With this article we are going to bring you to the world of kitchen design trends and specifically to show you what to expect for season 2016 – 2017. If you wonder what color and color schemes will dominate the scene? Or which will be the most up to date materials, shape or composition solution? Or what will be the direction of kitchen development and design according to leading designers’ and brands? All the answers are coming. Here we go!

What are the best colors for kitchen cabinets this season?

Those of you who like fresh colors in their surrounding may easily go for Tawny Color, Equator Yellow or Bali Hai Blue, which we recommend combining with a second monochromatic decor of more neutral palette starting from white, passing through the gray spectrum and up to the end of dark graphite or black. This season the popular kitchen colors will be bright, but with a more mild edge – yet careful – not quite to the point of pastel.

Although the vital color schemes will be sufficiently present during the trend period of 2016-2017 the triumph come back of the dark decor in the interior design altogether will un-doubtfully reflect upon the fashion choices of kitchen color schemes in the future. Characteristic for the next period will be the introduction of colorful combinations between clear and monochrome tones and the decreased usage of wooden decors and claddings that will be only unostentatiously applied.

Black is the new white.

A real Wow! Factors are becoming the black kitchen cabinets, which have such an untraditional and unique vision that easily become a focal point of any kitchen design. Actually the unthinkable (till recently) idea of a through and through black kitchen now is becoming a fashion – accomplished, of course with the typical for the contemporary design ingenuity and style.

The Vipp Kitchen is a design product that according to its creators is a result of 75 years long tradition of working-zing, still the straight lines dominate and somewhat define the composition.

The Kitchen Island as a center of the premise

In contemporary housing, the open plan kitchens are almost a norm. This way of organization of space achieves (amongst its other advantages) adequate social interaction, even during meal preparation process. Often this mobility and interaction are achieved through a contemporary Kitchen Island solution – functional and accessible from all sides.

The cabinet section of the design arrangement is often composed as one visually inseparable group resembling a kitchen wardrobe and at its center is placed the oven section. The Clever solution is to place these cabinets section into a special niche of the kitchen, so everything to be nice and tidy. The pluses of such an arrangement go for saving space and freeing a movement passage, tidy esthetic look, and functionality; on the other hand, such a niche must be designed and planed at an early stage of the home construction or renovation.

The front-side elements of the Kitchen Island are usually orientated towards the living room premises (when the arrangement is open –plan kitchen) and often are represented by open shelf and decoration segments. In this way, a natural connection between kitchen fittings and the rest of the design solutions can occur.

More and more often we see kitchens where the practical solution of constructing the dining table as a part of the Kitchen Island is taken as a chance to enhance the design level and attractiveness. If we have to be honest the two zones – of food preparation and consummation – are inseparably linked so this modern approach is not only a field for fashionable design and trend experimentation but is also very practical and reasonable choice when it comes to its functions.

The cantilevered arrangement of kitchen cabinetry is a fashion trend dating back to the 80tis, but it hadn’t been explored wildly. The problem is that the architectural construct must be sufficiently strong to withstand the pressure of the cabinet content and the additional weight of fittings and actions. From another side, this arrangement offers an elegant vision, easy maintenance under the cabinetry and unique configurations for the kitchen. So some designers are rediscovering this approach with a new inspiration using, this time, smaller and shallower volumes and dynamic design solutions to optimize weight distribution.

Next season Kitchen materials, appliances, fittings & innovations

Kitchen cabinetry decided in ceramics and concrete

If we take more detailed and careful look at ALNOCERA Concretto, which is the German Design Award “Winner” 2016 in the category “Excellent Product Design – Kitchen” we will notice quite a remarkable innovations. Starting with the heat and scratch resistant, a natural material made from particles of oxides and silicide that is quite a something for sensible surfaces like the ones in the kitchen. Another noteworthy innovation is the opening of the cabinets – strongly resembling the lifting of sunblind – very practical for restrained spaces. Style and innovation – what better?

Material emblematic for the season will be the concrete – its stylish use we can observe on the pictures below in the composition of KH SYSTEM MÖBEL. The delicate gray surfaces are contractedly juxtaposed to a caramel wood, which possess very notable natural ornaments. This combination is a very good argument against the thesis that concrete is to row and industrial for inside décor. Instead this combination creates a sensation of luxury, warmth, and style in the kitchen.

Decorative tiles in kitchen design

In these two projects of Snaidero and ALNO the design composition is redefined with the contemporary version of Azulejo tiles. You can use tiles in many dynamic configurations; on the floor, as a part of the cabinetry or wall pattern, but only if the color scheme and compositional layout need a bit of refreshment and vitality. We don’t recommend their usage in combination with wooden decoration.

Appliances

The black fittings will be very entertained this season – along with the commonly used ovens, hot – plates and aspirators now the new trend brings a wide variety of black refrigerators, sinks, taps and other kitchen appliances. Of course, we should not underestimate the classic nature of the inox’s appliances, so if introduced in the kitchen the timeless effect is guaranteed.

For the Kitchen Islands’ compositions the cooker hood are commonly decided as a hanging from the ceilings structural variations, so the aim is to make the design shape as attractive, unusual and artistic as it’s possible. These tendencies bring the kitchen hoods quite close to common lighting solutions and lamps functions, which sometimes interferes with the basic function and purpose of the aspirators, but still the style is also important.

