great for entertaining friends. We chose to paint our cabinets in Railings from Farrow & Ball to contrast our bright quartz worktops and we laid ashy parquet flooring that runs through to the orangery, to tie the rooms together seamlessly. The result? A modern kitchen with luxurious brass hardware from Armac Martin and Scandinavian touches that is by far the most used space in our home.
Where did you look for inspiration?
We had a relative idea of the space we wanted to design as well as the colour palette we were looking to embrace, so the natural next step was to head over to Pinterest. We spent hours together pinning and finding inspirational images and suddenly we had all the references we needed. Together with Coeur Kitchens design team and our evenings spent on Pinterest, we sketched out our kitchen design and it became exactly what you see now.
What feeling did you hope to create in this room?
When we first purchased our home, one of the main selling points for us was the open plan kitchen and orangery. It already felt like the heart of the house and we had an aim to ensure the beautiful sunlight from the garden could still flood in through the orangery and meet our newly designed space. We wanted our guests to feel relaxed, comfortable and ‘at home’ and we hope we achieved all of that and more.
As the saying goes, the kitchen is the heart of a home. How much time do you and Alex spend in the kitchen?
It most definitely depends on the day of the week but as a couple that both work from home, admittedly it’s a lot. From making morning coffees together to sometimes utilising the island as a work from home space and then cooking together (translated as watching Alex cook) in an evening, it can sometimes be a large portion of our day.
What attracted you to the Sparkbrook collection for your hardware?
In honesty, I think I chose the Sparkbrook handles before I’d even finished designing the kitchen. I found them on Pinterest and immediately knew they were exactly what I wanted. A strong feel, robust and with the knurled finish to the ends. They are so unique and after researching the market, I found there was nothing else like them. The burnished brass finish too was a huge selling point and they truly finish off the kitchen to perfection!
You’ve got 15 minutes to whip something up, what are you making?
It has to be my go-to banana bread - so long as we’re not counting cooking time of course! I’ve used the same recipe for years and years and I know it like the back of my hand. It’s super sweet, super simple and can be adapted for so many different tastes using orange zest, almonds and even desiccated coconut if you have them to hand.
What’s your favourite feature in the kitchen?
This is actually a hard one to pinpoint but I think our favourite feature would have to be our island. It was the first thing we knew we wanted to add to the space and it’s now the focal point of the room as you enter. We chose a waterfall of statement quartz with contrasting grey veins that greets you as you open the door, drawing the eye to the island that people naturally gravitate to when we entertain. It’s our favourite feature in the kitchen and also seems to be our friends’ favourite feature too.
Would you do anything differently if you designed the space again?
This one is quite easy and it’s actually something we’ve discussed often since the kitchen was completed - if we designed the space again we would definitely add underfloor heating to the entire space. We naturally spend so much time in the kitchen that in hindsight we wish we’d invested the time and money as we did in other rooms in our home. A small regret in the grand scheme of things but something we’d definitely recommend to anyone else designing their dream kitchen.
We know you love to entertain and have friends over for dinner, so what would be on the menu?
If we’re having friends over for dinner I happily leave the cooking to Alex. He’s far more talented in the kitchen and not only that he loves to cook for others too. His go-to dinner menu currently is his take on Mexican food and my personal favourites are his amazing fajitas and spicy elotes aka Mexican street corn.
You fancy a little treat, what are you making?
If my sweet tooth appears then it’s always peanut butter on rice cakes without a doubt but if a savoury craving kicks in, then you’ll quite often find me reaching for the Violife vegan cheese with just about anything that I can sprinkle it on.
Do you have a sentimental recipe that has been passed down through your family?
We do have one we love and it’s actually been passed down through my best friend’s, husband’s, Mum in Illinois - spinach and ricotta lasagne. She makes it every Thanksgiving for us (we’ve spent the last four Thanksgivings with them but she’s been making it for around 20 years) and it’s become a favourite of ours too. Maybe one day I’ll be allowed to share it!
Share three things you always have in your store cupboard…
There’s always Whole Earth peanut butter, Oatly oat milk and Grumpy Mule coffee in our store cupboard - all daily essentials in our house.
How would you describe your cooking style?
My cooking style is very ‘things always work out so long as I have a recipe to follow’ but I so wish I was the sort of person who could create magic at the drop of a hat. I long to open our pantry and be able to whip up an amazing meal - maybe now is the perfect time to learn?
What is your favourite type of cuisine…
Does breakfast food count as a type of cuisine? If there’s an opportunity to make avocado on toast, pancakes with peanut butter or breakfast burritos in our house, then I’d happily eat breakfast food for all three meals a day!
Tea or coffee? Coffee (with Oatly!)
Pancakes or waffles? Pancakes
Sweet or savoury? Sweet
Pasta or pizza? Pizza (or both…)
Starter or dessert? Dessert
Finally, please share with our readers your top tip for renovating a kitchen...
I think the best thing we did when designing our kitchen was to really think about our personal needs and how we use it as a team. When one of us is cooking then the other can be close by at the island, when we’re entertaining the open concept means we’re always in sight of our guests and when we’re tidying up at the end of the day then the rubbish bins, dishwasher and laundry room are all tucked away neatly. So I guess our top tip would be - design your kitchen for your family, not just for Instagram!
If you’re feeling inspired by Victoria’s chic kitchen, get the look with subtle industrial design accents from our Sparkbrook collection.
