Trends come and go, but traditional kitchen design has a habit of quietly enduring. While handle finishes and colour palettes may shift with the times, the appeal of a classic range cooker remains remarkably consistent. There is something reassuring about its presence: solid, architectural, and grounded in a visual language that feels familiar without being dated. 

Recently, a renewed affection for heritage has been shaped not only by architecture and craftsmanship, but by popular culture. Period dramas such as Bridgerton have reintroduced a wider audience to the romance of classic detail - symmetry, ornament, and a sense of permanence - and it is a language that has found its way back into the homes of many. 

Today's traditionally styled ranges are not about recreating the past for its own sake. Instead, they reinterpret heritage details - arched doors, bevelled edges, statement control knobs - through the lens of modern cooking expectations. Behind those classic facades you'll find contemporary temperature control, flexible oven configurations, and fuel options designed to suit how we cook now, not how we cooked fifty years ago. 

What distinguishes one traditional range cooker from another is not just appearance, but philosophy. Some brands emphasise theatre and visual impact, others focus on bespoke specification, and some prioritise practicality and ease of use. Below, we explore five well-known collections - ILVE Majestic, Lacanche Classic, La Cornue CornuFé, Bertazzoni Heritage and Rangemaster Classic - each offering a distinct interpretation of traditional style...

What makes a range cooker feel "traditional"?

Traditional styling tends to come from a few signature details:

• Bevelled doors, arched/baker-style windows, and chunky control knobs
• Decorative trim (chrome/brass/copper-esque accents)
• Enamel-style colour palettes (creams, blacks, deep blues/greens)
• A symmetrical, furniture-like silhouette

The real difference between brands is how they deliver that look - whether you want French "atelier" customisation, Italian theatre, or British classic practicality. 

ILVE Majestic: traditional design with dramatic Italian flair

The ILVE Majestic collection is unapologetically decorative, drawing heavily on classic European range cooker styling while amplifying it for modern kitchens. With its rounded oven doors, bold control knobs and richly finished fascia, the Majestic is designed to be noticed. It suits spaces where the cooker is intended to anchor the room visually, rather than blend quietly into the background.

The visual confidence is matched by a robust and flexible cooking specification. Majestic cookers are available in a wide range of widths and configurations, with the ovens offering clearly defined modes such as fan-assisted cooking, conventional top-and-bottom heat, grill, defrost and pizza or intensive cooking functions. This variety allows cooks to adapt the oven environment precisely to the dish, whether baking, roasting or finishing.

Deep enamel colours and optional metallic accents reinforce the decorative approach, allowing the Majestic to feel as much like a piece of kitchen design as a cooking appliance. 

Priced from £5,295 to £20,590

Lacanche Classic: a traditional range built around the cook

Lacanche’s Classic range is less about predefined specifications and more about constructing a cooker that suits a particular way of cooking. Rather than a single model family, the Classic range is more of a design preference, with various sizes and each model available in the Classic or Modern style.

Visually, these cookers are defined by clean lines, flat-fronted doors and carefully considered proportions. There is little in the way of overt ornamentation; instead, the design relies on balance, scale and the quiet authority of something built to last.

From a technical standpoint, the Lacanche range cookers mean significant choice across oven types and hob configurations. Rather than relying on digital presets or automated programmes, Lacanche prioritises direct, manual control and robust heat delivery. This sense of restraint continues in how the cooker presents itself in the kitchen.

A Lacanche does not demand attention, but it rewards closer inspection through its solid construction, weighty control knobs and rich enamel finishes. It has a distinctive furniture-like quality, feeling as though it belongs to the architecture of the space rather than sitting on top of it. The technology is present, but never visually dominant, making Lacanche particularly appealing in period homes or carefully curated interiors where subtlety matters.

Priced from £4,920 to £18,950

La Cornue CornuFé: Parisian heritage, built in the UK

The La Cornue CornuFé range brings a distinctly Parisian interpretation of traditional range cooker design, drawing inspiration from the brand’s iconic Château series. While its aesthetic language is unmistakably French – defined by sweeping lines, sculpted oven doors and elegant detailing – the CornuFé occupies a unique position in the market by combining that heritage with UK manufacturing.

Built in the UK, the CornuFé range marries French design sensibility with British production standards, offering a reassuring blend of craftsmanship and practicality. Visually, it remains one of the most expressive traditional ranges available. Bold arched doors, substantial control knobs and polished trim details give the cooker a sense of presence that feels deliberate and considered rather than ornate for its own sake.

A wide palette of signature colours reinforces its decorative appeal, allowing the cooker to function as a central design feature within the kitchen. The CornuFé models come available with either a gas or induction hob, ensuring flexibility without compromising the classical façade, with various modern cooking modes including defrost, browning element and base heat only to give this cooker the contemporary function it needs.

Priced from £7,310 to £9,040

Bertazzoni Heritage: classic styling with a contemporary edge

Bertazzoni's Heritage range is inspired by the original wood burning stove that founder Francesco Bertazzoni created at the start of the last century. Rather than leaning into heavy ornamentation, it focuses on proportion, surface detail and material finish. Framed oven doors, gently contoured edges and sculpted control knobs – in the choice of four different metals – create a look that feels deliberate and composed.

A distinctive feature of the Heritage range is the characteristic temperature gauge, set on the fascia. More than a functional element, it acts as a visual anchor, reinforcing the cooker’s heritage credentials and providing a tactile intuitive contrast to digital displays.

That blend of old and new continues in how the cooker performs. Heritage models are equipped with multifunction electric ovens offering a range of cooking modes, including fan-assisted cooking, conventional heat and grilling. These functions allow cooks to control how heat behaves inside the oven, supporting everything from even, multi-shelf baking to focused roasting. Hob options include both gas and induction, each framed within the same heritage-led design language. The 120cm induction model really brings this collection up to date, with the added feature of an electric teppanyaki griddle, allowing you to cook anything from stir fries to pancakes.

With both gas and induction models, the technology sits quietly behind the design, allowing the Heritage to deliver modern capability while maintaining a distinctly traditional presence.

Priced from £3,820 to £6,050

Rangemaster Classic: time-honoured looks, built for real kitchens

The Rangemaster Classic range feels instantly recognisable, drawing on design cues that have long defined the British range cooker. Baker-style windows, weighty doors and traditional control knobs give the cooker a reassuring presence, one that sits comfortably in kitchens where warmth and familiarity are prized over trend-led design.

The recently refreshed Classic range now sits on Rangemaster’s new precision-engineered construction. Square-edge doors, a streamlined fascia with uniform rotary dials and a white LED touch display modernise the profile, while larger viewing windows allow for better view of bakes and roasts.  The Classic blends vintage charm with modern practicality. Hand-built in Royal Leamington Spa, the new collection features practical upgrades and sits at the heart of characterful kitchens.

Available in 90cm, 100cm and 110cm widths, the Classic and Classic Deluxe models are ready to complement painted Shaker units or create a statement in contemporary schemes. Features such as telescopic shelves and Rangemaster’s Handyrack reinforce the range’s practical focus, ensuring the Classic collection feels as usable as it is familiar.

Priced from £2,395 to £4,695

Ultimately, traditionally styled range cookers endure because they offer more than visual nostalgia. From bold, decorative statements to quieter, architectural forms, each of these ranges interprets tradition in its own way – pairing heritage design with the cooking functions modern kitchens rely on. Find out more about all of these models on our website.