Posts Tagged ‘Trends’
Article by Stacey Wiktorek
With 2006 behind us, it’s time to begin looking forward to what the New Year will bring. For me, the New Year isn’t just about making resolutions; it’s about keeping design current with the very latest trends. Read on to find out what’s going to be favourite in 2007.
ColorsA few key color trends are emerging that mark some significant departures from what has been favourite in the current past. Browns, oranges, and other warm colors are resurfacing after a long period of absence in home decorating. You can also plan to see greys, blacks, and other darker, more mineral-like tones. Deep hues of teal, navy, and green are also making a comeback and offer a fresh, new look for homes everywhere.
Mother Nature, Interior DesignerAnything that reflects elements of nature, such as wood, bamboo, and other “earthy” textures is going to be very popular. Earth-inspired artifact collections that are designed to mimic the feel of woven woods are seen more and more in everything from window shades to rugs to lampshades and other accessories, reflecting this trend.
The Cozy Cottage Design StyleEven the most metropolitan of homes are incorporating more charm and comfort into their interior design. This reflects what is called the casual, or cottage designing style, which is making a comeback, even for urban jetsetters. Characterized by mixed-and-matched design accessories, light, airy, and informal décor, this re-emerging design style adds a pass feel to any living space. Sheer window shadings, and soft draperies are going to be seen in more homes as a way of maintaining a light, carefree atmosphere.
Be a Creature of ComfortFor those of you who have always opted for comfort over style: you’re on to something. This year, a comfortable living area is a stylish living area. Your home environment should encourage relaxation and be a haven from the hustle and bustle of the outside world. Stiff, formal sitting rooms are out.
Shades of 2007I couldn’t write this article without speaking about the exciting new trends in window treatments, many of which follow the overall trends of the season. Easy shades, like roller shades or flat-panel Roman shades, have taken over. Shades in textural fabrics, like suede and cotton are especially favourite this year.
Your window treatments can also reflect the comfort-focused trend that is so stylish now: you can use them to control visibility, and the increasingly favourite motorized shades grant you to control visibility with the easy flip of a switch. Of course, energy-efficient shades can save you energy, which will always be in style.
Good News for Do-it-YourselfersAnything homemade or handcrafted is in! From handmade blankets and pillows to craft projects like picture frames and other accessories, the project ideas that this trend inspires are endless. And they’ll add a individualized touch to your home.
Go GlobalAnother huge theme for 2007 is home design with an ethnic flavor. So don’t be afraid to venture outside of what you currently have. Spruce up your décor with furniture inspired by the styles and culture of other countries. Not ready to make a drastic change? Home décor accessories like lamps, pillows and rugs offer ways to infuse your home with smaller tastes of culture.
It’s clear that 2007 promises to be an exciting year in home design. These tips will help you welcome the new year with style, whether you’re planning a decorating makeover or just some small updates to refresh your home’s look.
About the Author
Stacey Wiktorek is a member of the in-house professional home design team at BlindCrafter.com, where she provides expert decorating and design advice for anyone looking to beautify their home. For tips and home design ideas, or to receive their monthly Customer Club newsletter with trends, advice, and exclusive coupons, visit their website at http://www.blindcrafter.com/kristinasdesignstudio.cfm.
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Article by Frederick Gevinson
The primary key to designing a kitchen is to make it the center of the home. A functional kitchen that is designed for convenience and works with the style and space of the home is important. All kitchens have cabinets, sinks, lighting, appliances and space concerns to address. Designing the kitchen in your home or living space to work takes thought and planning.
Cabinets in a kitchen are designed to store food and kitchenware. They should be captivating and functional. Most compartment designs are elegant and simple. Wood cabinets like cherry, maple and oak are making a comeback. They look good with captivating metal hinges and hardware. Easy white cabinets or even black give a kitchen a clean fresh look. Ergonomic designs provides plenty of storage for all kitchen pots, pans and other utensils. Drawers are now designed into lower cabinets for more storage space . Some designs even have sliding slicing boards as part of the design. The new compartment designs grant for more storage of kitchen utensils efficiently.
Sinks are an important part of the kitchen. They come in artificial stone with straight lines or stainless steel in many shapes and sizes. Faucets are prefabricated to fit the design of your kitchen. Sink designs fit traditional countertop space or even many island designs. Kitchen islands have been designed for many years. They are often the focal point of the kitchen where cooking, washing and intake occurs. Many islands have kitchen appliances built into them or are a place to sit and take the meal. Some even have cabinets for storage depending on your space and needs.
Popular countertops for kitchens are granite and marble. These materials have durability and are simple to clean. Stainless steel kitchen appliances are favourite and gives the kitchen a classic look. Many customers are mixing wood and glass when designing cabinets. Some kitchen designs have two islands for simple meal preparation. Islands come in many shapes and forms to fit each space.
Do you have a very small kitchen with limited space? Appliances are now designed to fit each space. You can get a small refrigerator, drawer dishwasher, microwave combos, stoves that fit your kitchen space. Appliances even fit under cabinets with ease. If you want to save on energy look for Energy Star appliances. Materials for a green kitchen might include bamboo floors and counter or recycled wood and glass. Many consumers are looking for green kitchen design.
