Kitchens
Consider your options Can’t find what you’re looking for in the shops? Try thinking laterally and repurposing other items. In this quirky kitchen-diner, a garden trellis has been cleverly upcycled as a pot holder. The lack of kitchen space didn’t hinder the design, as the owners have made a feature of the rack in the dining area.
9. Contemplate a compromise Sometimes, making the most of a small kitchen is about compromise. The owners of this New York apartment decided to remove a huge fridge-freezer to stop things feeling cramped (instead, a smaller fridge is hidden in the wall opposite the window). The result: room to squeeze in a mini table in the space originally taken up by the bulky appliance. It won’t be an option for all homes, but the homeowners also raised the ceiling in this kitchen by 30 centimetres for a greater feeling of space.
3. Rethink the basics Creative thinking was required for the kitchen in this floating home built inside a shipping container and owned and designed by UK TV upcycler Max McMurdo. If you’re struggling to fit in a key feature or appliance, such as a fridge, try discarding all the usual kitchen conventions and think, “What if?” The result may break rules, but give you the perfect solution. Here, the end of a peninsula bench isn’t the traditional position for a fridge (or a washing machine or dishwasher, for that matter) and it may fly in the face of the usual ideas about how a cooking space should flow, but when everything’s so close together anyway, you may find that breaking a few rules won’t lead to a user-unfriendly result.
2. Keep things simple The owner of this kitchen in an ex-council housing flat has chosen an ultra-simple design for a greater sense of space. The pale grey units are light enough to keep the overall effect fresh and cool. Don’t want to sacrifice storage for open space? Breaking up a bank of wall units with a small expanse of shelving can lead the eye, and help the room seem less closed in. Similarly, eschewing a decorative or colourful splashback can help stop a small space feeling too busy – these plain white subway tiles with white grout keep the look minimal.
Make your floor the star If money is tight, consider choosing one standout feature that draws the eye. A patterned floor, for example, can create a focus and make everything else look more pulled together. As an alternative to expensive tiles, you could try ultra-practical lino or vinyl, which are cheaper to lay. In this simple kitchen, the vinyl floor is the star of the show.
6. Dine-in and vintage islands Instead of a typical cabinet-based island, a table gives you an extra prep space when you need it and a dining spot right in the centre of the action. Mixing chairs like this provides even more eclectic appeal. Try browsing antiques and vintage markets for inexpensive single chairs that you can collect over time.
Our kitchens often reflect stages of life, personalities and priorities. If yours looks out of step with who you are and where you’re at, it could be time to make some minor adjustments. For those feeling more worldly-wise and confident in who they are – or who would like to set an intention for this to come about in 2017 – a glint or two of glamour in the kitchen can be fitting. Read on for some simple tips on how to give your kitchen a luxurious lift, without the need for major renovations. Update your kitchen stools Mismatched, colourful or woven island stools can all work in a kitchen, but if you’re after a more elegant look, shop around for graceful lines and metallic finishes …
5. White and wood We love an all-white kitchen scheme in Australia, but to keep the all-white look from becoming too cold, designers and homeowners are introducing wood accents to help break up the look visually and provide much-needed warmth. Consider adding wood to features such as your benchtops, island front, flooring or feature cabinets.
Similarly, the opposite wall of the same compact kitchen includes some hidden essentials built into the base of the upper cabinetry. In this case, a small amount of cabinet space was stolen to hold electrical work, which allowed space for a flush under-cabinet LED strip to brighten the kitchen – a win-win. You can create a similar effect with most stock cabinets by adding a custom-built box at the bottom for electrical and using an extra-long door front to cover both the cabinet and the add-on to achieve a flush look.
In the shadows As most kitchen islands are oblong, pendant lights tend to be hung in a row of two or more to illuminate the length of the benchtop. However, if you have your heart set on a dramatic design that will make a stand-alone statement, don’t be afraid to hang it by itself – it will have just as much impact, particularly if it’s hung off-centre.
Playful touch In pared-back kitchens with minimal design features, colours or textures, you have free reign with lighting and can play around with an assortment of shapes and sizes. Hanging them in a cluster creates impact, as does adjusting their heights. Stick to odd numbers, such as three or five, for more visual appeal.
Contrasting colours To make pendant lights jump out and create a loud statement, choose colours and materials that contrast with the kitchen units. If you have wooden units, high-shine black or chrome pendants will stand out, or if your units are glossy white you could try brightly coloured glass pendants for a bold, confident look.
It’s all in the details Pendants that mirror another design feature in the room, such as the bar stools around the island, will bring an orderly and considered feel to the space. This balanced look works well in open-plan spaces to clearly define the eating area and separate it from the living zone.
