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Houzz 2018 Kitchen Trends Report
We’re big fans of Houzz, we use it personally, we use it professionally and we find it a really helpful source of kitchen inspiration. And we’re not alone – 2,000,000 people in the UK use Houzz every week to help with their interior design projects! So when Houzz releases its annual Kitchen Trends report, we’re always excited to see what’s going on in the wider world of kitchen design and how the Davonport kitchens we’ve been working on over the past 12 months compare. From kitchen storage (namely pan drawers and a pantry), to kitchen colour schemes, and the much loved open-plan kitchen layout, we’re always interested to see just what the latest trends are in the world of kitchens and interiors.

Kitchen Layout & Design
For those lucky enough to have the benefit of space on your side, a large room gives you maximum flexibility with your kitchen layout options. Whether your house already has a large kitchen or perhaps you’re extending to create a more expansive room, something that remains popular is an open-plan kitchen layout. In fact, Houzz found that 58% of people were making their new kitchen open-plan. Furthermore, 52% of people were attempting to open their kitchen up to the great outdoors, encouraging a natural flow between the kitchen and garden.
In-keeping with the demand for a large, open-plan kitchen layout, kitchen islands remain a very popular feature amongst the Houzz community with 41% of people including one. The majority of our clients have kitchen islands, whether they’re used as food prep space, a socialising area or for added storage, kitchen islands continue to be very popular indeed.

Kitchen Storage
Is there such a thing as too much kitchen storage? We think not. In fact, no matter how large your room and how many cabinets, corner units and clever storage internals you have, the chances are you’ll never have too much space! Houzz found that 80% of people wanted their new kitchen to make better use of space, with 55% of people looking to reduce clutter, and 53% of people wanting to make it easier to find items. So, how do you do this? In short, you choose plenty of good quality storage. Houzz found that 75% of people opted for a cutlery organiser and 60% chose deep drawer organisers (such as peg boards in pan drawers). Unsurprisingly, the much-loved pantry also ranked highly, with 39% of Houzzers choosing to include one. It’s no secret that we are huge advocates of the kitchen pantry, so if you’re considering one for your new kitchen, check out our Planning the Perfect Pantry blog post.

Kitchen Style & Aesthetics
The aesthetics of any kitchen design is crucial, and this is where the ‘trends’ and ‘fashions’ of the moment are most recognisable, with 55% of people looking for a contemporary kitchen style. Despite the trend for bold, dark kitchens in shades of blue and green, this has in fact not been very popular amongst Houzzers. Just 8% of the Houzz community opted for blue cabinets. Whereas the timelessly sophisticated and ever-popular muted hues such as white and grey are once again the most popular colours of the year – each with 29% of the Houzz community supporting it.
The colour and material of the worktop also has a significant impact on the look of the room. Quartz is the most popular worktop material (28%) followed by granite (18%). In terms of colours, the trend for lighter worktops most certainly continues. 28% of people chose a white (or off-white) worktop whereas only 15% of people opted for a black worktop.

If you’re not already using Houzz, head over and check out our profile. We share all our latest projects on there and it’s such an easy way to pull together different ideas and styles you like. So, whether you’re planning a whole house renovation or just focussing on the kitchen, be sure to have a look on Houzz along the way.
*Houzz 2018 Kitchen Trends Study UK – fielded in September 2017 – respondents have either undergone a kitchen project in past 12 months, are currently working on a kitchen project or plan to start in next 3 months*