European design trends aren’t just for fashion – follow these Eurochic fashions showcased at top industry exhibitions like Kuechenmiele and Eurocucina to create modern kitchens Gold Coast families will find fresh and funky.
Get all touchy and feely
Textured laminates are used in this kitchen by Rotpunkt
Photo credit: Kuechenmiele
Modern manufacturing techniques have brought us a host of options for introducing colour and pattern into our kitchens. This year kitchen designers are taking things one step further and introducing texture as a third dimension to be considered in the overall aesthetic scheme. Gone are those sleek, polished stone kitchen countertop surfaces. The most up-to-the-minute kitchen designs now feature kitchens with texture that matches pattern. To implement this trend in their own kitchens Gold Coast homeowners could look at installing wooden benchtops with unrefined edges or timber laminates that have a complementary woodgrain texture.
Make a country comeback
Urban rustic style by Nieburg
Photo credit: Kuechenmiele
Country kitchens were huge in Australia in the eighties but have since been ousted by preferences for more minimalistic designs. This year’s European fairs saw elements of country style returning to the kitchen but with a modern twist. To bring some of the comfort of this familiar look back into their kitchens Gold Coast renovators can try mixing and matching both vintage and modern elements. Combining classic shapes with contemporary colours is one way to make the urban rustic look work. Alternatively you could try picking out just one classic design feature or pattern and injecting it into the kitchen design using non-traditional materials.
Give your splashback centre stage
Feature splashback by RWK
Photo credit: Kuechenmiele
Once upon a time kitchen splashbacks were designed to sit there quietly in the background dutifully protecting the walls day after day without drawing too much attention apart from the odd burst of bright colour. All this has changed as splashbacks are quickly becoming the new focal point in the kitchen. To emphasize this component you may want to follow Europe’s lead and consider backlighting your splashback, or supersizing it to fit an entire wall, or creating it out of the same material as the benchtop. Digitally printed splashbacks are also another huge trend coming out of the northern hemisphere and you’ll find local glass suppliers already have the technology in place to produce these pieces of modern art for the kitchen.
Let your true colours show
Colourblocking at Eurocucina, Milan Design Fair
Photo credit: iSaloni
While there’s been a huge swing towards all things raw, natural and organic, vivid colour is still making an appearance in the world’s top design forums by way of colour blocking. To incorporate colour blocking in their own kitchens Gold Coast homeowners should keep cabinet design sleek and neutral overall but introduce bright splashes of colour such as citrus and blue for feature cupboards. This effect works best with high gloss finishes which have also been high on the popularity charts in Europe.
Open up to a new style of living
Open shelving by KH Systemobel integrates kitchen and dining
Photo credit: Kuechenmiele
The move towards combining kitchen and living areas into one seamless living space is a theme that continues to dominate thinking in the kitchen design arena. Storage cupboards are morphing to look more like furniture so that it is increasingly difficult to tell where the kitchen ends and living room begins. To achieve this kind of integration between lounges and kitchens Gold Coast families can opt for lots of open shelving on walls in lieu of the traditional overhead cupboards. Shelving is the perfect way to display decorative items and can help to create a more open plan feel for the home.
White on trend for kitchens Gold Coast
Bright white kitchen by Wellman
Photo credit: Kuechenmiele
When it comes to choosing colours for family-friendly kitchens Gold Coast mums may just want to ignore this next trend, but one uber-cool European design influence that is already making its way to Australian shores is the gravitation toward all white kitchens. White is the perfect palette to reflect light and create a feeling of purity and spaciousness. If you’re dreaming of creating one of those perfect white kitchens Gold Coast designers like to put on display in their showrooms, you’ll be happy to know virtually all surface materials are trending towards even brighter whites.
