Bespoke Kitchens in Long Melford

Contemporary bespoke kitchen in a self-build home in Bulmer, near Long Melford

Handmade Kitchens for Long Melford Homes

Long Melford is one of Suffolk's most handsome villages, with its long main street of timber-framed and Georgian houses, its great church and its grand halls. Many of its homes are listed, and all of them have a character that deserves careful, considered furniture.

At Chapel Lane Furniture, we design and make bespoke kitchens and fitted furniture for homeowners in Long Melford and the surrounding villages. Our workshop in Little Cornard is just a few miles away, so the people who design and make your kitchen are genuinely local.

We have completed a number of kitchens close to Long Melford, in Bulmer, Pentlow and Ballingdon, each designed around the house and the people who live there.

Individually designed. Made a few miles away. Created for your Long Melford home.

Kitchens for Listed and Period Properties

Older homes in Long Melford often have exposed beams, uneven walls, low ceilings, sash windows and deep chimney breasts. They are part of the charm, but they make standard kitchen units difficult to fit well.

Every cabinet we make is built to measure, so the furniture can follow the room rather than fight it. Cabinetry can be scribed to uneven walls, set beneath beams and proportioned around windows and fireplaces. Traditional in-frame or hand-painted Shaker cabinetry, natural oak and classic ironmongery often feel completely at home in these houses.

Where a property is listed, we are happy to work alongside your architect or builder so the new kitchen respects the building.

From the High Street to the Surrounding Villages

Long Melford's homes range from narrow cottages and townhouses along Hall Street to larger houses, farmhouses and barn conversions in the countryside around it.

A cottage kitchen may need to make clever use of every alcove, while a larger home or conversion might call for an island, a walk-in larder and a matching boot room or utility. Whatever the size of the house, the approach is the same: design the furniture around the room and the way you live in it.

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Hand-painted kitchen opening onto the garden in Pentlow, Suffolk

Our Kitchens Near Long Melford

In Bulmer, we designed a sleek, contemporary kitchen for a self-build home, making the most of an open-plan space and creating a welcoming hub for entertaining.

In Pentlow, the brief was to connect the kitchen with the garden. A large bifold window opened the room to the patio, and the hand-painted cabinetry was designed around that new connection for everyday living and summer entertaining.

In Ballingdon, on the edge of Sudbury, we created a timeless hand-painted Shaker kitchen with the character and craftsmanship of a traditional design.

View Bulmer · View Pentlow · View Ballingdon

Furniture Throughout a Barn Conversion

For the Birchwood project, we designed, made and installed bespoke furniture throughout a bright, contemporary barn conversion. Using solid oak wherever possible, each piece was created specifically for the property, bringing warmth and natural character to the interior.

It is a good example of how we can furnish several rooms with one consistent approach, which suits many of the larger homes and conversions around Long Melford.

View the Birchwood case study

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Traditional hand-painted Shaker kitchen in Ballingdon, Sudbury

A Kitchen Designed Around the Way You Live

Before we talk about door styles or paint colours, we like to understand how you use your kitchen. Is it the busy centre of family life, a place to entertain, or a calm room to cook in at the end of the day?

The answers shape the layout. We think about where food is prepared, how people move through the room, where appliances sit and what needs to be close to hand. Storage is then planned around your belongings, from larders and deep pan drawers to corner solutions, tall cupboards and drawers sized for the things you actually use.

In a period home, that might mean a larder built into an alcove or a dresser that displays everyday crockery. In a larger family kitchen, it could mean a generous island with seating, a coffee station or a dedicated baking area.

Where space allows, an island can bring preparation, storage and informal seating together, and help define the kitchen within a larger open-plan room. In a smaller kitchen, carefully proportioned cabinetry can make the space feel organised and calm without losing its character.

Finishes are chosen with the room in mind. A colour that looks soft in a bright extension can feel quite different in a north-facing cottage kitchen, so we help you consider light, flooring, worktops and handles together rather than in isolation.

More Than Kitchens

Many homeowners in Long Melford ask us to look beyond the kitchen. We also design and make boot rooms, utility rooms, bench seating, fitted wardrobes, home offices and alcove cabinetry, so the furniture throughout your home can share the same quality and style.

Planning these pieces alongside the kitchen often makes sense. A matching utility room or boot room by the back door, for example, can make the whole ground floor work better day to day.

For more ideas, read our guides to in-frame kitchens and bespoke pantries.

“We are so pleased with the finish of our kitchen. Jeff is both personable as well as professional. His love of his profession comes across in his immaculate finish.”

Rachael C. – ★★★★★ Google review

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Solid oak bespoke furniture in a contemporary barn conversion

From First Conversation to Installation

Every project begins with a conversation about your home, your ideas and your budget. We then develop initial design ideas and costings, presented as 3D drawings so you can picture the finished room before anything is made.

Once the proposal is agreed, we take detailed measurements at your property and refine the drawings, materials and finishes.

Your furniture is then made in our Little Cornard workshop and installed by our own team, so the people fitting your kitchen understand the thinking behind it.

Keeping design, manufacture and installation together gives you one point of contact and continuity from the first sketch to the finished room.

Visit Our Workshop and Showroom

Our workshop and showroom are at The Old Brickworks, Chapel Lane, Little Cornard, a short drive from Long Melford. You are welcome to visit, see examples of our work and talk through your ideas with the people who will design and make your furniture.

We welcome enquiries from Long Melford, Lavenham, Glemsford, Cavendish, Acton, Lawshall and the surrounding villages.

Questions We Are Often Asked

Do you work in Long Melford?

Yes. We work with homeowners throughout Long Melford and the surrounding area, as part of a service area that stretches roughly 30 miles from our workshop near Sudbury.

How long does a bespoke kitchen take?

It depends on the size and complexity of the project. The design stage usually takes several weeks, and we will give you a clear idea of timescales for manufacture and installation once the design is agreed.

Can you work on listed or period properties?

Yes. Much of our work is in older homes, and we are happy to work alongside your architect, builder or conservation officer so the kitchen suits the building.

Do you install the kitchen yourselves?

Yes. Your kitchen is installed by our own team, and we can coordinate worktops through our trusted suppliers so everything comes together properly.

Can I see your work before deciding?

Of course. You are welcome to visit our workshop and showroom in Little Cornard, and our case studies show a selection of finished projects.

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