Colors of kitchen vary depending on the style. All white kitchens present a clean professional look like black. Wood cabinets are favourite as well as pastel colors like blue, pink and yellow. Those that want bold colors might try orange or red. Built in led lights that change color can give a kitchen different lighting effects. There are many great lighting systems for each kitchen design.
About the Author
Hi, I am Frederick – Fred for short. I am a DIY guru come freelance writer in such subjects.
Cliq Studios design, manufacture and sell calibre kitchen cabinets which come with a lifetime warranty. Use the Cliq Studios website to visualise your new kitchen, request free kitchen samples or to simply browse the kitchen blog for inspiration. Whatever your stipulation – trust Cliq Studios’ Kitchen Cabinets.
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Article by saint Mahoney
Today’s modern kitchen serves as a family hub of household activity and entertaining. They are now well lit, open places. The kitchen’s size and design should address your family’s lifestyle and how your kitchen is used for cooking, intake and entertaining. Since the kitchen is called on to fill more roles than any other room in the home they have had to increase in size as well. Today’s kitchen design challenge is in creating an open-faced kitchen – one that’s part of a dining area, family room or so-called great room.
Both the function and style of the modern kitchen play important roles when tackling a kitchen design or renovation project. If you’re remodeling an existing kitchen or planning a kitchen addition or a new home, here is some current kitchen design trends to keep in mind.
One of the more current trends in modern kitchen design ideas is to make the kitchen part of a ‘great room’, that is to combine the kitchen with an adjacent family room. To create the great room the surround separating the kitchen and family room or dining room is absolutely removed creating a more open space centered by a spacious kitchen island or peninsula.There are some definite advantages to expanding the kitchen. You can open up the space and in so doing you make both the kitchen and the other room look and feel more specious. Also since kitchen cabinetry, countertops and appliances are beautiful pieces of furniture in their own right you can now show off your new kitchen. Your remodeling costs won’t really increase all that much by opening up the kitchen other than the cost of extra cabinetry. Anyway the added cost that would be place into this type of kitchen design would be more that offset by the increase in the value of your home.
Furniture-style woodworking will continue to be a favourite trend in kitchen design at least according to the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA). These furniture-style cabinets are considered to be especially favourite in the development of kitchen islands. Features that give cabinets a furniture-like appearance are legs or bun feet, corbals onlays and mouldings. Cabinet doors are prefabricated with solid hardwoods, the most favourite being maple and cherry. As for finishes light and medium finishes continue to be popular, even though kitchen designers and trendwatchers also see a growing interest in deep, rich browns as influenced by the furniture industry to some extent and to create a more formal look for the kitchen.Cabinet manufacturers and kitchen designers are starting to design more individual and freestanding pieces of furniture instead of the usual built-in woodworking for expanded ‘great room’ kitchens. This is known as the ‘unfited’ kitchen design first popularized by English designers and cabinetmakers. This also leads to another trend of incorporating features from heirloom calibre furniture such as glazed, distressed and antique finishes.
Undermounted sinks in both cast iron and stainless steel are among current changes in kitchen design because homeowners like the clean smooth look which blends with modern designs. The advantages of an undermounted sink are that it is functional, beautiful and very simple to install. The bowl is attached underneath a countertop. No sink rim shows above the countertop and there is no lip to collect water and catches dirt and crumbs. Instead debris is easily swept into the sink so that the counter can be cleaned faster.
Other current trends in modern kitchen design include: Countertops: Natural stone remains most favourite countertop material with the most favourite being granite. Limestone is another favourite choice. Mixing different materials is becoming more common, using stone on some counters, butcher block or concrete on others.
Appliances: Commercial calibre appliances are becoming favourite particularly ranges, as are built in refrigerators and European style dishwashers. Warming drawers and convection microwave ovens that can be used as a second oven are also popular.
Putting pots and pans into drawers. With heavy-duty drawer glides one can place large, heavy pots in drawers instead of cupboards now.
Cabinet door thickness is likely to be 1 inch instead of 3/4 inch since this size is more considered as being of higher quality.
Glazed, distressed and antique finishes are being used more and more to replace traditional ornate details once used on many high-end cabinets.
Painted finishes now include colors as cranberry, white, off-white and oyster.
According to kitchen designers as today’s kitchen expands in size and complexity, “mixed orders” are becoming more commonplace. Kitchen islands, wet bars, baking centers and butler’s pantries are being incorporated into more and more kitchen designs creating the need for more contrasts-in compartment styles, colors, types of wood and finishes.
James Mahoney is the author of many kitchen design articles and has a site about kitchen design ideas at Kitchen Designers Ideas.com. He also publishes a newsletter on kitchen design.
About the Author
James Mahoney is the author of many kitchen design articles and has a site about kitchen design ideas at Kitchen Designers Ideas.com. He also publishes a newsletter on kitchen design.
