Founder of the Deliciously Ella brand, Ella Mills is one of the biggest names in wellness world. Using her social media platforms, Ella shares daily plant-based food content with her followers from a studio kitchen overlooking London’s Tottenham Court Road. Despite being blessed with large windows, Ella describes the workspace as lacklustre and somewhere that ‘doesn’t really bring our brand’s recipes or ethos to life’. The space needed a re-think, and that’s where we came in.

The versatility of our four timeless kitchen collections ensures there are endless options and variations to suit the needs of those from professional chefs to busy families. For Ella’s kitchen, the vision was clear, it needed to be a practical yet beautiful space that reflected the Deliciously Ella brand; somewhere that she and her team could experiment with new recipes, film reels (something Ella does herself on her iPhone) and shoot for cookbooks.

Our comprehensive Kitchen Design Service meant Ella was able to work seamlessly through the process with designer Lizzie despite the office space – one long, industrial-style room – needing to be divided into two sections. Requiring different cabinetry, the first section would act as a shoot kitchen, and the second a prep kitchen. For Ella this was about maximising space. ‘We always have so many different projects going on’ she says, ‘we could frequently be developing recipes at the same time as working on product development’.

Shoot kitchen 

Arguably the more important of the two, the shoot kitchen, which was situated at the back of the office to obtain the most light, was to take centre stage in the design. Ella was instantly drawn to the heritage feel of our Henley kitchen, a classic British design available as all solid oak, all painted timber or a combination of the two. ‘I really liked the timeless look it has,’ says Ella. ‘The whole design of the kitchen is reflective of my personal style which is quite classic and paired back,’ she continues. ‘The kitchen could be there in 30 years' time, and I would still be happy.’

The first challenge for the design team lay in creating just the right amount of space for the cameras to shoot, all the while taking the flow of the kitchen and existing appliances into account. To avoid any overly tight corners, our team in Wiltshire amended our standard measurements between the island and wall in order to increase the space for cameras and accompanying equipment.

High on Ella’s wish list for the shoot kitchen was a double door larder, and while our Henley collection doesn’t traditionally offer one, Lizzie suggested crafting an integrated double cupboard with bi-fold doors to echo the same effect. The result is a beautiful piece of cabinetry full of storage. ‘It’s transformational,’ says Ella.

The final integral design factor was colour. ‘We knew Ella was looking for colours that reflected her brand,’ says designer Lizzie, and after showing several greens, she landed on our Cactus eggshell paint, a deep relaxing green with a minty coolness to it. ‘I think the colour is perfect,’ says Ella, ‘it echoes the colours of our brand and does so without being too much.’

Prep kitchen 

The prep kitchen needed to work just as hard. ‘It is a space we use a lot,’ says Ella, ‘sometimes we might shoot eleven or twelve recipes in a day, so the layout needed to be really functional.’ In this space, Ella chose the Suffolk kitchen for its clean lines and simplicity. Shaker style in its truest form, Suffolk is an understated design with recessed door and drawer panels. Lizzie designed a layout which included plenty of cupboards and drawers as well as an L-shaped countertop for all manner of chopping and prepping tasks. ‘It’s a really tidy use of the space,’ says Ella, ‘it feels like three or four times the space we had before.’

With installations complete, and thanks to the redesign and functionality of her new studio space, Ella can regularly host customers and important partners. ‘Being able to cook in our new kitchen and then serve a beautiful meal at our new Moreton table is just ideal,’ Ella finishes.

Working life in Ella's new kitchen studio

How does the new space work for you and your team?

‘It’s perfect. We’ve started shooting in it and it’s completely night and day to anything we’ve had before.’

What is your favourite thing about your new studio?

‘The amount of space to work in, I really believe in tidy space, tidy mind, it’s such a pleasure to work in.’

What has the feedback been like from everyone?

‘Oh my gosh, amazing. Everyone who has walked through the door loves it.’