“After more than 20 years of designing kitchens, I’ve learned that the best ones get two things right: how they look and how they work.” – Luke Counter
At Counter Interiors York, we work with both British and German kitchen manufacturers. That gives us the flexibility to find the right approach for the home, the client and the way they want to live.
When it comes to British kitchen design, though, there’s something I particularly enjoy about working with Masterclass Kitchens.
They give us the character and flexibility you associate with British furniture, but with the practical details and storage options that allow us to think much further than simply choosing a door and a colour.
Designing Around How You Actually Live
One of the first things I want to understand when designing a kitchen is how somebody is actually going to use it.
Where do you make coffee in the morning? Do you buy food in bulk? Do you need somewhere to hide the toaster and smaller appliances? Where are the pans going to live? Do you entertain regularly?
Those questions might not be as exciting as choosing worktops or colours, but they often have a much bigger impact on whether you enjoy using the kitchen five or ten years down the line.
That’s one of the reasons I like working with Masterclass.
Their storage gives us plenty of options to solve real problems. Pull-out larders can make ingredients much easier to see and reach. Deep drawers can be far more practical for heavy cookware than traditional cupboards. And a breakfast dresser or bi-fold cabinet can give everyday appliances a permanent home without leaving the worktop permanently cluttered.
I don’t believe good storage is about fitting in as many cupboards as possible.
It’s about looking at what you own, understanding how you use your kitchen and giving everything a sensible place to live.
What British Kitchen Design Can Look Like Today
British kitchen design doesn’t have to mean one particular look.
That’s something the new Masterclass Summer 2026 Collection demonstrates really well.
The collection introduces six new ranges across different styles, from traditional and slim Shakers through to contemporary slab and handleless designs. There are also new timber and painted finishes that give us plenty of opportunities to combine colour, texture and cabinetry in different ways.
– “I particularly like the slimmer proportions of Soho for somebody who wants the character of a Shaker kitchen without it feeling too traditional.”
– “But for me, the important thing isn’t how many door styles or colours are available. – It’s what we can actually do with them.”
A good kitchen designer should be looking at the whole room – its proportions, natural light, architecture, materials and, most importantly, the people who are going to use it.
Designing for the Home, Not the Trend
A recent 2026 Counter Interiors project is a good example of how I approach colour and materials.
The clients wanted their kitchen to feel “calm but not boring” – and I think that’s a really good brief.
We used Masterclass Hatfield in Willow with Portland Oak internals, paired with Silestone Siberian Frost worktops in a suede finish.
Willow gives the room that calm, understated feel the clients were looking for, while Portland Oak introduces natural warmth. Siberian Frost then brings everything together without competing for attention.
The kitchen also includes integrated NEFF N90 appliances and a Quooker Flex in black, so the practical elements feel considered as part of the overall design rather than added afterwards.
– “After more than 20 years of designing kitchens, I’ve learned that a room doesn’t need to shout to have character.”
Sometimes the most successful schemes are the quieter ones – where the colours, materials, storage and appliances all work together and nothing feels like it’s fighting for attention.
A Little Advice on Choosing Colour
“People often ask me what colours are going to date and what they should choose instead.
My advice is usually not to start with what’s fashionable.
Start with the room.
Think about the natural light, the flooring, the architecture of the property and how you want the space to feel.
If you want something lighter and warmer, Blonde Oak can be a good starting point. Pairing timber with a softer painted colour creates contrast without making the room feel too busy.
For something richer, deeper woods such as Tuscan Walnut or Espresso can work brilliantly as an accent rather than necessarily covering every cabinet.
And don’t feel that everything needs to match.
Choose a main finish, introduce some contrast and then repeat a few of those tones elsewhere in the room.
The Willow and Portland Oak combination in our own project is a good example. The finishes are different enough to add interest, but they share the same quiet, natural feel.
That’s often what makes an interior feel considered rather than overly coordinated.
Taking the Design Beyond the Kitchen
– “Another thing I like about working with Masterclass is that the furniture doesn’t necessarily have to stop at the kitchen door.”
At Counter Interiors, we also use Masterclass furniture to design bedrooms and other living spaces, and increasingly we’re looking at how those rooms relate to one another.
That doesn’t mean making your bedroom look like your kitchen.
It might be as simple as carrying a timber finish through into fitted bedroom furniture, repeating a colour in a media unit or using similar cabinetry details in different parts of the home.
The Summer 2026 collection gives us even more flexibility to do that, with finishes that can coordinate across kitchens, bedrooms and living spaces.
Done properly, the connection should be subtle.
You might not immediately know why the rooms work together.
They just do.
And for me, that’s good interior design.
Come and Talk to Us About Your Own Project
– “If you’re thinking about a new kitchen, bedroom or living space, we’re hosting The Great Kitchen Design Experience at our York showroom on Saturday 26th September 2026, from 10am-4pm.”
It’s a chance to bring along your plans, measurements, photographs or ideas and get practical advice from our designers about your own project – from layout and storage to colours, materials and those smaller decisions that can make a surprisingly big difference.
I’ll also be sharing some of “what more than 20 years of designing kitchens has taught me” in my 10:30am design talk, alongside our Design Clinic and live cooking, with plenty of opportunity to explore the showroom and ask questions.
Because after more than 20 years of designing kitchens, I still believe the best interiors aren’t simply the ones that look beautiful.
They’re the ones designed around the people who actually live in them.
RESERVE YOUR PLACE HERE
Luke Counter
Counter Interiors
[email protected]