Anna Dick from Anna Margaret Interiors tiles up some kitchen design ideas fit for the 2021 mood.

Whether you’re a foodie or not, a good kitchen designer will design with your particular circumstances, lifestyle, and style desires in mind. This attention to detail is what helps create your dream kitchen, whether it’s an entertainer’s delight with working scullery, or a sophisticated elegant family kitchen. Being the central gathering place in the home, it’s a space you want to feel easy being in, no matter who you’re cooking for.

So, what makes a great kitchen great?

Function and form work side by side in kitchen design, and are both equally important to get right. Layout is the first important aspect to discuss. You’ll have heard the term ‘working triangle’ before, and while it still holds true, what we now talk about is ‘zones’. How close is the preparation zone to the cooking zone, and then the cleaning zone? Where is the fridge in all of this and how easy is it to get to? We spend over 70% of our time at the sink in our kitchens, so where do you want to be facing? What architectural features do we want to enhance, and is there a need to future-proof for on-sell or ageing? And lastly, what can we make a beautiful feature of?

Once the layout concept is agreed on, we’ll talk about the style design. It’s the fun part, but there are numerous choices for colours, materials, finishes, and details, so it’s no wonder it can be quite overwhelming. I often hear people say they struggle with bringing it all together. They know what they like, what they don’t like, but how does it fit within the whole home stylistically to be timeless and current? Whether you’re renovating or building new, a good designer will listen to you and get to know the space, and then design to meet your desires within your budget.

What’s in style this year?

The NKBA (National Kitchen & Bathroom Association) recently surveyed its members on our thoughts for the next year. The move to warmer colours, textures, and lighting is still very current, so we’ll continue to see timber, warm whites and neutrals being used. Dark kitchens are still admired, however on the warmer side, rather than pure black.

Engineered stone is still the preferable benchtop material and there are some exciting new patterns and colours being produced. Porcelain as a kitchen material is gaining some traction and there are some stunning patterns that make great splashbacks. In the details, we’re seeing brushed nickel in tapware and accessories gaining great popularity alongside the favourite gold and brass accessories.

Being in a kitchen that is designed with you in mind will make this space even more enjoyable to be in.

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