Your Weekly Voilà: Out with the Kitchen Island and in with a French Dairy Table 💕🇫🇷

Currently, our French farmhouse restoration project is moving slowly. Cold winter rains keep us searching for indoor projects. We're looking forward to taking down the last interior wall to open the two small rooms on the ground floor. But we think it prudent to wait. Yes. We're still waiting for the exterior wall to be stabilized by the professional stonemason. It will happen. Just not on our timetable. Patience and . . . well . . . more patience is the lesson here when working on any large home project.

Still, I keep thinking about what the rooms will look like when all the construction work is finished. I make sketches, pore over my Pinterest boards, and take measurements of existing furniture, pondering what will go where. Every now and then, I place a piece of furniture to see how it might work in the space. Tim sees me positioning a chair next to the large cantou or fireplace in the kitchen and rolls his eyes. It's a long way before chairs and pillows will be the order of the day.

A girl can dream.

I found myself making doodles this week of a dairy table I want to design. I don't call it a kitchen island. It's something else. Sure it serves that much-needed extra counter space and storage or creates a place for folks to gather and converse while enjoying a simple apéro. But it's more special and interesting than the often big and boxy kitchen island. Situated between the cantou and the stone sink, the dairy table just might be the heart of the "little house at Glandines."

The English bespoke kitchen design team of deVOL has created the Dairy Table. It is made from European oak, hand-turned legs, and a smooth Carrara marble worktop that has a beautiful curved edge. Drawer pulls have been reproduced using the same lost-wax cast brass method used centuries ago. One leg conceals an electrical cable which leads to a socket for a mixer or food processor. You can find this beauty in their Heirloom Collection but be ready for sticker shock. Their website is filled with eye candy that can inspire anyone looking to create a kitchen with warmth and craftsmanship. You'll love their blog.

You could call it a prep table. I like the term that the bespoke kitchen furniture makers at deVOL use: a Dairy Table. Right from the start, it's an element of the kitchen that is both inspiring and relevant, simple and functional. deVOL used the kitchen at Lanhydrock House in Cornwall, England for their inspiration. I love the craftsmanship and attention to detail. When you bring a design that stands the test of time both in terms of form and function, it can feel absolutely current in almost any interior.

While a deVOL Dairy Table is not in my budget (it costs more than what we paid for the house), it does inspire me to combine bits and bobs we have in the barn. From old table bases found in a junkyard, a tabletop discarded on the side of the road, and leftovers from previous projects, there has to be a beautiful dairy table in there somewhere. Fortunately, Tim doesn't like to throw anything away. It can be an annoying habit given we often live in a small space but this time I'm happy to have a pile to rummage through as we see what we can put together.

The kitchen at Lanhydrock in Cornwall draws inspiration from the late Victorian era. I love the stone floors, dairy table, Welsh dresser, and that stove!

I first heard the term "dairy table" when I visited the Queen's Hamlet at Versailles. It's a term often connected to kitchen worktables from large, private homes in the UK or Ireland but there are "dairy" tables in France too. They were often used for the early stages of making cheese. Think a well-worn, taller farmhouse table. Ideally, you want your dairy table to be about 7 inches taller than a standard dining table so it's suitable as a work surface.

There are specific details I want to include in my dairy table. I want to have at least one, preferably two, shelves underneath. I want to have ease of access to my have large ironstone platters and batter bowls. Small, antique French laundry baskets can hold linens, bakeware, and small appliances that I like to tuck out of sight. You can never have too much storage. While we often start with color and style when we design a room, storage is truly the most important consideration, especially when it comes to kitchen organization. You don't want to fight to find a clear surface to prepare your meals.

I'm hunting for old hardware for the drawer pulls. I need at least two drawers to hide what I call my "ugly utensils." For me, potato masher or cheese grater are filed under this category. I want there to be a brass towel bar at the end for my French linen towels. There needs to be an electrical outlet nearby because I don't always want to whisk by hand.

One-third of the table will be a salvaged piece of marble that is perfect for rolling out pastry. Two identical lights that we'll reuse from our house will be hung together above for work lighting. I want the dairy table to be proportional to the room and I don't want the space crowded with a lot of furniture. It's better to select certain pieces that you love and allow them to breathe in a room.

Our kitchen is the first room you enter from the front door. I want the initial impression to be that this home is about a simple, well-lived French life.

I think a dairy table can be just about any size and fit any kitchen. A place where you can work or enjoy a quiet moment with a cup of tea might be all you need to fit within both your space and your lifestyle. Photo from deVOL's website.

Kitchens have become very complicated spaces and islands don't help. By their very nature, they tend to be blocky and massive in their proportions. They are also a big commitment, a permanent fitted fixture you cannot easily undo, especially if it features a stove or sink. But with a worktable, you feel freer to experiment with placement, surface material, and can more easily change it when the spirit moves you.

I know I am definitely in the minority here when I admit that I've never been a fan of large kitchen islands. Sure - I just wrote that we all have clutter that needs to be stored. But in simpler times, you had a good knife, a cutting board, and a table to chop some fresh herbs picked from the garden. Kitchens have shifted from humble food prep to the hub of the household. I love that. But do we really need to pile lots of stuff on top of a large island? Isn't a dining room table a more pleasant place to work, eat, and drink wine with friends?

And don't get me started on an open concept kitchen and living space. I'm old-fashioned here. I don't want to see my dirty dishes while I dine. And I don't want everyone to be staring at me while I attempt to flip my crepes. I like my dining and food preparation to be close together but with clear separation. I know. I'm swimming upstream here.

I love the idea of having a portion of the dairy table in marble. What a great way to use an old remanent of stone. You don't have to use one piece of wood for the top. Use pieces from an old table and place them crosswise until you get the length that works with your base. And again with that fabulous stone floor and stove. Swoon. Image from my Pinterest board.

Anytime you can add an antique piece of furniture to a kitchen, you're adding interest and practicality. If you find a great old French farmhouse table, you can add a bit of height to make it more comfortable at which to work. Add some feet and a shelf salvaged from another table. Or use the top as the shelf and use stone or zinc for a new top. Photo from Max Rollitt @max_rollitt on Instagram.

I want my kitchen to feel less like a kitchen and more a reflection of a simple life lived with beautiful things. My style is built on a desire to create a home reminiscent of a time when objects were made to last a lifetime or more and carry with them stories from their previous owners. Classic design where each well-made piece works well with another wherever it is placed. It doesn't require everything to match or fit perfectly into a fitted kitchen plan. A kitchen can be forgiving, functional, and a bit quirky.

It takes time, thought, and a lot of hunting to create a simple, unfitted French farmhouse kitchen. But when the pieces come together, as one day they will in my own kitchen, the reward is a space that will capture new stories and provide you a delightful place to feed yourself and your loved ones.

This weekend, find a spot in your kitchen for an old table.

À bientôt,
Karen 🇫🇷