Interior design experts predict that more dramatic kitchens — featuring darker wall colors, cabinets and countertops — will take over 2018.
Photo courtesy of Volley
Each year marks a new design trend, especially in kitchens. Dark kitchens are now the luxury seal of approval for home design. Interior design experts quoted in Vogue and ELLE Décor predicted that white kitchens have reached the peak of popularity, and to look for darker, more dramatic kitchens — whether it be the wall color, cabinets and/or countertops.
Below is a list of luxury developments that are already taking note of these dark, moody kitchen design trends:
Interior Designer, Kimberly Peck, masterfully included Italian composite matte black cabinets for the grand, open kitchens at 62-66 North Third Street, a luxury condominium in the heart of Williamsburg. This modern and sleek design element offers residents a moodier industrial living space, which reflects the neighborhood’s ambience.
This is a 19-unit boutique property nestled within Miami Beach’s exclusive South of Fifth neighborhood, featuring spectacular interiors by Thomas Juul-Hansen that are guaranteed to inspire. Each residence is equipped with custom kitchen cabinets and Miele appliances that add a touch of dark contrast to the overly used stark white kitchen palate in Miami Beach. Other features include a built-in bottom mount fridge/freezer, fully integrated dishwasher, espresso machine, convection oven, undercounter wine storage and designer fixtures from Vola and Hansgrohe.
Internationally acclaimed furniture designer Holly Hunt’s first-ever residential development, L ‘Atelier is a 24-residence boutique oceanfront luxury high-rise in Miami Beach. Beautifully crafted Luxury Poliform Italian Kitchens, featuring World-Class Gaggenau Appliances with exquisite dark-colored finishes, L’ Atelier’s kitchens are a modern work of art which showcase this new design trend. Residences will be priced from $3.5 million to $25 million and are scheduled to be completed in 2018.
4. 1 Flatbush
Whitehall Interiors added a dark accent wall to the kitchens in this Downtown Brooklyn apartment to complement the lighter cabinets and countertops, as well as add a bit of drama to the rooms.
The spacious kitchens at this Whitehall Interiors-designed luxury condo in Harlem feature darker gray custom oak wood cabinetry to balance the natural light shining in from the floor-to-ceiling windows and the Athens Silver Cream marble backsplash and countertops.
Photo courtesy of MNS
Photo courtesy of MAQE
Timeless Italian styles are reemerging in gourmet kitchens, showcasing bold new colors, artisan craftsmanship, cutting-edge cooking options and updated safety features.
By Stacey Staum
The custom kitchens built by Officine Gullo USA have been referred to as “living sculptures” because of their unique artistic style. “I think beginning from the fact that it’s handmade and custom-made for each client, each item in the kitchen is cast by hand in solid brass. They are an expression of the person’s taste and uniqueness. If someone wants a completely new dimension or customization, it’s built for them, built for their needs, tastes and desires,” says Moreas.
Citing the styles of Florence as the major influences on Officine Gullo USA’s design style, Moreas continues, “Ancient sculptors like Michelangelo even casted in metals, so we use this as an inspiration. After three generations of doing this, we still use the ancient techniques for metalwork that make it unique and special in every way.” By using artisan methods, Officine Gullo USA achieves a traditionally styled cooking device that functions as art.
Valetina Bertazzoni describes Bertazzoni’s appliance style as aesthetic and functional. She explains, “The use of an avant-garde appliance coordinated with elegance and substance in the kitchen is becoming more and more important. We see this as the synchronicity design paradigm. It’s the idea of ‘as well as’ rather than ‘either or.’ Consumers no longer have to decide between a kitchen range only, or a cooktop with wall ovens. They can choose elements that work in synchronicity with one another, and they can choose to customize the kitchen to fit their lifestyle, which may mean a modern kitchen will include a range and a steam oven.”
When it comes to choosing cooking options, availability of features is of paramount importance. What features are most important varies widely from company to company and reflects each establishment’s unique outlook.
Bertazzoni offers features like steam cooking and other non-traditional cooking surfaces as cooking tastes evolve. Bertazzoni explains, “Cooking culture moves relatively slowly, compared to other sectors. Cooking is definitively more related to tradition and habits, and our tastes rely very much on our memory. It will take time before these technologies will reach the same popularity as, for example, gas cooking.” The company continues to offer modern technologies as the tastes and health concerns of consumers evolve over time.
Officine Gullo USA offers a wide variety of professional-grade equipment, providing the highest BTU output available in residential kitchens. The company incorporates blast chillers, vacuum packing machines, steamers, integrated coffee machines and any other appliance that a home chef might need in the kitchen.
On the opposite end of that spectrum, Verona and ILVE stick to more traditional methods.
“We have modern upgrades, but for us, the less electronics, the better. We believe more in Old World cooking: really great convection stands and really powerful ovens.”
While Verona and ILVE stick to more traditional cooking styles, safety upgrades are of the highest importance, as they have modern flame failure safety devices that shut off the gas when the pilot goes out, and ignition delay that prevent little hands from turning on the stove when children are unattended.
Bertazonni also places a high premium on safety. “One of Bertazzoni’s pillars is family, so safety is very important. Among many safety features, our latest is the Induction range which is universally friendly to all ages for its cool-to-the-touch cooktop,” she says.
With this focus on safety, top-of-the-line craftsmanship and an enduring aesthetic, the Italian-style kitchen continues to be the model for luxury in the high-end kitchen market.