Kitchens & Bathrooms

With recent events seeing us spend more time in our houses, the heart of our homes has become more important than ever. From how lockdown life has affected what homeowners are looking for from their kitchens to the current design trends in kitchens and bathrooms, find out our industry experts’ thoughts.

Outside influences

Sandra Robinson, managing director of Sandra Robinson Kitchens and Bathrooms, looks at the trend to merge our indoor and outdoor lives.

WITH THAT FOCUS ON THE NATURAL WORLD, IT’S HARDLY SURPRISING THAT MANY HOMEOWNERS ARE THINKING MORE ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT WHEN THEY MAKE CHOICES FOR THEIR NEW SPACES.

Over the years, we have seen a well-documented move towards open plan living in our homes – with separate kitchen and dining spaces merging into one area as the hub of the house, often with living space incorporated as well. Bifold doors from those spaces out into gardens have also become a desirable addition as many homeowners look to connect their social and family space with their outdoor areas. Now it seems that many of us are looking to blur the lines of inside versus outside even further.

It’s a trend that has certainly been influenced by recent events and the effects of the pandemic. With people spending more time at home, both working and socialising, their outside space has become ever more important.

If you walk through a garden centre, gone are the days of a few tables and chairs being on offer alongside a couple of barbeques. Now, there is a wide range and choice of furniture to ensure your garden is as stylish as your home. Alongside the barbeques, fire pits and pizza ovens are becoming more and more popular.

As people look to use their outside space for more catering, there is an associated demand for al fresco cooking and entertaining areas, whether as a full outside bar or a simple food preparation area. In our industry, we are seeing that demand being met through new materials and ranges.

As a company, we already stocked the mineral based Dekton worktops by Cosentino, an impressive product which can be used as outdoor tiling, cladding and as a worktop surface. But the move to outdoor living has recently seen our supplier Caesarstone come into the market, offering a more affordable alternative with its new dedicated collection of quartz worktops specifically designed for use outside. The neutral contemporary shades on offer mix well with the organic materials often found in garden design, such as slate and wooden decking. With indoors and outdoors merging, we are seeing more use of colours in kitchen cabinetry that reflect those outside themes. Blue and neutral tones are often a popular choice that work well in both settings, but we are also seeing more people opt for statement greens, which obviously flow through well to the outside. Our supplier, Masterclass Kitchens, offers a super range in those colours, which we are now seeing clients often start to combine rather than limit themselves to just one colour option. Alongside those colour choices, we are now also seeing more demand for metallics and wood accents, again reflecting the connection to nature.

With that focus on the natural world, it’s hardly surprising that many homeowners are thinking more about the environment when they make choices for their new spaces. Quooker boiling water taps are an excellent example of this, as they use less energy than a kettle and ensure there is no wasted water.

The Quooker range has also now expanded to offer a full system for chilled, filtered, still and sparkling water from a single tap – reducing the carbon footprint of the equivalent bottled water. It is also an excellent accessory for those al fresco parties, ensuring that cold drinks and cocktails can be prepared on tap.

Spending time outside is a proven way of improving your quality of life. If that outside space is a well-designed, practical and attractive extension of your indoor space, so much the better. While interior designers often speak of ‘bringing the outside in’, the trend we’re seeing at the moment appears to be ‘bringing the inside out’.

The pandemic, sustainability and thinking forward

John Litchfield, founder and managing director of Channel Island Ceramics, considers the impact of the Covid pandemic on how we use our homes.

KITCHENS, IN PARTICULAR, ARE CONTINUING TO EVOLVE AND ARE NOW THE MOST MULTIFUNCTIONAL AND USED ROOM OF ANY HOUSE.

The pandemic has affected many aspects of our lives and, besides many unsavoury effects related to health and restrictions, it has been a chance for people to stop and reflect on their surroundings. This not only concerns the immediate surroundings of the home, but also lifestyles, the environment and how work must be balanced with life.

These, as a sum, highlight the importance of home – it is not only a sanctuary and a haven from unpredictable events, it has also become increasingly multi-use. Combined with an emphasis on protecting the environment, these are the main themes pushing forward kitchen and bathroom design trends in 2021.

Designing rooms that work for people

Rooms do not just need to look good, they also need to be functional. Open plan living is a continuing trend and the pandemic has changed the way we live in ways that are set to continue. Remote working, for example, looks like a pattern that will continue as businesses seek to economise on office space and employees seek more flexible working. So what does this mean for our kitchens and bathrooms?

Our kitchens and bathrooms will have to work harder than ever, and be adaptable to different uses. Kitchens, in particular, are continuing to evolve and are now the most multifunctional and used room of any house. For this one room, cooking, socialising, eating and working are all now under consideration. With more people using the space, for multiple uses, and the desire for it to be open, designers are finding ways to add subtle features which cleverly partition the various ‘zones’ to allow for flexible use throughout the day. Even hot water taps are increasing in demand as people working at home need quick access to tea and coffee.

Bathrooms have long been a space to escape to after a tough day, but we will start to see the importance of home spas to allow us to fully relax and de-stress. Adding a steam function to a shower, removing the enclosure altogether or opting for a large luxurious bath, can provide different ways to relax with water. In general people will seek to have more utility for health and wellness than before.

The importance of sustainability

Sustainability is less of a trend but more an ongoing issue that will be affecting our choices more than ever - we need to know where things come from and ask ourselves if they’re sustainable and what impact they have on the environment. These issues are at the forefront of many consumers’ minds and products are improving to reflect this.

Timeless design is more important than ever, along with better quality products that will stand up to a longer use. In kitchens, fridge and freezer capacity will increase to allow for greater storage of food, with water and ice dispensers deemed essential in order to reduce our plastic consumption and encourage a healthier lifestyle. Likewise, pantry and storage spaces are increasing in importance, as well as being able to store glass jars, bottles and Tupperware.

For bathrooms, it is not just about saving water, though this is a key issue in improving product design. Sustainable bathrooms are also about the lifespan of the products, the materials used, cleaning that doesn’t use harsh chemicals, and creating a design that lasts.

Thinking forward

Due to a large majority of the population having to learn to live confined within their own homes over the last year, people have learnt to appreciate details that in our previous lives escaped us, or we simply took less notice of. This is helping to drive the current boom that the construction and home design industries are seeing – people want more from their homes and they want to be at ease in the place where they feel safest. With a forward thinking approach to design, we can satisfy these multifaceted demands, whilst simultaneously working towards a healthier society and planet.

MAKING METAL WORK

Always a common sight in kitchens and bathrooms, metal has shifted from a supporting player to the star of the show in many modern designs. Recent times have seen a trend away from traditional stainless steel towards copper and rose gold finishes – now everything from gold to industrial metal finishes are becoming more common options when choosing your kitchen or bathroom. Looking to keep your room more classic? Accessories such as kitchen stools and bathroom mirrors can be an easy way of reflecting the trend.