The south-west of France. The Atlantic right outside the door. The relaxed, seemingly carefree existence of a surfer none of us would turn down. For simplicity’s sake, let’s call it “holiday”. In the design of this holiday home, you can feel that the paths between land and water are short, that there are only a few metres between breakwaters and forests, that salt air and pine scent harmoniously mix. Life tends to take place outdoors, and that’s how the interior and exterior merge in two clearly defined axes. And where exactly is the kitchen – an elementary part of everyday French life? Right in the middle of the action, just before you get to the pool!

The charming nonchalance of a luxury kitchen

With floor-to-ceiling front windows and seamless (also in terms of material) transitions from the patio, you can move almost imperceptibly from the water to the bar kitchen to collect freshly made salads, dishes and cocktails – the kitchen effectively only differing from the surrounding nature in its geometry. Such a “natural” way of planning a luxury kitchen is not always possible. But here, the architectural design emphatically took nature into consideration. Does nature know handles, bright colours, dark walls? Precisely. The result: the lines of the fronts are all the more elegant, the wood look all the more beautiful, the rhythmics of the table surfaces and the play of sand-coloured serenity and swinging shades all the more lively.

The modern LEICHT kitchen as a hub and a meeting point

However luxurious the kitchen, a certain holiday mood quite naturally dominates. On the bar stools around the central island block, with sink and hob close to the cooking action, no one is likely to feel they have to change to eat. On the contrary: the kitchen idea implemented by LEICHT Küchen AG is basically to be open, homely and inviting. The minimalist wall unit in Highland oak from the SYNTHIA range, with integrated sideboard that runs across the entire wall, blends silently into the interior and exterior and does not in any way reduce the size of the room. The soft matt colour schemes literally let the pines rustle and the mild light, the aroma of salt and wood, and even the odd visitor, flood in. It always seems to be summer here. Voilà, the doors are open, la vie est belle … and maybe we can go surfing again tomorrow.

Good architecture … is what makes my customer happy. - Laurent Estaun | Architect