Architect Simon Astridge’s client came to him in need of a simple, affordable kitchen for her and her partner’s tiny North London apartment. A one bedroom newly converted from a studio, the space itself had its own not-exactly-simple challenges: the main room, a mere 5 by 4.5 meters (16 by 14.7 feet), had to incorporate in addition to the kitchen the couple’s dining and living areas as well as their clothes storage: “The bedroom,” explains Astridge, “isn’t big enough for a dressing area.” His solution" A down-home combination of plywood cabinetry and “cheap, effective, and honest” plumbing elements that add up to an elegantly understated all-in-one design.
Photography by Nicholas Worley, courtesy of Simon Astridge Architecture Workshop.
Above: Despite being “dark and horrible” as was, the apartment is set in a mid-19th-century building with original Georgian French doors and shutters intact, plus a salvageable wood floor.
Astridge designed plywood cabinetry for the kitchen and hired “a good joiner to insure clean finishes.” The plywood is 18 millimeters (0.7 inches) thick and WBP-treated (water-boiled proofing), meaning it’s water resistant. The metal open shelving in the living area is Vitsoe’s 606 Universal Shelving System by Dieter Rams, which can travel with the client if she moves.

Above: The kitchen cabinets are paired with tall cupboards that hold the co...