Australian Kitchen Trends That Are Here to Stay

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Australian kitchens come in an endless range of styles and designs. While, of course, there are certain trends in each decade or generation and Australian country kitchens will differ from modern, contemporary designs in key ways, there are certainly trends that are here to stay.

If you’re building your dream home or renovating your house, here are the Australian kitchen design trends that are certainly timeless.

The Open Plan Kitchen

Kitchens are no longer simply places of cooking and cleaning. They’re an integral part of the home and a place where families gather, friends congregate and hosting occurs. The open plan kitchen merges the living areas of a home with the kitchen itself making it easier than ever for interaction with family members, visitors and guests. 

Spaciousness is always an important priority, and de-segregating a home with an open plan kitchen is an excellent way to achieve that. Not to mention the ease with which parents of younger children can keep a supervisory eye on them without having to leave the kitchen itself.

Natural Stone Benchtops

If the kitchen is the centre (not necessarily physically) of the home, the kitchen benchtop is the centrepoint of the kitchen. Natural stone benchtops have been and continue to be a staple of Australian kitchens. Popular for many reasons, stone is extraordinarily hard wearing and durable. Stone is perfect for a benchtop that will see its fair share of activity, mess, food and meal preparation.

Of course, stone is most certainly a style choice in and of itself. With an almost-overwhelmingly wide choice of styles, patterns, colours and shades there’s a stone slab to suit any kitchen and personal preference. Plus, with proper maintenance and sealing, it can also last for many decades so neither the material or style will date.

The Island Bench

Island kitchen benchtops are popular the world over but especially in Australia. Paired with either of the ideas above–an open plan kitchen or stone benchtop–island benches are versatile and practical.

Not only do they provide immense surface area on which to work but they also declutter and contribute positively to an opening up of the space. There’s a lot of potential with an island countertop as well. You can incorporate sinks, dishwashers, drawers or even a cooktop. Additionally, you can turn it into a legitimate piece of art by opting for a waterfall style, rounded island benchtop or one of the myriad other options out there.

The Breakfast Bar

While often referred to as breakfast bars, they could just as easily be used for any other purpose. Many Australian kitchens incorporate a countertop that doubles as an eating area of quick meals or general socialising. Both island benches and more traditional designs can be complemented with a series of fashionable stools.

It’s yet another way of adding something practical and timeless to your kitchen. Trust us, with this kitchen design, your kids are going to love breakfast time!

Feature Countertop Colours

While uniform coloured countertops that match the rest of your kitchen colour scheme is certainly a safe way to go, adding a bit of visual flair in the form of a feature coloured countertop is another trend that’s here to stay.

You don’t have to opt for something out there and zany, however. A stylish and understated coloured stone slab can make for an excellent addition to most Australian kitchen designs. Try mixing up your colour scheme by opting for a darker toned benchtop in a lighter kitchen, or vice versa as the case may be.

The Humble Nook

Kitchen nooks come in all shapes, styles and designs but there is one thing they have in common: They’re endlessly useful! Breakfast nooks (probably unnecessary if you have a breakfast bar) or desk/work areas can be worked into the family kitchen design offering additional utility without crowding the space.

The nook is one trend that while timeless will depend on the space and structure of your kitchen. If it does suit your home, it offers additional opportunity to infuse colour and style, however, which will help bring your kitchen to life.

Under Cabinet Lighting

Under cabinet lighting is an Australian kitchen design choice you won’t regret. Of course, it allows for much better visibility when preparing food in a space often overshadowed by hanging cabinetry. 

But there’s a lot of design potential as well. With simple LED strips, downlights or even more extravagant feature lighting, under cabinet lighting adds visual flair to your kitchen.

Stone Splashbacks

There are many ways Australian kitchens incorporate beautiful natural stone and a splashback is just one of them! Like many other features of the kitchen, the splashback is a necessary practicality but still provides opportunity for sophisticated styling. Stone, available in many colours and patterns, can be tiled in a variety of ways to help bring a subtle area of the kitchen to the fore. 

Integrated Appliances

Microwaves and ovens have long been integrated in the surrounding cabinetry and walls of a kitchen, but an increasingly emerging trend of Australian kitchens that isn’t going out of fashion any time soon are more integrations. 

From the fridge (which can be hidden behind matching cabinetry veneers) to dishwashers, pull-out bins and more, the flush, there’s an invaluable quality to the seamless and contemporary design of integrated appliances. And, of course, it saves on space which is at an absolute premium in the kitchen!

Marble

What stone brings more luxury and style to a kitchen than marble? Having been used for years and guaranteed to be used for many more years, this gloriously iconic and spectacularly practical natural stone is a staple of Australian kitchen design.

While marble may not be the cheapest of materials to use in your kitchen there are many ways in which you can use this stone even on a budget. Keeping its application to a benchtop or even a splashback (see the ideas above) are excellent ways to make the most of marble without having to go wall-to-ceiling.

Your Classic Australian Kitchen Starts With Euro Marble 

We might be called Euro Marble, but we do a LOT more than just marble. If you’re looking for assistance with achieving an Australian kitchen design that will look and function fantastically today and for many, many years to come, contact us today. Let’s explore how we can help you!

