What are the latest trends in kitchen design?
Kitchen design trends come as quickly as they go so you need to be careful to choose something you absolutely love not just adhering to a trend, as you’re likely to be having these kitchen units for a long period of time and you don’t want to get sick of it!
High gloss panels, especially white high gloss handleless kitchen designs was a very popular trend that probably lasted from 1990 until 2010. People still do request this though but it is our opinion that this looks very clinical and not very homely. High gloss is definitely making a bit of a comeback though, albeit in different colours to white and it can look lovely in the right setting. The alternative to a high gloss kitchen and something which has been consistent for us over the past 30 years are spray lacquered painted kitchen units but in a 25% sheen level compared to high gloss which is more like 80%-90% gloss level. This goes nicely with both traditional and contemporary kitchen designs.
Open plan living is a trend that, in our opinion, is here to stay. We can’t see people reverting from this trend as the way people use, entertain and live in their spaces has made a fundamental shift and we don’t see this as a trend. Open plan designs often incorporate a dining area, a sitting / TV area and the kitchen, into one large space, often with doors out into the garden. For most people this will involve removing internal walls and if you don’t have to put steel beams in it won’t cost the earth.
Handleless Kitchen Doors, especially in a slab format, is a popular trend in modern kitchens as people tend to like the clean lines of a kitchen with no handles. We do like this look and think as a trend it will be around to stay, especially as the technology to enable handleless units such as the rail system improves over time (there is often a huge colour choice for your handleless rail) However, if you are leaning to a more traditional kitchen design then you probably should opt for handles! Handleless styling is easy to achieve and most kitchen suppliers should be able to offer an option like this. True handleless kitchens are also popular although we don’t love the look of a vertical finger pull rail and it limits you to only having single doors rather than double doors which we think are very useful, especially in a larder for example.
Doors and drawer options are not necessarily a trend and you should invest in quality here to ensure it stands the test of time. Internal cutlery/utensil drawers are something we see more and more and they tend to be extremely practical, especially when located near the hob or sink.
Shaker kitchen designs aren’t so much a trend as they have been consistent for decades, especially in a traditional kitchen range. I would say that as time goes on, different variations of the shaker door have become apparent and more contemporary designs may have a moulded shaker panel rather than a square edge, although this is a personal preference.
Slab door kitchen cabinets can be done in a variety of ways. You could have handles, a handleless detail, or even integrated handles that are routed into the door. Any of these options work but be sure to check with your designer during your design consultations to see if these are options they can cater to.
