After spending a lot of time in the kitchen over the last year, many people are ready to make changes big and small to that all-important room. One sure way to create a more efficient space is to change your cabinets and change your kitchen’s entire look and feel.
Custom cabinets can be used throughout the home to create beautiful, functional spaces. Need to make a change in the laundry room, mudroom, or master closet? Start with the cabinets and build your dream project from there. Let’s start with the heart of the home and look at some trending finishes in kitchen cabinets.
It’s not that the trend toward cool, white kitchens and kitchen cabinet finishes has died, but it is…ahem…cooling off a bit. Once again, some people are embracing warm colors and textures in the kitchen. This trend shows itself with warm wood finishes and even raw or rough edges on wooden shelving. Incorporate wooden shelves in place of some upper cabinets or as part of an island.
Warm textures also show up with woven and natural fiber light fixtures and floor coverings. Consider warm metal finishes like copper and brass drawer pull and cabinet hardware and plumbing fixtures to carry the tone throughout the room.
Nothing will make your kitchen look cleaner and more visually appealing than keeping your countertops from collecting clutter. Custom cabinets should include hidden touches that will help you keep things hidden away. Incorporate spaces for the toaster and other appliances you use all the time, like the coffee maker. Tuck the microwave into a custom drawer that appears to be just another cabinet.
Find space for a hidden pantry cupboard in your custom cabinet scheme. Keep all the food in one place in the kitchen to ease prep and help you keep track of what you’ve got on hand. No more scurrying around the kitchen looking for another jar of sauce. Customize the pantry to take advantage of every inch by making room for pull-out shelves and storage bins for onions, snacks for the kids, etc.
Another way to make your kitchen appear pulled together and clean is to keep the eye moving around the room over smooth, uninterrupted planes. Custom cabinets with no pulls, knobs, or visible hardware are trending in newer kitchens. Go beyond soft close by, making cabinets and drawers soft-push to open as well, and skip the hardware for a clean-lined look.
One kitchen trend that seems destined for timeless status is the kitchen island. The island adds prep space, gives people a place to gather when they inevitably wander into the kitchen and can be a versatile casual dining spot for breakfast and snacks as well.
The island is a perfect place to play around with bold strokes, and the trend continues and even intensifies this year. Finish the cabinets on the island in a bright color for a bit of a visual shakeup amid all the clean lines.
Choose a different countertop material for the island to set it apart. Use the island to express any bold trend that calls to you on a slightly smaller scale.
High-gloss, light-reflecting finishes are trending in home cabinetry right now, and the kitchen is no exception. Light bouncing around a room creates a sense of expansive space, so glossy finishes on cabinets can make your kitchen feel more generous and open.
Play with shine with the backsplash, too, with a glass backsplash, glossy tile, a continuous polished stone slab, or even a mirror if you’re bold and don’t mind cleaning up.
Living within our communities differently over the past year has made a lot of us want to make more deliberate decisions about supporting our local community. Renovating and decorating are good opportunities to choose to work with local vendors and tradespeople.
Visit local shops for finishing touches and choose businesses from within your community to support the buy local trend.
Harkraft has been working with homeowners to make their renovation dreams come true in the Twin Cities for decades. We know how important it is to get to know our customers. Talk to one of our designers today about custom kitchen cabinets or custom storage solutions throughout your home.
