This year has kept everyone home and made people see their homes in a whole new light so maybe it’s time to check out a few new design ideas for the kitchen. Now is the time to break free of your old kitchen and create one that suits your needs and wants. There are so many ways to make your kitchen look and feel brand new without doing a full-scale renovation.
Your older design ideas can start to look old and stale after staring at them for so long. Take your kitchen to the next level and introduce some new ideas to turn it into your new favourite room in the house. If you’re looking to make some improvements to your kitchen then take a look at these great kitchen design ideas.
Mix and Match your design styles
Gone are the days of sticking with one theme for the entire room with the new mix and match trend. Modern appliances are now paired with antique decor and it’s become much easier to find modern pieces with a vintage twist (like a brand new crockpot in the same pattern your grandmother had). The farmhouse trend is still hanging on but it’s been altered to let you display your favourite new kitchen accessories.
For a fun take on this trend, introduce some antique-looking furniture into a kitchen with updated hardware and appliances. A rustic-looking table makes the kitchen feel lived in and welcoming instead of looking like a kitchen that’s just for show. Open shelving helps keep the space looking cozy and warm instead of closed off but if you want the same effect, try replacing some panels in your cabinets with chicken wire to keep the cupboards closed but the space open.
This style is perfect for anyone that enjoys the modern amenities in the kitchen but also wants a classic welcoming feeling.
Cabinets out, single shelves in
With many kitchens turning into sleek and usable spaces, large cabinets are seen as more of a nuisance than a design element. Displaying your good plates is still a nice idea for your kitchen but try moving them to a single shelf in one area of the kitchen. Use an unused space up high (look for unused corners to start) and build or purchase a wide shelf to store your pretty plates instead of keeping them in a large hutch.
This can be another great place to display some art that you’ve been looking to incorporate into your kitchen’s decor without worrying about finding space on your walls. Another fun idea is to switch out any decorations based on the season so you can keep your holiday spirit nearby without letting it take over your kitchen. This way you can keep all the fun holiday-themed kitchen items around without taking up the floor space a hutch normally would.
Anyone who prefers a minimalist look will love the single shelf over a cumbersome china cabinet.
Bring in some natural elements
Kitchens are starting to get a more and more natural feeling with the addition of wicker and raw wood from many designers. This adds luscious brown tones that make kitchens look rich and feel like home. Replace old worn-out fruit bowls with cute baskets or change up the dull metal lights for a line of wicker bulbs to add a natural flair to your room quickly.
The bare wood trend does well on kitchen cabinets, stools or even your open shelving. For a quick way to add some extra wood, try displaying a wooden cutting board, charcuterie board or a nice set of wooden kitchen tools in a prominent (but fireproof) space in the room. For a long-term look, replace your countertop with a lightly stained butcher’s block to enjoy a beautiful and functional addition.
People have been enjoying bringing all the elements of nature into their homes lately so if you want a style that goes well with your new plant collection then this one is a great fit.
Be bold with your colour choices
In most homes, the kitchen and bathroom are the two places where you can get wild with your colour choices. Bold contrasts are very popular and choosing two colours on the opposite sides of the colour wheel (green & pink or deep blue & bright orange for example) will give you an extreme visual impact. Pick one for your walls and another for your basic accents and you’ll make your kitchen look like it’s straight out of the latest catalogue.
If heavy colours aren’t your style then choose one bold colour (bright yellow or deep red are a great choice) for an accent wall and slip it into a few other places (like a bowl on your table with matching hand towels and curtains) to make the room have a dash of colour but a ton of cohesion. Small accents can add detail to any room if they’re all the same colour and shade.
Anyone looking to make some major colour changes will love this trend because the kitchen is very forgiving when it comes to bright colours which makes it a great place to start adding some bolder spots to the home.
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Don’t lose your marbles
Marble countertops have always been the epitome of class in a good kitchen and it had quite the revival in the last few years but now the marble look has moved onto backsplashes, shelves, and everywhere in between. It pairs well with so many great colours and adds elegance to any space. There are many ways you can get the same effect without replacing your whole countertop or breaking the bank.
Epoxy countertops are a great way to do a fun DIY and get a fantastic result. There are a ton of great tutorials online that will give you the skills and tools you’ll need to complete the job. Another quick way to incorporate some marble is by using peel and stick wallpaper or peel and stick faux backsplash tiles. These can be found at your local hardware store and they’re easy to apply.
A marble kitchen is very versatile when it comes to other design elements but try to stick with the same metals from the marble (gold, black, or silver) throughout for a united look.