2. Close dishwasher and sink placement If you wish to avoid dripping food and grease on the floor, place the dishwasher within arms reach of the sink. That way, when you rinse the excess food off plates, you can place them straight in the dishwasher. Otherwise you will have to travel across the kitchen dripping dirty water as you go, and I am yet to meet anyone who enjoys mopping the kitchen floor! It is also important to place the dishwasher by the sink in order to connect the dishwasher plumbing to the drain and taps.
Clean up the lines One of the best tricks for a high-impact kitchen that gives you big returns on your money is to aim for less fuss – a clean line of drawers, rather than a mix of cupboards and drawers, for example. People love this look and it means you can spend more money on good benchtops. For big savings, keep island units to a maximum 3 metres long and 800-900 millimetres wide, to get the best yield out of the raw stone material (you can get both the back wall and island in one top).
Rethink old materials The most common kitchen material, low-pressure laminate, has changed radically over the past few years. Remember the fake-timber look? Well these days, some of the low-pressure laminate is so real looking that most buyers don’t know the difference. This is good news for controlling the budget and, with less focus on cabinet fronts, low-pressure laminate (Melteca) and new materials such as Ultraglaze acrylics are fine. Today, both of these materials are delivered to the kitchen manufacturer in a pre-finished state, ready for cutting and edging – a quick and simple process that’s cost effective. Melteca costs less than Ultraglaze-type products, but Ultraglaze is still very affordable.
Three words: white, island, clean Most design briefs I see for kitchens are for a contemporary style using a back-wall-and-island layout in white (or sometimes grey) tones. Details have also become important – there’s a huge uptake of handleless kitchens, timber accents, and seating around the island. Combine these elements and you have yourself a good-looking design that won’t date too quickly, and is something I call ‘non-objectionable’, which means the kitchen will have broad appeal if you’re planning on selling your home. For most kitchen renovators in today’s market, the non-objectionable aspect is huge, because they are all thinking about resale value. If I had a dollar for every customer who says the new-build house they’re working on now will be resold in two or three years, I would be a rich man. For this reason, we are seeing a pattern in a large proportion of kitchens we sell – customers want non-objectionable designs so they can maximise their capital gain at sale time.
Retire your kettle Perhaps the most desirable kitchen innovation of all is the boiling-water tap (some dispense boiling water and some nearly-boiling, so do your research). It means no more waiting around for the kettle. A boiling-water tap is not the cheapest investment, but once you’ve got one, you really wouldn’t want to go back. In fact, make sure you shop around because prices are definitely coming down. You can buy these with the kettle function integral to the main tap – they normally have a safety feature on the boiling water valve that makes it harder for children to twist on. Others are separate, standalone taps that you can put near the main water tap or even elsewhere in the kitchen out of reach of little hands. There’s a storage canister, which is housed below the sink, so before you take the plunge, you’ll need to check on available space.
Bulkhead storage Storage, storage, storage! We all crave extra storage in every part of our home, but mostly the kitchen. If you have high ceilings, consider building an extra row of cabinets above your kitchen instead of an empty bulkhead. Sure, they will be high and not easy to access on a daily basis, however, they will add valuable storage space to your kitchen. Use them to store items that you don’t use very regularly, such as items that you only use once a year like at Christmas time. Keeping these lesser used items up high will free up more space in your lower cabinets for items that you use every day. Keep a small step ladder somewhere close by so that you can reach the cabinets when you need to. You can even use these cabinets to store other non-kitchen items that you don’t have space for in other areas of your home but don’t want to throw out.
The work triangle revisited You may well have heard of the work triangle, which emphasises that an efficient kitchen layout should minimise the distances between the stovetop, sink and fridge to simplify the working process. A lot of people believe that if you get this right there is really nothing that can go wrong, but the work triangle only works if it suits your lifestyle – and that’s different for every homeowner. Zone planning, on the other hand, is adaptable to every lifestyle. It comprises five key work areas of the kitchen – cleaning, consumables, non-consumables, preparation and cooking. Locating these zones within easy reach and tying them together makes for a wonderful kitchen with fantastic workflow.
11. Hand towels Use decorative linen towels to reduce waste by using fewer paper towels. Not only are cloth towels more eco-friendly, they save you money and add a little charm to the kitchen. In addition to your pretty tea towels and cloth napkins, you’ll want to keep a stack of cleaning towels or microfibre cloths on hand so they’re ready to grab when you need them. It will be less painful to forgo the convenience of paper towels if you’re well-stocked for the next mess.
