THE KITCHEN EXPERT Interior designer Beata Heuman shares kitchen layout advice and trend predictions

Interior designer Beata Heuman shares her kitchen layout advice and reveals the latest trends

Q How do people want their kitchens to look and feel at the moment?

This is gravitating towards a quite traditional, wholesome and crafty feel rather than a shiny and streamlined look. There’s a resurgence of colour and personality in kitchens, which is exciting.

Q What colours should we keep an eye out for?

I think soft yellow is going to have a bit of a moment in kitchens soon. I really like Hay by Farrow & Ball and Aeoli by Paint & Paper Library.

Q What’s a good area to use dramatic design in?

The splashback – it’s a great place to be experimental. As you often have this made bespoke to fit the space anyway, you might as well take the opportunity to introduce more of an interesting colour, shape or material.

Q Are there any particular styles of storage on trend in kitchen design?

For me, it’s glass-fronted cabinets – they make the space feel bigger because you can see through to the depth of the cupboard, and you can also quickly find what you’re looking for. They feel cleaner than having open shelving, with the pane of glass helping to reduce any dust setting inside the cupboard.

Q Any practical storage tips?

Use larder shelves that pull out all the way so you can reach things that are stored at the back of them easily, which is usually impossible. And choose magic corners – the shelving mechanism that rotates – for lower corner cupboards. I use Hafele.

Q What’s an easy way to add interest to a kitchen?

Have a bit of fun with handles on cupboard doors. You touch them every day and they add character. Ours are made bespoke in Florence, but try contacting your local brass foundry – it can be surprisingly affordable to have something unique made. I also really like designs by Chloe Alberry and Armac Martin.

Q What’s trending for kitchen floors?

Chequerboards – I’ve done quite a few kitchen floors half in natural wood and half in wood that has been stained a colour. Chequered lino flooring can also look very cool, especially in a relatively small space, and it’s very practical – try Forbo, which has a lot of choice.

Q What are your favourite kitchen brands?

Plain English is an amazing company. And devol’s kitchen tap is very beautiful. I like Smeg for cookers and Dualit for kettles and toasters – both are modern with a retro edge.

Q Do you have any universal kitchen layout rules?

Put the sink underneath the window so that you wash up with a nice view and it can be a positive, calming moment. It is much more of a dreary chore when staring at a wall.

Q What’s a common kitchen design mistake?

Cabinet doors more than 30cm wide. Countertops are usually 60cm deep and cabinets 30cm deep. If the doors are any wider, they jut out when open. I was in a kitchen like this recently and I kept hitting my head.

Q Do you have any design tips from your own kitchen?

I built my tall fridge into a blue freestanding cabinet. There’s an exact replica of my kitchen in Germany, as one of my clients loved it so much.

“I REALLY LIKE PUSHING THE BOAT OUT A LITTLE BIT WHEN IT COMES TO KITCHEN DESIGN, ADDING A LOT OF PERSONALITY

AND DOING SOMETHING DIFFERENT”