The Best Wet Room Bathroom Designs

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Wet room bathrooms are becoming more and more popular among home-owners around Australia. Functional, stylish and versatile in design, turning your bathroom into a wet area is a practical way to make the most of one of the most frequented rooms of the house.

To help you settle on a wet room bathroom design, we’ve put together the best styles and ideas in one handy article. But before we dive in, let’s answer the basic question: What is a wet room?

What are Wet Room Bathrooms?

The term wet room is used to refer to any space in the house that is completely waterproofed. In the context of a bathroom, this means that not only is the shower itself fitted with a drain and water-sealed tiling, but the rest of the room is as well.

Wet area bathrooms allow for huge design potential and creativity as you are not required to limit or contain what can or can’t get wet.

Open layouts are extremely popular in living areas of the house, including the kitchen, and with a functional wet room bathroom design, you can enjoy the same spaciousness there as well.

Fortunately, despite the luxurious and spa-like nature of wet room bathrooms, they can be incorporated in all kinds of houses and installed with all sized budgets.

1. Use a Tanking System

In addition to ensuring the tiling–from walls to floor–of your bathroom are fully waterproofed, incorporating a robust tanking system is really a must. By adding this important extra layer between the tiles and your floor or wall, you can ensure that your wet room will remain durable and functional even after frequent and long term exposure to water. Tanking systems help ensure that the water drains properly using hidden tray systems that fit under the floor tiles. It is certainly the most important and practical design feature of a wet room to ensure maximum performance and longevity in durability. 

2. Use watertight materials

Part of the appeal of a wet room is to rid your bathroom of screens, glass enclosures or other sections that will compromise the openness of the space. To that end, using the right waterproof and watertight materials is an absolute necessity.

Ceramic tiles are a popular option that can be mounted to a wet wall or used along the floor as its watertight membrane ensures any water flows across without permeating the surface itself. Additionally, porcelain is quite commonly used for a similar reason. While plastic and metal can both be practical (which is why they’re incorporated in kitchens), they are less popular in bathrooms for obvious reasons.

Natural stone is widely used for bathroom vanities and basins due to their non-porous nature and durability. Not to mention their spectacular visual aesthetics. For this reason, stone is an excellent wet room bathroom option as it offers both beautiful design value and functional utility.

3. Minimalist design

Now let’s move on to the design aspects of your wet bathroom. The openness and spaciousness is one of the main selling points of a wet room, so we recommend keeping your design minimalist to capitalise on that. Think smaller-than-average toilets, bathtubs and vanities to help keep the space clean and clear. (Obviously not too small! And the right size will depend on your bathroom size.) Floating or wall-hung vanities are very popular for the same reason, as are recessed shelves, mirrors and lighting. 

4. Incorporate feature walls

If you’re worried about the minimalist approach to a wet room design, a feature wall can be the perfect solution! Simply using a composite of different tiles or panels across a particular wall can help to elevate the aesthetics of the entire room. You can opt for an entirely different material, such as natural stone feature walls against a ceramic bathroom, or just a different colour wall. Feature walls offer a huge opportunity to flex your creative muscles without losing out on the benefits of the wet room.

5. Pattern your shower

If you’re wanting to take the appeal of a feature wall but contain it somewhat, a patterned shower is a great addition to a wet area bathroom. An eye-catching tile pattern or design can help the shower area itself stand out without affecting the spacious feel of the rest of the room. Throwing a bit of colour into your shower is also a great way to liven up the bathroom without having to commit to changing up an entire wall.

6. Built-in shower seat

While we are on the topic of showers, a built-in shower seat not only completes the fantastic look of a wet room bathroom but is also very functional as well. Keeping your bathroom minimalist in design might remove some level of practicality, but you can gain it all back with a shower seat. Combined with a rainfall showerhead and non-slip surfaces, a built-in shower seat will not only help to break up the visuals of your bathroom by adding a bit of depth, it will also turn every shower into a luxury experience. 

7. Highlight natural lighting

If it isn’t obvious already, one of the main attractions of a wet room is the spaciousness it offers. So, make the most of it by highlighting and incorporating natural lighting. From large windows to skylights, there’s a lot of potential! The exact solution will need to be discussed with your designer and architect, but the incorporation of natural lighting will help the entire bathroom feel more enticing, alive and beautiful. 

8. Opt for underfloor heating

Thanks to advances in modern day technology and construction techniques, just because you’re incorporating a wet room into your bathroom doesn’t mean you have to forgo a luxury like underfloor heating. An all-tiled wet room can feel a bit cold to the touch during the colder months of the year. Keeping the floor nice and heated will top off your wet area bathroom as one of your favourite places to be in the house.

Thinking of a stone flooring for your wet room? Think Euro Marble!

It might come as no surprise that our preference for bathrooms, wet or otherwise, is always stone! Natural stone is beautiful, varied, and highly practical which is why it’s long been and continues to be very popular. If you’d like to find out more about using stone flooring in your wet room bathroom, give the Euro Marble team a call on (02) 8585 2999. 

We’ll leave no stone unturned in finding the perfect design to suit you and your family!