Five ingredients for the perfect kitchen

When it comes time to design your kitchen, the recipe is simple. It needs to present beautifully but taste equally as amazing.

The presentation of the kitchen is always the most exciting part but so often we forget about the taste (aka what is inside those cupboards) and that is the vital ingredient to create a five star meal.

 was lucky enough to be able to design two different kitchens for a duplex build we recently completed. Despite their interior styles differing, maximising the space was always paramount.

Here’s the five key ingredients for a practical kitchen:

Storage space is a must

Storage in a small house, apartment or in my case a duplex is a precious commodity so packing your kitchen full of storage only adds to that flavour.

One of the easiest places to add storage to the kitchen is in the island. In our house we have incorporated drawers and cupboards into both sides of the island bench to really use this space.

In both kitchens we opted for drawers over cupboards where possible because of the practicality when accessing kitchen items, keeping things clean and maximising space.

Integrated pull-out bin

Who would have thought a bin could make me so happy but believe me it is a game changer.

A bin is not an item in the house you want to draw attention to, so if you have the option to tuck it away then take it. Make sure you ask your cabinet maker for the option of a double bin which is housed in the one drawer or cupboard so that you can separate recycling and waste.

A service shelf

If you don’t have the luxury of having a butler’s pantry then a service shelf is the next best thing!

I try to incorporate this shelf into any kitchen I design and house it in the pantry cupboard.

Ensure you speak with your electrician prior to the cabinetry install, so that provisions are put into place for a powerpoint to sit within this cupboard. This allows you to be able to keep the bench space free from items like your kettle and toaster which now live on this shelf.

Deep drawers

In kitchen terms, there isn’t anything worse than having to reach to the back of your cupboards trying to sort through the jenga tower of pots and pans as it is about to come crashing down.

Deep drawers ensure you can fit all of these items in without stacking them and provide easy access for when it is time to get them out.

Drawers offer better storage options than cupboards. Picture: Alan Richardson

Tray dividers

Chopping boards and baking trays are always items that get in the way and don’t have a designated place in the kitchen. But if you can’t have drawers then having a few simple dividers in the cupboard will allow you to slot your trays and chopping boards in without having to stack them on top of each other.

Styling a kitchen two ways

Now it’s time for the exciting part – the presentation.

The kitchen is of course the heart of the home but it is also the place that establishes the style for the rest of the house and where you can inject your personal flare.

Whilst Pinterest and Instagram are an amazing source of inspiration during the design time they can also cloud your thoughts and have you wanting a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Just remember less is more and try rein in those thoughts. My general rule of thumb is do not exceed more than three colours or textures.

Source Realestate.com.au