Beyond Surfaces
Inspiration

The Insider:

What's Next in Kitchens

The kitchen is a room so rife with ideas and innovations, it’s a world unto itself. As we move toward a beguiling new way of kitchen thinking, we asked the pros what’s exciting them for the busiest room in the house.

Written by Sophie Donelson

7 MINUTE READ

Favorites

Arcilla 5" x 5” field in Blanco Gloss
Design: KTG Design

MADE Modern 3" x 9" Split Right field and Split Left fields in Blue Mist Matte
Design: Angie Hranowsky; Photography: John Herr Photography

MADE Modern 3" x 9" Criss Cross field in White Shimmer Matte
Design: Morrison Interiors; Photography: Chad Mellon

Eastern White 8" x 16" field in Honed
Design: Mr. and Mrs. Sharp

MADE Modern 3" x 9" Rectangle field in White Shimmer Matte
Design: Michael K Chen Architecture; Photography: Brooke Holm/Trunk Archive

Asher Grey Parquet Mosaic
Design: Studio Thomas James; Photography: Costa Christ Media

MADE Provençal 3" x 8" field in Nuage (backsplash); Bourdeaux Gris (floor)
Monogram Custom Brass Hood; Monogram 36" Dual-Fuel Professional Range
Design: Jean Stoffer Design; Photography: Stoffer Photography Interiors:

“Let’s challenge the expectation and help people expand their thinking,” he says. “Shoes, handbags, even steering wheels are leather—it’s a hard-wearing luxury material— why not use it in the kitchen; it only gets better with age.” These and some dramatically oversized panel fronts in copper and titanium finishes will be shown at KBIS, the annual kitchen and bath show in Las Vegas early next year.

Context 2” x 11” field in Mink
Design: Stephanie Dyer Design; Photography: Meagan Larsen

The latter is favored by designers as both novel and a no-brainer. Kitchens can accumulate many surfaces, materials and finishes quickly; visually, that can be jarring. Repeating the backsplash tile on the hood provides both consistency and visual pow. This approach is especially useful in a smaller kitchen and easy to execute by running the tiles directly over an insert hood.

This move maximizes beauty by offering continuity of the chosen aesthetic. Larger kitchens can create a dramatic feature with this idea—think about the hand-painted scenics and tile murals seen in Mexican and Mediterranean kitchens. Even applying a single artful field tile opens up a world of options beyond metallic finishes.

Terrazzo Renata 16" x 16" field in Black
Design: Matthew Tsang

A Case for Colorful Tile by Sophie Donelson

There’s a reason you’re seeing more colorful tile out there. It’s livable, joyful, and not as hard as you think.

New Collections with Earthly Elegance by Clinton Smith

Get back to nature with Ann Sacks’ latest designs. Our Chief Designer, DeeDee Gundberg, shows you how.

Petite Spaces That Live Large by Clinton Smith

Form and function come together in these high-style spaces designed for specific tasks at hand.