Essential Kitchen Bathroom Bedroom – April 2018

Beyond finding the right style of cabinetry and planning its layout, one of the biggest design decisions you will make when thinking about your new kitchen is what surface materials you use. From natural stone to composites and wood to metals and glass, there are so many options, and with many factors such as durability, appearance and maintenance to all bear in mind, the ideas might seem endless. In this bumper design-focused issue, we are honing in specifically on kitchen materials. Turn to Modern Utility on page 89 to see how British designers are using surfaces best to create the new industrial mood. On page 99 you can consider specific solutions for all types of hardworking kitchen areas in Splashbacks & Worktops. Our kitchen case studies in this issue feature a real array of mixed materials. Whether you fall in love with the salvaged wood and painted cabinetry of the Hornsby’s kitchen in Reclaimed Magic on page 28 or are more drawn to the seamless beauty of dark wood, cork walls and textured surfaces in Rhys Cole’s cook space in Two Into One on page 42, there are so many original ideas here to inspire you. In Into the Zone on page 56 the Piasecki family have used elegant marble to make a statement, while in Lofty Heights on page 68, Lamia Sbiti has gone for a beautiful combination of hand-poured concrete and black walnut plywood. In other sections of the magazine we’ve also been drawn to natural and tactile materials coming through now, alongside some bling too. In bedrooms we’ve been hitching a retro ride back to the hippy era and earthy trends made new in That 70s Boho on page 170; while in bathrooms we’ve been investigating some of the new luxury and industrial finishes for shower and brassware – see Waterworks on page 141.