Our reclaimed wood kitchen cabinets and sustainable production practices
Here at Wood Works Brighton, we’re pleased to offer a sustainable kitchen design service.
As we all become more environmentally aware, it makes sense to use eco-friendly products and practices when designing and building our sustainable kitchen cabinets.
Our kitchens – and fitted bedroom and living room furniture – are built to endure. It is our intention to offer our clients timeless designs, made from high-quality materials and crafted through skilled workmanship. Essentially, we are the antithesis of ‘fast furniture’ and everything that stands for.
What does eco-friendly kitchen design involve?
Sustainable kitchen design seeks to minimise negative environmental impacts, reduce waste and promote resource efficiency. Eco-friendly kitchen design also benefits homeowners by considering their wellbeing, making it a healthier space to occupy.
Here are the features of sustainable kitchen design which are key to our ethos:
- Responsibly-sourced material
Materials that are renewable, recycled or reclaimed can be used for cabinets, worktops, wall- cladding and flooring. We especially like to work with 200-year old reclaimed oak as it offers character and texture. We also use innovative modern materials, such as Foresso and Fenix, which repurpose waste via low-carbon manufacturing methods. - Eco-friendly finishes
When it comes to finishing and sealing, we’ve sourced high-performance products that are also eco-friendly. We use Koate’s premium range of natural, non-toxic waxes and oils for our wooden kitchen cabinets. In addition, Rubio Monocoat is food-safe and contains 0% VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Many of our kitchen designs have a painted finish and we always use products with no or low-VOC to reduce air pollution and promote better air quality for residents. - Energy efficiency
We encourage our clients to opt for energy-efficient appliances, LED lighting and HVAC systems. These choices can further boost the eco credentials of a kitchen and reduce energy consumption. - Durability
Longevity is an important aspect of our sustainable kitchen designs. We recommend materials, finishes, fixtures and fittings that are durable and can withstand daily wear and tear. Investing in quality reduces the need for replacement. - Local sourcing
Whenever possible, we source materials and products from smaller local companies. This minimises transportation-related emissions and also enables us to nurture our partnerships with local economies. - Low impact manufacturing
We seek to minimise our impact on the environment, while producing our bespoke kitchens and fitted furniture. We have an Inventair Clean Air System that heats our workshop. The woodburner uses our wood waste which reduces the quantity of waste we send to landfill. In addition, we recycle and reuse as much of our off-cuts as possible. We even give it away to others, including picture framers, jewellery makers, students and hobbyists.
Other sustainable kitchen design ideas and considerations include:
- water conservation technology to minimise water wastage
- effective waste management solutions – e.g. waste separation, recycling systems and composting options
- design flexibility and space planning to create an efficient layout which can accommodate future changes
- smart technology to optimise energy usage and maximise efficiency
Sustainable kitchen cabinets
Wherever possible, we use responsibly sourced materials for our kitchen cabinets. Most of the time, the ‘internals’ of your kitchen cabinets will be crafted from high-quality 18mm FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) birch plywood.
FSC-certified birch ply comes from forests that are managed according to stringent environmental, social and economic standards relating to biodiversity, conservation and workers’ rights. In using FSC-certified materials, we show our commitment to sustainability and responsible sourcing to preserve forests.
We also seek to minimise waste. For example, our Kisigani kitchen boasts wild oak panels, laminated with solid oak off-cuts so that we can utilise as much material as possible.
Image: Kisigani
Reclaimed wood kitchen cabinets
We love to use reclaimed timber for our kitchen cabinets – usually warm and grainy vintage oak. Our Giza kitchen design contrasts the 200-year old reclaimed oak beautifully with the crisp sheen of stainless steel across work surfaces and the generous island unit.
Another of our reclaimed oak kitchens – Bamako – also features charcoal Fenix units and pure white Quartz worktops. Fenix is an innovative carbon neutral material that has low light reflectivity, is soft to the touch and anti-fingerprint. Another benefit of this functional material is that any micro scratches that are sustained can be fixed with thermal healing.
Ikorodu is yet another kitchen that features vintage oak and all its character. The honey tones of the oak were paired with matt black Forbo doors and exposed brick walls for a stylish and sleek industrial loft-inspired style. Forbo is a 97% natural and sustainable rubber linoleum product, used for a range of furniture applications. It is durable, flexible, hygienic and tactile which works incredibly well in a kitchen environment. We also used black Valchromat for the cabinets.
Image: Ikorodu
Valchromat is an innovative product that is ideal for sustainable kitchen design. The moisture-resistant high density material is composed of wood fibres that are pigmented in the production process using organic colouring agents and a special resin.
Choosing eco-friendly materials
With our bespoke kitchens, no two designs are the same. We use a range of innovative and eco-friendly products throughout our kitchens, depending on what our clients are seeking to achieve aesthetically.
From sustainable kitchen cabinets to worktops, flooring and wall coverings, we can source just the right material for clients who seek style and eco-friendly credentials.
In our Zaria kitchen, we used a deep forest green Durat to create a seamless work surface and sink area beneath a feature window that overlooks the verdant garden. The green shade also works perfectly with the fluted oak units – we really delivered on our clients’ vision for their kitchen.
Image: Zaria
Durat is a colourful solid surface material made from recycled post-industrial plastic. It combines recycling with design, repurposing plastic waste collected from manufacturing and waste management companies in Sweden and Finland and casting it into a resin base.
Foresso is another material brand that we use for kitchen worktops. The product is made from waste wood sourced from trees felled in Britain and hand finished in Birmingham. It is ideal for surfaces including tables, worktops and other furniture.
Foresso uses wood by-products combined with minerals and a non-toxic and formaldehyde-free binder. We used Foresso to great effect in our Kananga kitchen to bring in some organic texture.
Image: Kananga
Timeless and sustainable kitchen design
We are fully committed to eco-friendly kitchen design. We will always seek to achieve our clients’ design aspirations in the most sustainable and responsible way.
Our holistic approach to design reduces the carbon footprint of the kitchens we create, while still achieving functional and aesthetically pleasing results. Longevity is an important element of being sustainable and the exceptional build quality of our kitchens makes them incredibly durable.
If you’d like to hear about our sustainable kitchen design ideas, please request a free design consultation to find out how we can help you.
