This Cobble Hill kitchen is the emotional core of a spectacular David Coulson Design build
“The kitchen is the heart of everything,” says builder David Coulson. “You’ve heard that line enough times…but the kitchen is really important.”
It’s the spot where people naturally gather, often without planning—they talk, cook, entertain, even just pass through. It anchors the home, and for Coulson, who has a background in restaurant design and ownership, the kitchen is not just a functional space, but a reflection of how people live in their homes—and how those homes connect to their surroundings.
Kitchen as the emotional core
Those principles come into focus at Tuscany Villa, a David Couslon Design custom home, located in Cobble Hill and inspired by traditional Tuscan architecture.
“This house was based on my favourite design,” says Coulson. “It’s that U-shaped home with a central courtyard, and the arms kind of embracing the sunshine in the south. We see it all over Europe.”
Private wings for children and guests are separated from shared spaces, each with direct access to the outdoors—offering both connection and retreat. Organizing the house around a courtyard, with bedroom wings on either side, allowed Coulson to position the kitchen right in the heart of the structure, effectively becoming its emotional and functional core.
Designed for movement and connection
The kitchen runs horizontally along the courtyard. Cabinetry wraps the space on three sides, creating a long, efficient work zone that supports movement without cutting off circulation. And with a depth of about 18 feet, people can pass through it without stepping into the galley itself.
“The size is generous enough that you can linger and lounge and entertain,” says Coulson. “And weather permitting, the doors open, and everything just spills outside: your wine goes outside and your food goes outside, and then you’ve got that inside-outside connection.”
The homeowners are enthusiastic cooks, and the kitchen is designed to accommodate that. Stacked wall ovens, separate fridge and freezer zones, and generous work surfaces allow two people to work comfortably at once.
Just off the kitchen, an indoor nursery supports one of the homeowners’ passions for vegetable gardening. Seedlings are started inside each spring and then moved outdoors—a small detail that reinforces the home’s connection to food, land and seasons.
Materials, craft and evolution
Material choices throughout the kitchen emphasize durability and craftsmanship. Marble from Matrix Marble & Stone appears throughout, including a marble shelf in the kitchen, which Coulson added after completion.
The creamy, yellow-tinged-off-white cabinets imbue the warmth of the Tuscan sun, and a secondary grey-mint palette draws its influence from the painted shutters of Italy.
“When you look across the hills, you see Tuscan buildings and that beautiful green,” Coulson says. “I think the palette, and the size of the room and then the vaulted ceiling, all make it special. And the box-beaming gives it even more of an old-world charm.
While the vaulted ceiling initially presented a challenge, Coulson’s team resolved the issue by using a boxed-beam treatment that ultimately ties the kitchen to the coffered ceiling in the adjacent living room.
The kitchen exudes warmth and light, with the cabinet cream set against white walls, a soft-grey porcelain-tile backsplash and wood highlights that include the beams and a walnut L-shaped corner detail on the island. All cabinetry was crafted by Curtis Neufeld of Neufeld Woodworks.
“The walnut was a beautiful touch on the corner of the island,” Coulson says. “It’s just so tactile there in that spot. Curtis is a masterful cabinetmaker and furniture builder; he does all my work.”
A design-build approach
Located in Duncan, David Coulson Design operates as a fully integrated design-build studio, managing projects from early concept through construction and interior detailing. Bringing all stages under one roof allows for continuity of vision, clearer communication and fewer compromises along the way.
“I’m still the big picture person here throughout the project,” Coulson says, “but I let my team fly and I let them have their own autonomy on the project.”
That approach has been shaped by a wide range of experience, including completion of numerous commercial, residential and restoration projects throughout Vancouver Island.
The kitchen as the constant
This top-to-bottom vision is evident at Tuscany Villa. It’s a space designed to endure and support routine, creativity and connection.
“I just love that U-shape in the central court. You’re growing, you’re living, you’re basking in the sun. You have privacy on the other side. It all sort of starts with a bottle of wine in one hand, and the rest of the evening just unrolls smoothly—and a home and a kitchen should evolve that way as well.”
The kitchen is never just another room. It’s the heart of the home.