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Article by Mark Summer
Understanding modern kitchen design trends is something that will help you make the most out of your kitchen. You will find design options that will grant you to maximize the space within your kitchen, without sacrificing the style that you want. You will find options that evoke wide-open spaces, as well as those that are a dark and sensuous. In fact, modern kitchen design trends cover a wide range of different styles. What might you find?
Modern kitchen design has undergone some significant changes in current years. For instance, light kitchens were once very popular. These featured light colored cabinetry, such as honey pine, or even white cabinets. Light colored flooring was also a mainstay feature. However, this day the story has changed a bit. Modern kitchen design trends are actually beginning to swing toward darker kitchens. While this might make you think of dimly lit, cavern-like spaces, the opposite is true. Darker kitchens can be quite relaxing, comfortable and even intimate.
What might you find in darker kitchens? You’ll first find darker appliances. Stainless steel is a darker finish for appliances than the traditional white color. You will also find black makes and elegant statement and does not discolor as easily as white finishes do. However, the appliances are only the tip of the berg when it comes to darker colorations.
One of the most prevalent areas in which modern kitchen design has become a bit darker over the years is in the cabinetry. While white cabinets are excellent if you’re trying to evoke a French Country style, you will find that darker cherry, hickory, oak and even some darker pine finishes are healthy to wage a more elegant, refined region for your kitchen.
Modern kitchen design also often incorporates darker flooring. Natural stone, such as limestone or travertine has taken the place of light colored hardwood flooring. However, darker hardwoods are still popular, though stone and even porcelain are becoming more favourite by the day. Darker flooring is an excellent choice for those seeking modern kitchen design, as it helps to add a sophisticated region to the room, without sucking out all the light.
Modern kitchen design trends wage you with an astounding range of different options. However, the single ideal way to create the kitchen of your dreams is to locate a calibre designer. Not only will these professionals help you create the kitchen you want, but will usually help you find the ideal pricing on appliances and materials, as well.
About the Author
Kitchen Designers Plus has been offering kitchen design and <ahref=”http://www.kitchendesignersplus.com/kitchen-renovation-ideas-from-the-GTAs-experts.html”>kitchen renovation in Toronto since 1961. They offer the top tml”>kitchen showrooms in Toronto. Visit KitchenDesignersPlus.com to view before and after photos, take virtual tours and explore over 170 kitchen design images.
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Article by Tim Sousa
If you were to take a look at a modern kitchen, you’ll probably find energy efficient appliances as well as say of the art flooring and countertops. With the high interest in gourmet cooking these days, the modern kitchen is usually well planned, with a lot of useable space, as well as captivating and appealing. If your trying to cook dinners in an old and outdated kitchen, you should think about remodeling your kitchen, and upgrading to a more modern kitchen.
These days, the trend is to use the kitchen partially as a family room, or a place to gather with friends to chat. A lot of modern kitchens are built as a “great room”, with a desk for the computer, and special storage areas. If you enjoy wine, you might want to make some space in the kitchen for your wine collection. A wine rack, or wine refrigerator on the counter, or in the corner isn’t uncommon. Maybe you have a collection of gourmet cookware that needs a special storage space. Many modern kitchens have special drawers for pots and pans, or even hanging pot racks, to show off that beautiful set of copper pans.
Modern appliances are functional and efficient. While some homeowners select commercial grade appliances for their kitchens, it doesn’t meat that the kitchen needs to be plain and boring. Today’s cabinets are finely built, with a lot of design choices, and several types of wood and laminates to select from. Modern cabinets often look more like furniture, with tables, and decorative molding. The right cabinets and countertops will go a long way to prevent the kitchen from looking dull and boring.
Countertops these days appear in a wide variety of materials and finishes. Granite, limestone, concrete, butcher block… these are all favourite countertop choices these days. The same is true with flooring options. Laminates, ceramic tiles, and wood flooring, are all favourite options for kitchen floors, providing not only durability, but beauty as well.
Often, people will remodel their kitchen to get rid of dark and cramped spaces. The lighting selections acquirable this day go a long way towards lighting up a dim area. You can find traditional lights, as well as recessed lighting and track lighting, to place the light where you need it. If you live in a hot climate, you can get a combination of light and ceiling fan, to keep the air circulating. Many kitchens these days are being built with a light and airy feel to them. Another trend is bringing the connector inside. You don’t have to shovel dirt into your kitchen for this, just use soothing connector tones when you paint the kitchen, andplan the decor. This will help to bring a peaceful feeling into your kitchen.
With all of the modern trends in kitchen design and decor, you really should think about remodeling your old kitchen. It will be worth it to begin doing some research, and thinking about what you want in your kitchen. Take a look through some of the home remodeling magazines, and look at some of the articles and ideas about modern kitchens. You might just be intrigued with some of the options acquirable to you. Once you have some ideas, visit your local home improvement store, and take a look at the options acquirable to you. Soon enough, you could be enjoying a new kitchen with your family and friends.
About the Author
Check out Kitchen Decor Ideas for more ideas on designing your dream kitchen.
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