We wanted to bring you some colourful inspiration this week, so immediately thought of the latest things we’ve seen from Koivu.This kitchen company builds bespoke kitchen using sustainable birch plywood from Finland. Douglas Sutherland wanted to do things differently and sustainably with Koivu, making kitchens with a long lifespan using strong, waterproof and sustainable plywood. He considers it the perfect material to take the hard knocks of a busy kitchen.

‘We all know about the environmental impact of consumerism, and I consider it vital that we create products that last and will continue to look beautiful and which will function well, long into the future’ he says.

Koivu make a donation to the Woodland Trust, which supports the replanting of trees, for each kitchen they make. After a design consultation, each kitchen is built to order (there are no ‘standard’ sizes) and delivered to site fully assembled.

Worksurfaces are in Fenix or Formica, both materials are hugely hardwearing, can have an anti-bacterial coating, and come in dozens of colours. All the materials used in the kitchens are tested for VOC emissions, and Douglas Sutherland is proud to be able to say that a Koivu kitchen produces the lowest VOC emissions possible on the market today. ‘We’re delighted that we can supply beautiful, bespoke kitchens with minimal environmental impact’ he says.

We couldn’t resist bringing you some colourful ideas for accessories to go with these cheerful kitchens! From left; the absolutely fabulous Jungle Serving Spoon from Red Candy; a sunny yellow Triangle vase from a selection at George Home at Asda, and Birch Tray in Pear Halves Grass Green from Cambridge Imprint.

Koivu open plan kitchen with open shelving and concealed extractor (behind the clock); the work surfaces are laminate, bonded onto birch plywood.

Crisp blue shades for a new blue kitchen … From left; Three Fish Tea Towel by designer Kate Guy; Blue Hand Glazed Dinnerware from Cox & Cox, and lastly, a Navy Salt or Pepper Mill from KitchenCraft. All very suited to a new blue kitchen …

And finally, a sunny yellow kitchen by Koivu. A very uplifting and welcoming scheme for summer days and sure to add cheer to dull days too. We’ll be bringing you a case study from Koivu soon too – watch this space!