Our favourite design ideas for AGAs as the iconic cooker turns 100
It's rare to find a country kitchen in the pages of House & Garden that doesn't proudly feature an AGA somewhere in its midst. Invented in 1922 by a Swedish Nobel-winning physicist, the heat-storing AGA has become the heart of many a home, often taking on the functions of radiator, clothes-dryer, toaster, and kettle all in one beautifully-designed package. Think of socks drying over the tea-towel rail and piping hot Sunday lunches emerging from the various ovens. Famed for its longevity (AGAs regularly last around 50 years), the instantly recognisable unit comes in a range of colours, making it a versatile piece.
Today, a century after the AGA’s debut, they don’t just belong in large country houses, but can often be found in the chicest of urban kitchens. Sometimes they blend seamlessly with the cabinets around them, while in other houses they are the focal point of the space, in contrasting colours or with their own tiles and hearths surrounding them. In celebration of this most recognisable and timeless of appliances, we’ve rounded up our favourite kitchens where the AGA takes centre stage.
Ngoc Minh Ngo1/16Typical country style meets an industrial aesthetic in Annabel White’s NYC house- The kitchen has streamlined pot racks built by Nick Cohen and a soapstone island with a marble butcher's block by BW Architects.
Sharyn Cairns2/16In Ben Pentreath’s Dorset home, the kitchen's AGA was installed in the Sixties; Ben added the wooden floor, painted in Farrow & Ball's 'Hardwick White', and found the glazed wall cupboard in a junk shop.
Paul Massey3/16Built around the existing navy AGA, Bridie Hall describes this look as ‘typical Ben Pentreath country-house style’. Traditional cabinets with olive-green paintwork in a gloss finish provide a rich contrast with cheery red and white Marmoleum floor tiles arranged in a chequerboard pattern.
Alexander James4/16In a project by Caroline Harrowby, the AGA blends seamlessly with the surrounding kitchen units. The kitchen was originally a series of small rooms; Treasure & Son of Ludlow did the necessary building work to alter the internal configuration.
5/16A black AGA looks chic amongst the olive painted cupboards in this kitchen by Caroline Holdaway.
Alexander James6/16This kitchen by Emma Sims Hilditch features an engineered oak floor with a white oiled finish to chime with the room's light palette.
7/16An AGA came with Louise Roe’s house when she bought it. One of the few design ideas Louise imported over from her time in America is the pot-filler above the cooker, a handy device that you don't see often in the UK.
Paul Massey8/16Lonika Chande has expertly mixed styles in her own London kitchen. The AGA sits amongst antiques and more modern pieces, making for an eclectic scheme.
Michael Sinclair9/16John McCall designed the units in this kitchen, which were made by Mark Stone’s Welsh Kitchens. The worktops are made from hammered black granite. An AGA sits neatly on one side of the kitchen, while on the other side, a smaller oven and stove top can be used year-round.
10/16In Henrietta Courtauld’s home, Maria Speake of Retrouvius repainted the The Plain English kitchen, in an Emery & Cie green to refresh the room and complement its cream AGA.
Alicia Taylor11/16Units by Orwells Furniture are teamed with ‘The Crillon Stools’ from Soane, upholstered in ‘Walnut Cowhide Leather’ in this smart modern kitchen in a country house by Todhunter Earle.
Lucas Allen12/16In a kitchen by Rose Unacke, the rustic wooden table is complemented by rush-seated oak chairs designed by the Arts and Crafts furniture maker William Birch. Copper pans are suspended from a metal oval hanging rack overhead. Above the sink to the right of the AGA, a previously enclosed window has been restored.
Davide Lovatti13/16Around the AGA in the kitchen of Tom Helme’s Carskiey estate, the walls are clad in geometric tiles from Fired Earth, framed by white subway tiling.
Simon Brown14/16The kitchen of Vanessa Macdonald’s Oxfordshire house has a cream palette, including the cupboards in 'Stone II' by Paint & Paper Library, and the AGA.
Andrew Montgommery15/16In Bridget Elworthy’s Wardington Manor in Oxfordshire, a bright and airy kitchen is complemented by a cream AGA and stone flooring.
Paul Massey16/16The pale blue AGA blends with ‘Willow’ wallpaper by Marthe Armitage in this country kitchen by VSP Interiors.
