The Kitchen - The Heart of Every Home

Hundreds or years ago the kitchen was simply a fire, a stone and a pot in the middle of the sitting room with a simple hole in the roof to allow the smoke to escape. This fire was also the only source of heat and light, around which the whole family would huddle on cold dark nights. There was no selection of pots and pans, no drawer full of utensils, no oven, no worktop, no sink and certainly no fridge, freezer or washing machine.

 

Right up until the 19th century the kitchen was a very smoky environment in which to work as chimneys weren't common in many of the lower class dwellings. The oven or 'range' had not yet been developed so cooking was done around an open fire, with a pot suspended above the flames and a spit for roasting meat placed in front. It was only with the advent of the closed range that the kitchen became a smoke free environment and began to resemble the modern kitchen with racks of cooking utensils, cutlery and crockery.

 

With homes being built with water pipes feeding fresh water directly into the home and waste pipes feeding waste water into the sewerage system allowed the modern kitchen to take shape. For the first time in its history the kitchen became a clean and hygienic place in which to prepare food and as the range became more affordable, the lower classes were able to take advantage of developments which were once only available to the middle and upper classes.

 

As social standards aired towards more hygienic living standards, the old wooded worktops were replaced with Formica or granite worktops and around the range or oven kitchen wall tiles were added to make the area much easier to clean than the old bare walls. These advances sparked the concept of the designer kitchen and as the scullery maids and cooks grew out of fashion, putting the housewife centre stage in her own kitchen.

 

These days we spend more money on our kitchen than any other room in the house. Ever since electricity entered our homes we've had an insatiable appetite for kitchen gadgetry such as the toaster, the food mixer and of course the electric oven, fridge, freezer and washing machine. However these appliances were not enough to give our kitchens the identity they longed for.

 

Kitchen wall tiles became a more decorative feature than a functional one as the kitchen became a room in which to socialise as well as prepare food. The old Formica or granite worktops were replaced with the more fashionable marble or quartz worktops and everything had to match. So much so that some kitchens had matching cutlery and crockery, matching pots, pans and utensils, even the kitchen wall tiles matched the granite or quartz worktops in some kitchens and as tastes changed, so did the entire kitchen.

 

These days it's not uncommon for ones kitchen to receive a make over with new cabinet doors and drawer fronts, new tiles and wall coverings, new flooring, new everything!  The modern kitchen is the pride of every housewife (or husband) and the heart of every home.

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