Kitchens have always been the heart of a home. One of the most popular kitchen design trends is the open floor plan. Now these open kitchens are being integrated into the larger living space in new and exciting ways. Kitchens are being decorated like other rooms in your home and coordinated with adjoining open concept spaces like this family room.
Traditional monotone kitchen colors are on their way out. For those who ready to make a small change, a good strategy is to mix cabinets. Start with matching wall (base and upper) cabinets and something different for the island. You can change the color and/or texture to compliment the wall cabinets like the white and black cabinets below.
Want a bigger change? Pick colored cabinets but beware, you'll want a color you can live with for 10 years or longer. Another way to add color is backsplash. It's a smaller investment, so it will be easier to replace in a few years.
Another option, get appliances that now come in colors like red, orange, blue or teal. Or find a wrap (similar to the ones you see on vans) to turn your refrigerator into a telephone booth or gas station pump … really (check them out here).
When you want more countertop space, many open floor plans offer the opportunity for double kitchen islands. That's really useful if you entertain at home a lot. One island can be dedicated to food prep while the other can alternate between informal family dining and a buffet for parties.
Kitchen Design Trends Changing for Storage
We never seem to have enough storage space, especially in the kitchen. Pantries are once again popular, and if there's room for a butler's pantry, you'll fall in love with it. At the same time wall cabinets are being swapped out for open shelving which is more friendly in a larger great room shared by the kitchen, dining and family room spaces.
One of the most popular kitchen design trends is to use deep drawers in base cabinets for easy access. Noone likes getting down on their knees to forage for something hiding at the back of a 24 inch deep cabinet. It's like the drawers under washing machines and dryers, focusing on ease of access for an aging population. Microwaves are also moving under the countertop for ease of access.
There are also lots of fantastic add-ons from Rev-a-Shelf, to organize your cabinets (click to see them on Amazon). The most popular features are trash containers (single or double, shown below, depending on cabinet width) and sink tilt-out drawers that hold sponges.
Other kitchen design trends include cabinets with hidden or touch release handles, countertops made with natural materials like marble and sinks made with bright metallics.
Resources to Help You with Kitchen Renovations
Take time to research every aspect of a home renovation. You'll be spending a lot of time in this room. By matching kitchen design to the activities that are important to you, you'll enjoy the hours spent in this special place. Here are more resources to help you with your planning and of course, you'll want to check out Pinterest and Houzz.
- Kitchen Design: Thinking Outside the Box
- Kitchen Cabinet Plans Can be Challenging
- Why Picking Cabinet Hardware is Really Hard
- Best Kitchen Organizers
- Kitchen Lighting Key to Good Kitchen Design
- Ceiling Colors, Textures to Forget Missing Walls
- Budget Kitchen Renovations for Under $5,000
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