WHAT'S COOKING?
Kitchen & Bath Industry Show serves up latest trends in kitchen design
A recent visit to the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS), the largest of its kind in North America and held in Las Vegas this March, showed a dazzling array of the latest in kitchen design for 2024 and beyond. The colour green prevailed, as did multipurpose appliances and new techniques in stone. And while some trends are proving themselves to be enduring — minimalism, for instance, isn't going anywhere — a few surprising new currents emerged. Here's a look at what's set to influence design in the year ahead.
MINIMALISM IS STILL MORE
Warm, clean, minimal style continues to be the overall trend in kitchen design. Pure white and cool grey are fading out in favour of warm greige, light-coloured woods, herringbone hardwood floors and low-key matte textures for countertop finishes that replicate leather, linen or silk. Jacandi, a cross between the clean lines of Scandi and the organic, serene style of Japanese design, turns an ordinary kitchen into an oasis. Solid-surface maker Caesarstone has introduced no fewer than 14 new warm-toned designs in its quartz and porcelain surfaces, featuring both subtle and bold veining and mottling.
COLOUR RETURNS
A wider range of shades is being offered both in kitchen features and appliances. The Italian manufacturer Ilve offers custom stoves and ovens in some 213 different colours and four trim packages. Asian appliance maker Fotile's black ovens and range hoods are finished in the same pigment used in Chinese ink paintings, giving the finish a striking depth and richness. While Miele and others offer rich grey, black or black stainless-steel finishes, a newsworthy update on regular stainless steel.
GOING GREEN
The hue is suddenly everywhere in kitchens, in everything from counters and appliances to cabinetry. Grassy-tinted quartz and porcelain surfaces, sometimes shot through with gold veins, offer a natural, artistic look. Perhaps influenced by a larger trend toward bringing nature into the home, every shade of green is in vogue, from chartreuse, emerald and jade to deep forest green. For those who prefer something calmer, a soft grey-green that's almost neutral is an option.
HEART OF STONE
Natural stone, quartz and porcelain surfaces are appearing in other places besides countertops: wall panels, large single-slab backsplashes, decorative murals, chimney breast facings and, notably, outdoor surfaces; both modern-day quartz and porcelain are durable enough for outdoor use even in Canada. “Full-body” quartz and porcelain, where the pattern runs right through the slab rather than being printed only on the top, are also growing in popularity; the full-body technique allows for more subtle and varied treatments such as fluting or exposed, mitred or rounded edges.
STRIPPED-DOWN APPLIANCES
Appliance design is moving toward a more pared down and simplified esthetic, even as the units themselves become smarter, more efficient and more versatile. Control panels from prestige makers such as Miele and Gaggenau are free of buttons, knobs or protrusions; some are controlled via hand gestures or touchscreens.
MULTIPURPOSE MACHINES
Space-saving appliances that combine more than one function are rising in popularity. Fotile's apartment-sized workstation sink features a vegetable washer, stainless-steel sink and builtin mini-dishwasher powerful enough to clean a full dinner setting for four with room to spare. The same company also has a whisper-quiet range hood that rises or lowers automatically depending on the height of the pot below it and collects grease so that a monthly rinse is all that's needed to keep it clean.
WORKSTATION SINKS
Instead of a standard single- or double-bowl stainless-steel sink, workstations with built-in interchangeable accessories, such as wooden cutting boards, rollup drying racks, cheese graters, vegetable baskets and more are a worthwhile upgrade. Horizontal grooves in the sink walls allow you to slide individual components from one side to the other as needed. Design-wise, gold, copper and black stainless-steel finishes are a standout alternative to ordinary stainless steel.
ADD SOFTWARE
AI is becoming a regular feature in home design, from laundry machines that can sense the weight, fabric and care needs of the clothing tossed into them to ovens that can calibrate the proper cooking times and temperatures for various foods. Then there's LG'S Butler Robots. About the size of a Pomeranian with stubby bodies and LED -screen blinking eyes, the anthropomorphic little units help with household tasks such as letting you know when to switch over the laundry, and can set the oven, give you the weather and suggest recipes for dinner. They can even detect when they are being picked up and respond with the happy sounds of a pet or a small child.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
It continues to be at least on the radar for designers and manufacturers. Modern appliances use a fraction of the energy they required even a few years ago and continue to improve. A 20-yearold refrigerator, for example, could use as much as 1,700 kwh of electricity every year, compared with about 450 kwh for a new, similarly sized ENERGY STAR model. Caesarstone, among other brands, offers several solid surface options that are certified to contain up to 40 per cent recycled content. And finding better ways to reduce, recycle and compost food waste are popular objectives for many municipalities, and those of us who live in them. But the most sustainable act of all is to insist on appliances, products and even kitchen design that will stand the test of time, and last for years before needing replacement.