Yaletown Kitchen Design Trends - What's IN in 2024

If you are currently considering a kitchen renovation for your Yaletown condo, you may wish to be aware of how we are seeing world of kitchen design evolve in 2024. While it is important to design a space that is unique and personal to your own taste rather than chasing the latest trends, it is good to have an idea of the current design directions and best practices.

What's IN when in comes to designing your kitchen in 2024

1. Paneled Appliances

When designing a cohesive and balanced kitchen, it is often helpful to integrate the appliances into the rest of the space by paneling them. As an interior designer, I commonly recommend panel-ready fridges and dishwashers. Rather than having kitchen design be interrupted by large volumes of stainless steel, appliances are now able to completely blend in with the rest of the millwork. As a result, the overall impression is of a curated thought-out and finished space. Paneled appliances typically comes with a larger price tag than standard stainless ones but are well-worth the investment if optimizing for a clean and streamlined aesthetic.

2. Statement Hood

Gone are the days of simple stainless steel chimney hood fans. After all, hood is no longer just a hardworking appliance, but rather an opportunity for a design statement. There are so many aesthetic and creative ways to dress up a hood – plaster or tile, millwork or paneling, straight or angled! Often, hood takes on a prominent oversized shape creating an impressive design moment upon entering the kitchen. Because range and hood are often located in the most visible and central location, I often consider what visual impact I want this area to have before designing the rest of the kitchen.

3. Elevated Coffee Station

In Yaletown, we sure love our coffee! Even with an abundance of beautiful cafés in our neighbourhood (Analog is a personal favorite), there is nothing like that first cup of coffee at home. To have my clients start the day on the right foot, I like to put some intentional thought into the design of the coffee station. Some Yaletown kitchens/homes may be spacious enough to allow for a distinct coffee bar area, while in other cases, I will simply incorporate the coffee area into the kitchen design. Most important is that the coffee station has its own designated home that is beautiful and organized. Some people love to put their beloved espresso machines on display on the counter, while others prefer to have it inside a pantry or appliance garage where it can be closed off. In either case, I always designate some storage space nearby (shelves, drawers or pullouts) for coffee beans, tea bags, sweeteners, accessories and cups. Where space allows for it, I love an opportunity to elevate the coffee station by giving it it’s own design moment – perhaps an arched niche, some floating shelves or some beautiful backsplash tile.

4. Workstation Sink

For maximum efficiency meal prep and clean up, look no further than workstation sink solution. As one of the key players of the kitchen triangle, kitchen sinks are one of the busiest and hardest working stations in your kitchen. Whether working with a compact kitchen where every square foot must be optimized or with a grand spacious kitchen, there are ways to optimize the efficiency of the prep/clean station. Current solutions on the market feature multiple levels of sliding boards where one can chop, strain and mix easily and ergonomically to prepare a meal and then effortlessly transition to cooking.

5. Porcelain Countertops

There are so many countertop options out there that it can be hard to decide what to choose for your next Yaletown kitchen renovation project. For a long time, quartz seemed to be the go-to countertop option in North America. While many of us drool over stunning vintage marble counters, we are somewhat hesitant to commit to a material that is porous, high maintenance, not too mention extremely expensive. A great new alternative is porcelain countertop. Porcelain countertops are an excellent choice and designer’s new favorite as they are durable, hard, heat-resistant and scratch-resistant. Moreover, porcelain countertops are offered in a variety of colors and sizes to see any individual preference with a lot of beautiful options to match the aesthetic of marble countertops.

Porcelain can be installed on a countertop (often a mitered skirted edge is required if wishing to achieve standard countertop thickness) or can be used as a backsplash.

Here are some of the common past kitchen design trends that are OUT in 2024

1. Black Hardware

Porcelain can be installed on a countertop (often a mitered skirted edge is required if wishing to achieve standard countertop thickness) or can be used as a backsplash.

2. Farmhouse Style

Porcelain can be installed on a countertop (often a mitered skirted edge is required if wishing to achieve standard countertop thickness) or can be used as a backsplash.

3. All White Kitchen

We have seen a lot of all white kitchen designs in the past. Clean, contemporary and streamlined, white kitchens have their appeal. However, in 2024 we are earning for color, warmth and texture. Warm soothing taupe and brown colors, sage greens like Farrow & Ball Pigeon and hues of cool blue like Farrow & Ball Blue Gray feel a lot more current.

This article is written by Interior Designer Marina Medina of Marina Medina Design, Vancouver-based award-winning interior design firm.

If you have any more burning questions about kitchen design or are in the process of starting your kitchen transformation, get started by booking a free, on-site consultation with us and one of our team members would be happy to chat about your kitchen renovation goals, provide you insight on an optimal kitchen layout for your space and kickstart your Yaletown kitchen renovation journey.

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