10. Citrus When life gives you lemons, put ’em to work. Whether you’re adding a little zest to your meal, spritzing up a refreshing drink, loading up on vitamin C or just cleaning up the kitchen, citrus is a useful item to have on hand (plus, it displays well as a nice splash of colour). You can also concoct your own organic cleaning solution with lemon, baking soda and vinegar – just steer clear of marble benchtops. The acid can cause staining and etching.
Movable workstation An island on wheels, or even a bar cart, is great for cooking and entertaining. It provides more storage and a versatile surface area for prepping and serving. What to look for: stainless steel is great because it’s durable and easy to clean, or opt for the more affordable option, a butcher’s block, for a different look and feel. When it comes to size, make sure you have about 90 centimetres between the edge of the island and surrounding benchtops so as not to impede traffic flow. Depending on your preference, you can opt for bench height or bar height. Take note of what’s most comfortable before you head out shopping
A large island with lots of bench space and seating offers room for collaboration. Routine tasks such as paying bills, sorting through mail, doing homework or whipping up dinner can be executed without first having to move things around to make space. Having this clear surface also has a psychological effect that makes the home seem tidy even if other areas of the home are haphazard or covered with piles of items. No room for an island? Here are a few space-saving tips: When every centimetre counts, don’t sacrifice surface area for the small stuff. Mount your paper towel holder to get it up and out of the way. Instead of using a knife block, store cutlery on the wall using a magnetic strip. Find a cutting board that fits over your sink or cooktop so that valuable bench space doesn’t go to waste.Fold-down workstation surfaces are the wall bed of the kitchen. They give you extra space when you need it and are out of the way when you don’t. They’re also fairly inexpensive and easy to install.Or look to our next must-have kitchen accessory: the movable workstation.
For want of a better word, ‘clutter-free’ homes are about absolute due diligence. Yes, I will say it: I know it’s easy to look at these photos and comment on how pristine and well styled they are – and you’re absolutely right. But it’s important to remember that it is the very point of architectural photography. No one wants to be wowed by photos of a beautiful space, only to see a pile of dirty clothes the kids left on the floor in the corner. But that doesn’t mean achieving solutions like you’ve just seen above are unattainable, so don’t make excuses as to why you can’t adopt these ideals into your own world. Organisation is easy – all you have to do is start somewhere!
Reserve bench space for daily necessities Small appliances hardly feel small when they’re taking up all of your available kitchen bench space. Limit that real estate to small appliances you use every single day without fail, and store everything else in cupboards. One caveat: To make it more likely you’ll put said appliances away when you’re done with them, they shouldn’t take too much effort to lift. In my house, this means our microwave (which we mostly use for melting butter and reheating dinners) is in the laundry room, so while we do have to walk a few extra steps to get to it, it can stay plugged in all the time without taking up valuable bench space.
CLUTTER CULPRIT: The kettle. It’s a classic feature of a kitchen benchtop, but there are other options… SOLUTION: A boiling-water tap. This genius innovation is not a budget option, but it will make your life easier and your benchtop clearer by delivering boiling water on tap. Some designs can deliver hot, cold and boiling water all from one spout, helping to streamline the look of your sink area and surrounding work surface.
Tidy away that toaster CLUTTER CULPRIT: The toaster. It turns bread into a thing of extreme deliciousness, but they don’t half take up space too! SOLUTION: Tuck it in a cupboard. If you’re about to redesign your kitchen, consider having a small appliance cupboard created that can hold your toaster and kettle. Or get creative: this genius solution stashes the toaster away in the dead space behind a built-in oven, so it can simply be wheeled out come breakfast time.
Smarten up your handles An easy way to instantly revamp your kitchen is to change the cupboard handles. Hunt around for contemporary materials, such as leather or a warm metal. These long brass numbers with a matt finish are a stylish update to the pale ash cabinets.
Pep up the floorboards Painting floorboards in a noticeable colour has the same effect as adding a bold rug to a room. A rich, dark tone anchors the kitchen, giving it a cohesive feel that ties all the elements of the space together. Painting boards in a dark colour, such as black, also adds glamour and sophistication as they resemble luxurious woods such as wenge.
Pretty it up with plants Low effort but high impact, indoor plants add colour, shape, elegance and comfort, all in one go. Pick a spot that will show the plant off to its very best and your kitchen will feel replenished with a new lease of life and energy.
Add striking lighting Whether you invest in a stunning designer light fitting or you’re simply hanging an elegant pendant, a feature light will make a big change to the overall scheme by bringing in a renewed focus. The key is to go big and interesting for maximum impact.
Window dressing and lighting
Wood cupboard doors and white at bottom
More storage options
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