“Today’s kitchen is more expensive than the living room,” says Christian Witt-Dörring, the Viennese decorative-arts curator and cultural historian. “You used to sit and work in the kitchen. Today, you put the kitchen in the living room so you can be with your guests.” Although luxurious designer kitchens can be had for less — at Bulthaup, one of Europe’s leading high-end retail design firms, a customer spends an average €30,000-€f40,000 to redo a kitchen — we wanted something special, from which you can take elements, or the full design, for your own kitchen.

Svenskt Tenn is one of the torchbearers of the Scandinavian design tradition, which seeks a balance between old-fashioned craftsmanship and modernist functionality. Founded in 1924 by pewter designer Estrid Ericson (”Svenskt Tenn” translates as Swedish pewter), the firm is closely associated with Josef Frank, the Viennese architect and designer who fled to Sweden in the 1930s after the rise of the Nazis. Known in particular for his textile and furniture designs, Frank oversaw the establishment of a joyful, but never frivolous, eclecticism.
Today, Svenskt Tenn is Stockholm’s most prestigious home-furnishings store, as well as the creator of highly regarded public and private interiors. In their design for our kitchen, Svenskt Tenn architect Martin Edvardsson and interior decorator Katerina Abrahamsson started by dividing the square room into a dining area and working area. “Square rooms are difficult,” says Mr. Edvardsson. “There is nothing to get hold of, and you have to center the furniture.” A significant portion of the budget — €64,500 — is spent on the basics: a set of Svenskt custom-designed kitchen cabinets, made of white-lacquered mahogany, with brass fittings and a stained mahogany top; a hearth-like island built around an Aga stove; and a Josef Frank sideboard.

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