Caesarstone 4043 Primordia kitchen worktops bring quiet elegance to a heritage home, placing a natural, textured surface at the heart of a functional and social kitchen.
Set within a historic family home in the Derbyshire countryside, this open-plan kitchen was designed to evolve with its owners’ lifestyle while staying true to the property’s character. With children now grown and flown, the couple wanted a space that felt calmer than their previous art deco-inspired kitchen, but no less functional. As keen cooks and restaurant owners, practicality was paramount. The kitchen needed to work hard for daily cooking and entertaining, while also acting as a welcoming social hub where family could gather, relax and connect.
The couple turned to Martin Holliday, Design Director at Chiselwood, who had first designed their kitchen more than 20 years earlier. This time, the brief was different: to create a softer, more timeless scheme in keeping with the heritage home. One of the earliest and most crucial design decisions was the worktops. The clients had replaced their previous kitchen surfaces with Caesarstone around four years prior and loved them so much that they wanted the same again. Caesarstone’s 4043 Primordia was the natural choice, bringing a subtle, textured elegance that anchors the entire space.
“The surface was central to the project,” explains Martin. “The clients wanted a calmer, more natural feel that would complement the house. Primordia has this organic, textured quality that grounds the scheme beautifully – practical enough for restaurant-level cooking, but also elegant enough for a social, welcoming space.”
With its concrete-inspired finish and subtle tonal variation, Primordia provides a sense of quiet luxury. It sits effortlessly alongside bespoke Chiselwood cabinetry, Fritz Fryer lighting, and premium appliances from Sub Zero, Bora, Miele, and Quooker. Its light grey base is enriched with soft mineral accents and earthy patinas, giving the surface a raw, organic aesthetic that adds depth and character. From a practical perspective, Primordia delivers all the resilience needed for passionate cooks and frequent entertainers. Non-porous, scratch and stain resistant, and easy to clean, it withstands the demands of a busy kitchen while retaining its beauty.
Though generous in footprint, the kitchen posed structural challenges. Two large load-bearing pillars remain from when the room was originally knocked through two decades ago. Holliday’s solution was to integrate them into the handmade furniture, ensuring they became part of the design rather than a distraction. The layout was planned to maximise usability: the large dining table Chiselwood crafted years earlier was retained, a breakfast bar added for everyday meals, and a lounge area with sofas integrated into the space – making the kitchen the true heart of the home.
“Caesarstone is always our first choice for projects like this,” adds Martin. “The surfaces are consistently reliable – not just in how they look, but in how they perform. With Primordia, we had complete confidence that it would bring both durability and design harmony to the project.”
The finished kitchen feels cohesive and designed to last. Every element – from the furniture to the layout – is anchored by the timeless texture of Primordia, creating a space where cooking, dining, and living flow together seamlessly. The surface offers exceptional durability, scratch and stain resistance, and easy maintenance, all backed by a lifetime warranty. It is a surface built to endure, allowing homeowners to enjoy a luxurious, practical kitchen that stands the test of time.
Designing your dream kitchen? Caesarstone’s curated collections and visual planning tools make it easy to bring your ideas to life. Start by exploring their colour catalogue and ordering your favourite samples to experience the quality of Caesarstone surfaces first-hand.
Photography by Martin Holliday
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