Recommended kitchen countertop materials for 2016 – 2017

In the kitchen sinks and countertops trend the most “hot” application is the solid surface countertop configuration from a single material like Corian, Hi-Macs or Durat. This technique creates a visual image of a seamlessly floating surface of a single volume – the sink, and the countertop are smoothly connected, without visual edges. The wide variety of decor solutions is available in different colorful schemes or stone implementations, and these compositions are a good match with the fashionable concrete and ceramic coverage of doors in the kitchen design, this season.

The Solid surface countertops are quite entertained from different designers and brands for this season – in multiple color solutions and styles, made of acrylic or polyester, with prefabricated sinks or not, this trend is floating the markets. And why not, really; is affordable, easy for maintenance, suitable for food preparation and although is not heat and scratch resistant in reality is difficult to stain and a bit of a buff or sand out will remove any marks quite easily. Its aesthetic and smooth outlook is also not to underestimate, after all the ability to have an integral sink in the same finish as the countertop is a practical and attractive feature.

Another “hot” material for the countertop implementation, this season, will be the stainless steel choice. Established from decades as a classic coverage, in professional kitchen design, now it’s successfully making its way into the home kitchen interiors. It can be found in product solutions for both classes – high and middle. It’s a material well known for its endurance, easy maintenance, high hygienic and elegance.

For a drawers and pull-out solutions, the designers’ choice is orientated towards the discreet configurations, easy accessibility even for the most difficult corners of the un with metal. Inspired by professional kitchens, they create this design more as a functional and cleverly placed instrument than as a decorative element of the interior. So at the end the result is functionality, stylish outlook and high quality in one place.

The multifunctional Kitchen Island – Mina of the Italian brand Minacciolo is also a metal creation with a characteristic industrial look that is enhanced by the colorful red handles sustained in the stylistic of “water pipe stopcock” and the impressive presence of the aspirators with their unique “retro-techno” style.

The absolutely black stylistic of Schröder Küchen uses the two horizontal lines, of the recently fashionable handleless arrangement, to bring dynamics and elegance into the massive monochromatic volumes.

Some brands like ALNO and BEECK Küchen don’t go the “whole ten yards” into the black dominion and use balancing white elements. In this way, the vision becomes more dramatic with a dynamic intertwinement of light and dark spots. The alternation of antithetical elements is more or less chaotic so that the association with chess board will be avoided.

Gray kitchen- sophistication and elegance.

If you’re not an admirer neither of dark moody colors or the other extremity – colorful explosion, there always is the Golden middle – the classy gray tonalities. They will never go out of style, and they are quite practical – on a gray backyard even the simplest decoration will stand out and look like “million bucks”. The gray kitchen is a modern trend that is well combined with a second color or even as a single choice, especially when the texture of the material resembles stone or concrete.

How about the white? Are the white kitchen designs still a trend?

Yes, white will stay on the fashion scene but because of its well explored and entertained nature will not be enough by itself. To increase the attractive appearance of a white kitchen there can be an inclusion of bright additional colors, or geometrical shapes and stripes like in this Contura kitchen from allmilmö, for jazzing up the composition. On the picture below the designers from bau-for-mat Küchen used the fresh orange accent to vitalize the white dominion. But keep in mind – the white is aiming for well-earned retreat from its positions in fashion design – and really how practical can be in kitchen design?

The modern kitchen needs living plants and fresh greenery

On the picture above we can see how the architects from SABO studio are cleverly refreshing the white composition of the kitchen design with capturing rainbow floor decoration and unusual green pots for fresh plants. But the SVOYA go even further in innovation and greenery decoration while designing studio apartment in Dnipropetrovsk where a whole green wall is introduced as a decorative element in kitchen – dining zone arrangement.

The oval shapes are here once again.

For their new kitchen design Onda the designers from Rational create a combination of black and dark wooden decor with oblong angles. After a decade dominated of straight, clear lines the soft shapes and curves are making a huge comeback into the design concept of modern kitchen. It’s worth noticing that this is not a rein of artistic curves and abstract shapes, is more like -clear geometrical volumes with delicate oblong finishing’s. Wonderful example of that is the model Dune from Pedini. Although here the presence of multiple curve and arches is mesmeriits and, of course, practicality. Ensuring that space will be economically and cleverly used, and nothing will stand on your way or stalk to hit your head, wall units design now is folding, lifting or flapping doors for maximum comfort and ingenuity.

Wall units with soft-lift or folding doors, particularly suitable for smaller kitchens, maintain an integrated look when closed and ensure maximum headroom when open. Very practical for small kitchens the folding doors or the wall units with “soft-lift” solutions, are also ensuring a very tidy and stylish outlook and, of course, maximum headroom even when open.

Handles

Very popular, till recently, as materials for the creation of lighting solutions and decorative elements the brass and copper are now used in kitchen design also. This specific creation of Cooper handles belongs to the German brand Rational, and they are looking just fabulist juxtaposed to the dark background and brought eminent style and luxuries emanation. In this composition, the Cooper is participating as a third décor that accentuates the material combination and balances the whole project.

Although examples like the previous one design to show us that handles are an essential part of the artistic emanation of one’s kitchen, the latest trends are towards decreasing the usage of handles altogether. Systems like “touch to open” and other handle-less solution are becoming a common practice in the fashionable kitchen design. Their advantages are many – compact surfaces, comfortable usage, the possibility of untraditional segmentation of the cabinets, more free combinations between different materials and so on. So keep in mind this trend for the next years.