deVOL

I bet you’re wondering why I’ve been waxing lyrical about DeVOL. I’ve always loved their kitchen designs, both in house tours of lucky owners who can afford them and also their ads which grace the pages of interior magazines. The one thing in my opinion that sets them apart from any other beautiful kitchen company, is their styling.

A few months back, a customer who has never been before, asked me if I’d heard of DeVOL. Of course, was my reply. She said that my styling was very similar, which, as you can imagine, pleased me no end. She then proceeded to tell me about their new show ‘For The Love of Kitchens’ on Discovery +. I immediately downloaded a free one week trial and binge watched ... OMG! I’ve watched every interiors show known to man and this, by far, was the most inspirational.

I thought it was perhaps that kitchen design has consumed my life for the past two years as we embarked on our own kitchen extension, but it was so much more than that. The story about how Paul O’Leary and his business partner Philip DeVries (the name being an amalgamation of their initials) started stripping pine doors (and only stripping Pine doors) for many, many years, until after about ten years, they made their first kitchen. I believe they even made the kitchen for Paul’s mother. To see a business grow from something small and be so successful is, to a small independent business like mine, so inspiring.

The show also focusses on Helen, the Creative Director. Paul said that it was only when Helen started styling the kitchens for them that things really took off. She spoke about how she wasn’t officially trained as such and it’s just something you have intrinsically. It really resonated with me, as my path has never been a conventional one. It was never my plan to become a stylist, but it’s the very thing I appear to be naturally good at. It's not something you can learn in a classroom. I was never very good in a classroom! So if you don’t have Discovery +, download a free trial and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as much as me.

The show also features their headquarters, Cotes Mill. You see their showroom, the various workshops and how they make their beautiful cabinets, handles and ceramics.  I just had to visit. So as a birthday treat, Jonathan and I drove north on Saturday night and stayed two nights in Loughborough to visit the showroom on Monday.  

It didn't disappoint, you must visit.

DeVOL Kitchens, Cotes Mill, Nottingham Road, Cotes, Loughborough LE12 5TL
Instagram @devolkitchens