'The view through the sliding doors is my favourite': Aoife shares her cosy and light-filled kitchen extension

Aoife Cromwell extended her kitchen to make it more homely.

EACH WEEK, WE ask an Irish person with a passion for interiors to share one photo of their favourite spot in their home.

Aoife Cromwell has lived in a three-bed semi-detached home in Co Meath with her husband and two sons since 2008.

This week, Aoife (@fifis_home_) chatted us through her favourite spot: the living area of the kitchen.

rhdr Aoife Cromwell Aoife Cromwell

What do you love about this part of your home?

The kitchen was L-shaped when we bought the house and it never really functioned properly as a family space, so just over three years ago we decided to extend the kitchen to make it more homely.

I love the fact that it’s all open plan and the extra space we have now works so well.
The sliding glass door adds so much more natural light, and I love the view it gives of the garden.

What was your inspiration when you were putting the space together?

I love a home to feel homely, bright and welcoming, and I think we achieved that here by adding features like the Liscannor stone around the stove.

My husband is a civil engineer, so he took on the project and it was completed in three months. I have to say, he has the patience of a saint and both our ideas worked well – although there was some compromising throughout the build!

Talk us through some of the objects in the photo.

The sliding door and sky lights were a must-have when building the extension.
The sofas were kindly gifted to us by my parents as they were moving house when we were extending the kitchen. They are super comfy and fit in perfectly, even though they are a good few years old.

How well does this photo reflect the rest of your home?

Every part of this photo is my style. Obviously, I want my home to look good, but I also want it to have a homely vibe and feel inviting, which I think we achieved throughout the rest of the house, too.

Be honest: how much tidying did you do before taking this photo?

I always try to tidy as I go and I captured this photo while the sun was shining. I gave a quick tidy around and popped some fresh flowers into a vase. When I’m taking a photo for Instagram, there’s usually a mess behind me and two boys yelling for food or snacks!