Your Kitchen Rules

Over the past two years, we have all developed a much closer relationship with our kitchens. There is no denying that this room became more than just the heart of the home; it became everything we needed to survive.

Every meal. Every day. And we suddenly got a whole lot hungrier! Hands up all the ‘snack b*#tches’ in the room!

We all started baking, creating, finding fun ways to fill in time, break up the day, home-school and perhaps unwittingly preparing ourselves for the next MasterChef audition? Just saying!

According to research, our longevity and health increase when we cook at home more frequently. Children also benefit immensely from eating home-cooked meals.

So, the kitchen plays such an important role! It is a centre for family conversation and memories, and it is a place where children learn social skills and manners that will help them grow and connect with other people throughout their lives.

As the pages in our favourite recipe books and iPad and iPhone screens got smeared with sauces, sugars, and little fingerprints, we realised how much we LOVE our kitchen.

BUT … is there enough bench space, storage, and power points? Is the flow correct?

Ask any interior designer, and they will tell you that the “Flow of the kitchen is key.”

Not only taking into consideration the “work triangle”, but also the more minor details that can help make a kitchen easy to use, like ensuring kitchen storage is where it’s needed – cups near the coffee machine, pot and pans near the oven and cooktop and position the dishwasher, so it’s central to unpacking plates.

Developed in the early twentieth century, the work triangle – also known as the kitchen triangle – is a theory that suggests a kitchen’s three main work areas should form, you guessed it, a triangle! Specifically, the sink, the fridge, and the stove. In the world of kitchens, this theory still applies today.

When it comes to colours, clean white lines and natural wood tones are the most common in trending kitchens, but the use of dark colours that create a sense of drama is also right on trend this year.

Steer clear of over-styling the kitchen with too much of the latest “on-trend” features, as these can be hard to change – and as we all know, trends come and go!

A more versatile option to keep your kitchen fresh and fashionable is to add pops of colour with accessories such as pot plants, bowls, and pendant lights.

Even though we would all love to have our dream kitchen, the most important role a kitchen plays is its ability to bring and bond together with family and friends no matter how it looks.