Paint it black
While your kitchen is often seen as a warm and friendly space that needs light, you can still get away with letting out your inner dark side. Dark kitchens are making a comeback and it’s an easy way to make the room look classy instead of cheesy. Don’t go too overboard with the colour (or else you’ll start feeling like you’re cooking in a basement) but adding it into some bold places will give you a luscious feeling.
Keep your walls and cabinets the same dark paint colour and add a few pops of white to give it some focus. Stick with a theme for your accessories (anything goes with black but modern lighting with a rustic table will look off in a dark space) and keep the rest of the room neutral to make the space feel stylish. If you want to go all out then replace your faucet and hardware with the darkest option you can find.
A dark kitchen is perfect for homes with great lighting or high ceilings. The more space your kitchen has, the better this gothic design will look.
Light it up
A bright idea for your kitchen is to swap out your old lighting for something with a little more pizazz. Bring your lighting down as far as you can by turning your recessed lighting into hanging or pendant-style lights. The kits to swap them out are available at most hardware stores and it’s a quick way to transform your entire kitchen.
Be bold and make a statement with some funky and unique lighting to give the room a focal point. There are so many options that are beyond basic lights but you still want something useful so choose one that suits the size and shape of the space you’re trying to light. A giant chandelier with high wattage won’t suit a small apartment but a set of smaller pendant lights with Edison bulbs would be perfect.
Replacing lights is a relatively easy task so it’s a great idea for anyone looking to change the look of the space without adding to taking away too much.
Out of touch
This design idea has become increasingly popular in the last few years just based on its functionality in modern times and it’s got the bonus of looking super sleek. Many kitchen owners have redesigned their cabinets to take away the outer handles and replace the opening mechanism with a push-to-open style. This eliminates the entire handle which makes the cabinet much easier to clean and sanitize.
You can use the same system for your drawers, fridges, and microwave to make the room look incredibly modern. Taking away the handles means there’s one less thing for you to wipe down and one less place for germs to be trapped. Touch-free taps are another great idea to minimize the need to clean and sanitize another often touched area and they’re fairly simple to install on your own.
Touch-free accessories are a great idea for anyone who’s looking to make some efficient upgrades that give them fewer things to worry about.
Out of sight, out of mind
While it may be tempting to display your brand new kitchen appliances, another trendy way to display them is… by keeping them hidden. With a few simple tricks, you can make your kitchen look like it isn’t even a kitchen at all. Many new fridges can come in a “cabinet” style that gets rid of heavy steel doors in favour of a regular-looking pantry door which makes the room look completely different.
You can also get other appliances like your dishwasher that have the same facade or use a space under the counter to install a pull-out freezer drawer. This will give your kitchen an air of class and cohesion while keeping all the things you need close by. This is a larger overhaul so make sure to check if your appliances will match in finish style before you make any major purchases.
For anyone that likes their kitchen to look cohesive and classy, this is a great design idea for you.
Take a trip back in time
Bring out the bright colours and Tupperware because the retro look is back but with a twist. Modern retro kitchens have the basics and neutrals that you’d get in a modern kitchen but with some extra hints of the past hidden in unexpected places. Change up your lighting for a retro-looking lamp or add some colourful glassware on your kitchen counter to give some funky touches to the modern space.
To keep up the theme throughout, you can replace some of your modern-looking small appliances (think toaster, coffee maker, or kitchen scale) with a retro-style replacement. Many appliance makers have started doing older-looking versions of their most popular items so you can keep your up-to-date technology while keeping with a retro vibe. Stick with a colour theme or go wild and get each one in a different colour to make it extra wild.
For those of us that like to keep a piece of the beautiful styles of the past with us, this is the perfect trend.
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Round it out
Kitchens are sometimes full of sharp lines and pointed corners so change the look of the whole space by changing the shape of anything too structured. Rounded tables, chairs, and light fixtures can make the room have a warmer feeling. You can even extend the curves to your faucet and countertops for maximum effect.
If you want to change the look with a few small things then start by displaying rounded bowls on some cute circular serving trays. Mirrors and rounded clocks are another great design idea that will add some fun shapes to the room. A room with fewer corners will feel more welcoming and much cozier.
This is a fun trend for a family kitchen because it will bring some whimsy and light to an otherwise chaotic space.
With so many amazing design ideas, it can be difficult to choose the ones you want to incorporate into your kitchen. Be aware of the kitchen’s space, how often it’s used and the functionality of things before you change too much but even a few small changes can make a huge impact. Try one or even a few of these great ideas to take your kitchen from basic to beautiful in the blink of an eye.
