Decorating & Design
12 Designer Kitchens That Will Never Go Out Of Style
Some kitchens are so perfect, they cause a ripple effect that can be felt for years. Designed by heavy-hitting talent such as Lynda Reeves, Suzanne Dimma, and Tommy Smythe, these kitchens transcend time (one is almost 12 years old) but continue to look fresh. See how these tastemakers absolutely nailed it and guaranteed that these kitchens will be populating Pinterest boards for years to come.
For the 2010 Princess Margaret Showhome, the design team lead by Lynda Reeves bucked a white kitchen for a dramatic, moody palette with slate-blue cabinetry that lent a rich, historic effect. The rustic bluestone paver floors grace another great kitchen (see Bonnie Brooks’s, next slide) three years later.
Frameless rift-cut white oak cabinets in a walnut finish establishes the Belgian farmhouse-inspired look that Hudson Bay veep Bonnie Brooks wanted in her kitchen. Instead of an island, she choose salvaged wood to make a rustic bench-style table for an unfitted, authentic vibe.
The composite bluestone tile in Bonnie Brooks’s kitchen was cast from molds of 18th-century European churches and châteaux floors, for an authentically worn texture. Designer Jill Kantelberg selected rugged, overscale Cremone bolt hardware traditionally used on European windows and doors.
This showstopper for the 2012 Princess Margaret Showhome highlighted the beauty of no uppers and a full height Bianco Carrara backsplash. Lynda Reeves and her team turned the island into a jewel by wrapping the back and sides in traditional recessed marble panels, framed by burnished pendants. Swedish oiled-oak floors are a softer alternative to tile.
Food stylist Sasha Seymour gave her kitchen renovation a European flavor with a tiled hearth and open fireplace oven, dark herringbone wood floors, and raw wood doors. The high/low combo of vintage brass hardware and kickplates with white subway tiles continues to draw major love from design fans.
Design editor Kai Ethier embraces rustic open shelving and didn’t shy away from a whimsical cabinetry color (which spruced up $700 Habitat for Humanity ReStore finds) with character. Butcher block counters, a bold tile floor and subway tile walls are fresh and European in spirit.
This is a circa 2004 kitchen, but you would never know it. The design in designer Tommy Smythe’s carriage house kitchen was a throwback inspired by Gosford Park, but Tommy was years ahead of the curve when it came to choosing black-painted window mullions, a slate tile floor laid in a herringbone pattern, an oversized pendant, and contrasting cabinets.
Designer Tommy Smythe combines a graphic Escher-style tile floor, a handsome black island, chalky grey cabinetry and a cherry-red lantern in his client’s kitchen — and makes it all work. This design riffs on period kitchens, but is completely contemporary. Tommy notes that the owners didn’t want to renovate this kitchen again, so this look needed legs.
The impactful Mexican cement floor tiles that Toronto designer James Davie chose for his kitchen are not for the fickle or faint of heart. Expect to see more cement tiles in the most cutting-edge spaces; the texture is non-slip and the color goes right through the tile so patterns stay crisp and graphic.
Tour designer James Davie’s home here.
A kitchen doesn’t have to be grand to spawn copycats. The 11-foot galley kitchen of former H&H art director Mandy Milks, who teamed up with designer Mazen El-Abdallah, is loaded with style. Soft touches, such as olive-painted cabinets, a Persian rug, and art casually propped on the open shelving, make this design feel personal.
A focus on humble materials gives Mandy Milks’s small kitchen an enduring appeal and timeless quality. Simple linen curtains and articulated sconces are a quaint accompaniment to the industrial faucet and backsplash.
The striking waterfall Statuario marble island in Suzanne Dimma’s kitchen must have launched a thousand imitations. Ditto for the pendants with gold interiors and matte brass wall sconce. The island is loaded with built-in storage, but the waterfall sides float off the ground, so it looks light.
Fans of House & Home editor-in-chief Suzanne Dimma and her husband, designer Arriz Hassam, took note of the mix of walnut and painted cabinetry. Suzanne admits that combo gives the kitchen much more personality and makes the space look layered and polished.
In a small galley kitchen, tiling the entire wall in marble is a cost-effective way to impart a luxe look. Designers Sarah Keenleyside and Lindsay Konior of Qanuk Interiors made pieces such as the standalone pantry and range hood a focal point with contrasting paint. Chunky wood shelves add warmth and don’t block the flow of natural light like uppers would.
Highly patterned backsplashes have been riding a wave of popularity, but this marble chevron version by Feasby & Bleeks is easy on the eyes so the owners of this kitchen won’t tire of it. Honed granite counters meld seamlessly with dark-grey lower cabinets, while substantive, burnished brass hardware scores major style points.