ON-TREND TEXTURES & SURFACES

Polished concrete, handmade glazed tiles with a liquid finish, stainless-steel and quartz composite worktops are modern surface trends that can also be integrated seamlessly into a country or farmhouse kitchen.

Shaking off its building-site connotations, concrete is proving to be a brilliantly versatile material. It can be buffed to a sheen, tinted with pigment, etched with rivulets or mixed with fragments of stone or glass for a terrazzo effect. As worktops or flooring, it is durable and has a soft finish that works well next to painted cabinetry or reclaimed timber. Hand-glazed

Moroccan tiles can bring a dazzling dose of colour to a kitchen, while encaustic tiles – where the pattern is made up of sections of tinted cement – will add beautiful pattern. Porcelain versions are a good solution in low-traffic areas.

As a worksurface, marble has long been valued for its cooling properties. Now, composites made from quartz or minerals mixed with a resin can replicate the appearance of marble or granite, but are more resistant to stains or scratches. Although it’s a manufactured product, composites still look good alongside more rustic materials, from limestone tiles to limed floorboards.

If you don’t already have warm wooden flooring, a slew of engineered hardwood or porcelain versions now emulate the look and feel of real wood, with the benefit that they are very hardwearing and can be combined with underfloor heating.

Marble has long been valued for its cooling properties in kitchens

Top right A pale marble upstand provides an attractive and practical background for wooden toolsAbove Veined marble has been used to clad an island unit, deep upstands and worktops in contrast with warm woodRight Glazed tiles are perfect for worktops and splashbacks, introducing colour and lively pattern