Modern Kitchen Design Trends
When people think of the term contemporary and modern, they oftentimes get the two confused because they can and usually are used interchangeably. However, if you like one over the other, you probably notice subtle differences than someone who does not. In the clearest terms, contemporary means "right now" designs or in the moment. On the other hand, modern specifics a certain style from the 20th century. Personally, for me, when I think of the term modern and kitchen remodeling I think of things like silver or stainless steel hardware, natural materials like stone or wood, and I think of clean lines. I also think of less decorations or ornamental styles than something like traditional style, where ornamental decor is at its namesake. If you want a few ideas on what types of things you should include in your modern kitchen, continue to read below for some superb ideas of what should be included in a kitchen to really give it that modern look.
Flat Panel Doors
Traditional styled doors are going to be raised and ornamental. Modern doors, entrance and exit doors, cabinets, drawers, and even closet doors are going to have flat panels on them with little to no designs. These flat door panels, often called slab door styles, are essentially synonymous when it comes to modern styles in the kitchen, or elsewhere in the home. If you’ve been hearing about shaker doors and modern styles, you might assume that this too is synonymous with modern styles, but in reality, shaker doors are more transitional rather than modern. That’s not to say you won’t ever see a shaker door in a modern home, because you will. This is less about breaking rules and more about personal preference, it is after all, your home! You can create it and add in different styles however you see fit. Just know that shaker doors are normally for transitional homes.
Frameless Cabinet Construction
Frameless cabinets are often times used in modern kitchens, because they tend to have a more streamlined and sleek appearance while a flush inset cabinet is considered more traditional. When looking at frameless designs, try also looking for Euro frameless, full over lay and overlay designs as well - depending on your geographic location and the store you are shopping in for cabinets, they might call it one of the alternative names. When it comes to these frameless designs, you won’t see the front facing frame, instead what you will get is spacing between the drawers and doors, oftentimes between the two cabinets as wall hence the name "overlay" or frameless.
Shiny Materials
When talking about a traditional kitchen you will see a lot of gold, copper and bronze materials being used for things like hardware, light fixtures, cabinet knobs, drawer knobs, etc. Gold, copper and bronze are all considered to be warmer materials in terms of the color or hue they bring to a room. The opposite is true for modern homes. In a modern home you tend to see more "cold" metals such as silver, stainless steel, and chrome. These shiny surfaces give off a cold vibe sometimes, which is why it’s so important to add in warm woods and warmer colors into the room.
Modern vs. Contemporary
Like traditional, where you see a lot of ornamental details, contemporary is the same way. In fact, one of the surefire ways of telling contemporary apart from modern is the details in itself. Contemporary has a lot of intricate details like patterned tiles, multiple different textures and colors, as well as differing materials. But, you won’t see all these bells and whistles in a modern kitchen and you definitely won’t have any plans for these things when it comes to your kitchen remodeling. Leave the decadent details to the contemporary kitchen and the simpler, sleeker and sexier details to the modern kitchens!
Natural Materials
While in a traditional kitchen you see things like crown molding - things that are made to look ornamental, you might see designs or patterns in a modern kitchen, but they are more natural than man made. Take a beautiful butchers block for instance. It can be used on the top of a kitchen island in a modern kitchen, it has a natural wood pattern that shows the natural grain of the wood, it’s essentially a pattern, but since it’s natural because it’s in the wood and not man-made, it might be considered modern. The same goes with something like marble countertops - the veining in the marble is natural, not man or machine made, so this is something too that has a pattern but can be placed in a modern kitchen.
Flat Panel Doors
Traditional styled doors are going to be raised and ornamental. Modern doors, entrance and exit doors, cabinets, drawers, and even closet doors are going to have flat panels on them with little to no designs. These flat door panels, often called slab door styles, are essentially synonymous when it comes to modern styles in the kitchen, or elsewhere in the home. If you’ve been hearing about shaker doors and modern styles, you might assume that this too is synonymous with modern styles, but in reality, shaker doors are more transitional rather than modern. That’s not to say you won’t ever see a shaker door in a modern home, because you will. This is less about breaking rules and more about personal preference, it is after all, your home! You can create it and add in different styles however you see fit. Just know that shaker doors are normally for transitional homes.
Frameless Cabinet Construction
Frameless cabinets are often times used in modern kitchens, because they tend to have a more streamlined and sleek appearance while a flush inset cabinet is considered more traditional. When looking at frameless designs, try also looking for Euro frameless, full over lay and overlay designs as well - depending on your geographic location and the store you are shopping in for cabinets, they might call it one of the alternative names. When it comes to these frameless designs, you won’t see the front facing frame, instead what you will get is spacing between the drawers and doors, oftentimes between the two cabinets as wall hence the name "overlay" or frameless.
Shiny Materials
When talking about a traditional kitchen you will see a lot of gold, copper and bronze materials being used for things like hardware, light fixtures, cabinet knobs, drawer knobs, etc. Gold, copper and bronze are all considered to be warmer materials in terms of the color or hue they bring to a room. The opposite is true for modern homes. In a modern home you tend to see more "cold" metals such as silver, stainless steel, and chrome. These shiny surfaces give off a cold vibe sometimes, which is why it’s so important to add in warm woods and warmer colors into the room.
Modern vs. Contemporary
Like traditional, where you see a lot of ornamental details, contemporary is the same way. In fact, one of the surefire ways of telling contemporary apart from modern is the details in itself. Contemporary has a lot of intricate details like patterned tiles, multiple different textures and colors, as well as differing materials. But, you won’t see all these bells and whistles in a modern kitchen and you definitely won’t have any plans for these things when it comes to your kitchen remodeling. Leave the decadent details to the contemporary kitchen and the simpler, sleeker and sexier details to the modern kitchens!
Natural Materials
While in a traditional kitchen you see things like crown molding - things that are made to look ornamental, you might see designs or patterns in a modern kitchen, but they are more natural than man made. Take a beautiful butchers block for instance. It can be used on the top of a kitchen island in a modern kitchen, it has a natural wood pattern that shows the natural grain of the wood, it’s essentially a pattern, but since it’s natural because it’s in the wood and not man-made, it might be considered modern. The same goes with something like marble countertops - the veining in the marble is natural, not man or machine made, so this is something too that has a pattern but can be placed in a modern kitchen.