A shaker kitchen and a brass bathroom in Finchley
Finchley, London, N3
Overview
The owners had never renovated anything before, and said so on the first design call. "It's our first project, and we don't have a design mindset," they said. "We are just going at it in a very naive way and relying on you to have these creative inputs."
What they did know was the feeling they wanted. "Our premise is not bold and bright," they said. "It's natural and earthy." That one line did more work than any mood board. It ruled out a high-contrast scheme, it settled the brass, and it is why a house that could easily have gone bright white went soft green and warm stone instead.
Two rooms, a kitchen and a bathroom, in a two-storey row house with a converted loft in north London.
The renovation journey
Carefully designed, then built fast. A hundred and nine days on site from breaking ground to sign-off.
1. Plan
The owners came to Beams at the start of 2025, with a survey that March. The kitchen and bathroom came to Beams, while the structural opening at the back of the house and a garden room were handled by a separate contractor working alongside.
2. Design
Three builders visited the house during design, so the drawings could be tested against what was actually buildable rather than what looked right on screen. The owners saw the scheme develop until they were confident in it, and signed it off on 25 September 2025.
3. Build
Torba Building Service broke ground on 13 October 2025 and had first fix complete by the end of that month. Second fix and snagging finished on 23 January 2026, and the project was signed off a week later. A hundred and nine days on site.
The results
In-frame shaker cabinets against honed marble, soft green walls, and brushed brass running through both rooms. Natural and earthy, as asked.
The layout
The kitchen moved across the room. Units run along two walls with glazed cabinets above the worktop, and the far end was given over to a table rather than an island, which suits a room this shape better than another block of storage would have.
The rear wall was opened up for French doors onto the garden. That structural work ran alongside the Beams scope rather than inside it, handled by a separate contractor, but it is what makes the finished room work: one space doing two jobs, with enough light at the garden end to justify the marble.
The bathroom shower was redrawn during design, larger, as a walk-in with a single glass panel rather than a full enclosure. One fewer screen means less to clean and more room to move. A freestanding bath sits under the window with a double vanity opposite.
The aesthetic
The kitchen is an in-frame shaker by Estetiko painted in Little Greene's Green Stone, with a Mysterio Onyx worktop from LSD Stone and a honed Calacatta Vein marble splashback from Mandarin Stone. The floor is Havwoods Calvaire Midi engineered oak in honey. Handles, tap and sink are all ABI Interiors in brushed brass, the switches and sockets are Corston in antique brass, and the appliances are Bosch throughout, with a Pooky Bastille pendant over the table.
The bathroom follows the same logic in a cooler key. Walls and ceiling are Little Greene's Slaked Lime, the floor is Mandarin Stone's Trulli Ivory porcelain and the wall tile is their Pastella White. Brassware is ABI's Kingsley range with a heated towel ladder to match. A sheesham mirror from Tikamoon sits above the vanity, and the wall lights are Pooky's Hezion in brass and frosted glass.
One late addition tells you how closely the owners were watching. They asked for a cornice on the kitchen units. "It's just the right finish," they said. "Otherwise it was just finishing flat, whereas the rest of our kitchen is shaker traditional."
Where's that from?
Everything specified across both rooms.
- Kitchen cabinetry — Estetiko in-frame shaker, Beams Original Cabinets
- Kitchen paint — Little Greene Intelligent Eggshell, Green Stone
- Worktop — LSD Stone, Mysterio Onyx
- Kitchen splashback — Mandarin Stone Calacatta Vein honed marble, 610 x 610
- Kitchen floor — Havwoods Calvaire Midi engineered oak, honey, matt lacquered
- Kitchen tap — ABI Interiors Elysian pull-out mixer, brushed brass
- Sink — ABI Interiors Seba 550mm, brushed brass
- Handles — ABI Interiors Elsa knob, brushed brass, 28mm
- Appliances — Bosch induction hob, combi microwave, dishwasher, fridge freezer and canopy hood
- Kitchen pendant — Pooky, smallest Bastille in clear glass and brass
- Switches and sockets — Corston, antique brass
- Bathroom paint — Little Greene Intelligent Eggshell, Slaked Lime
- Bathroom floor — Mandarin Stone Trulli Ivory porcelain, 600 x 600
- Bathroom wall tile — Mandarin Stone Pastella White matt porcelain, 246 x 60
- Bathroom brassware — ABI Interiors Kingsley, brushed brass
- Heated towel ladder — ABI Interiors Elysian, brushed brass
- Shower screen — Scudo S8 wetroom panel with brushed brass profile
- Mirror — Tikamoon Kwarto sheesham, 1000 x 500
- Bathroom wall lights — Pooky Hezion IP44, brass and frosted glass
Browse more finishes like these in our materials guide.
Build support
Torba Building Service built it, with Ghani leading on site. Beams ran the design, matched the owners to the builder and held the money against milestones, releasing each one as it was signed off.
Things changed during the build, as they always do. A cornice was added to the kitchen units, the shower was redrawn larger than first designed, and both were absorbed into the programme rather than turning into an argument. That is the part the owners picked out afterwards.
"In the end, I am really pleased with the outcome. Beams was there to support all the way, and accommodated the design changes during the build. Really proud of my renovated home... Happy with the contractors chosen by Beams, especially the building company Torba Building Service. Overall. Worth it."
See what a kitchen renovation or a bathroom renovation with Beams involves.
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