Are you ready to give your home a fresh start in 2022? The latest trends in kitchen and bathroom design are a great way to get inspired when planning a remodel. This year’s trends in home design include new color schemes with a return to natural wood tones and bolder color choices, as well as customized storage, fresh tub and shower styles, amazing islands, and more! Here are five of our favorite 2022 trends for kitchen and bath design.
Updated Color Schemes
While white kitchen design and neutral shades for bathroom designs will always be a top choice, 2022 sees a resurgence of wood tones that bring warmth and a natural appeal to homes. Wood is a timeless addition to any home living space, and kitchen and bathroom designs are no exception. From hardwood floors to floating shelves, cabinets, storage containers, and more, wood fits into any style space.
Choose this year’s popular light wood tones to accent a contemporary style room or bring a fresh spa vibe to a bathroom design. Or go for a deeper wood tone to bring warmth to any space. When choosing wood cabinetry, pick the best quality you can afford and allow the natural appeal of the wood to define your style. Quality wood will look amazing with any style bathroom or kitchen design, from the simple lines of Shaker style cabinetry to the fine detailing that is growing in popularity, or even the contemporary look of a slab door.
There are many benefits to including wood in a kitchen design or bathroom remodel, and many ways in which wood can be incorporated. It is a timeless material that brings warmth to any room and adds layered textures to your home design. Quality wood cabinetry will last for years, and hardwood flooring can be refinished multiple times to increase its longevity. Wood can be introduced to a home in small ways that have a big impact, such as rustic reclaimed wood shelves or a sliding pantry door.
If you don’t want to commit to wood throughout your kitchen design, consider going for a two-tone color scheme, for example wood base cabinets and white upper cabinetry. Or go for a striking design combining wood with this year’s popular colors such as blues, reds, and greens. Alternatively, pick a muted tone like Benjamin Moore’s color of the year for 2022, October Mist, which brings an element of nature to your home. If you want to introduce color in smaller ways, consider barstools, accessories, or soft furnishings in a favorite accent color.
Tub Shower Combos…and Freestanding Tubs
Freestanding tubs are very popular, but there is still a place for an updated tub/shower combination in today’s bathroom designs. This style fits perfectly in a family or hall bathroom, or a smaller master bathroom. There are many options for tub/shower combos that can enhance a bath design, and a wide range of materials and features to give you a luxury shower and bathing experience in a compact space. First, find a tub style that fits your space and needs. Then complete it with a custom tile wall, built-in storage, and a tub filler and showerheads. You can pair your alcove tub with a sliding glass door, glass screen, or a shower curtain.
If you have the space in your bathroom and budget, you could opt for the flat-bottomed, freestanding tubs that have become increasingly popular. It’s easy to see why they are a top choice for 2022, as the sleek tub styles have architectural lines that make them a beautiful bathroom design focal point. Allow your freestanding bathtub to stand out by setting it in a prominent location, for example near a large window, where you benefit form a soak in the tub while soaking up the sun. Or place the tub in an alcove against a feature wall. You can also feature your freestanding tub by framing it with an accent floor tile. Pair this style bathtub with a wall-mount waterfall bath faucet or a floor-mount tub filler.
Kitchen Islands
In today’s home, the kitchen is at the center of everything, from cooking to entertaining, clean up, working from home, crafting, and much more. Islands play a major role in creating a stylish, highly functional kitchen design with a cohesive layout, efficient storage, and clear work zones. The island is particularly important in an open plan kitchen that flows into dining and entertainment spaces. Placing an island at the heart of your kitchen allows you to segment key activities, for example with a cooking and clean up area on one side and space for casual dining with barstools across the island.
If space allows, go for the latest trends and include a large island, a T-shaped or L-shaped island, or even two kitchen islands. Committing more floorspace to an island enhances your room’s organization by creating additional storage, workspace, and a dining area. Consider changing your kitchen layout to accommodate a larger island if necessary, or investigate knocking down or moving a wall. If your home or your remodeling budget won’t allow for a large island, a smaller island or even a peninsula can offer many of the same benefits. Choose an option that maximizes your available space without overwhelming it.
What are some of the clever ways an island can transform your kitchen design?
- Add interest to your kitchen’s color scheme by installing island cabinetry in a contrasting color, such as a black island against white cabinetry.
- Pick a luxury countertop material for your island, balanced out with a more practical, less expensive choice for your kitchen’s perimeter.
- Let your island specialize, for example with a tabletop end for everyday dining, or a marble countertop and customized storage to create the ideal baking zone.
- Include an undercounter beverage refrigerator away from the cooking area, for example at the end of an island, so guests or kids can easily access cold drinks while you cook.
- Move some appliances to your island, such as the range or dishwasher, which frees up space in the perimeter for more storage.
- Make your island glow with statement lighting, such as this year’s top choice of lantern style lights or the ever-popular bold pendants.
- For the ultimate island upgrade, install a Galley Workstation. This multi-functional kitchen tool comes in a wide range of sizes and styles with customizable accessories, allowing you to go from food prep to serving and clean up in one place.
Balancing Aging in Place with Style
It’s important to create a design for your home that matches your family’s needs. If you are updating a space with a plan to sell your home, your remodeling plans will differ from a home where you plan to stay for at least 5-10 years. Likewise, consider your stage of life and plan accordingly, whether you are a family with young children or plan to age in place.
When designing for aging in place you must first consider functional requirements, but balance this with style. Today’s universal designs incorporate the latest materials and finishes to create a space that combines safety, accessibility, and style. Simple ways to balance these needs could include:
- Rounded edges for countertops and cabinetry to minimize sharp corners that could cause injury.
- Slip resistant flooring in moisture prone areas like a bathroom design or the area near a kitchen sink. Textured tile or hardwood are ideal for a stylish and safe floor, but hardwood can be difficult to maintain in heavy moisture prone rooms. Or choose luxury vinyl flooring with a textured surface for a stylish, easy to maintain, and slip resistant surface.
- Cabinet hardware styles like pulls instead of knobs that make it easier to grasp and open storage.
- Easily accessible storage solutions like a mixer lift or pull-down shelves for upper cabinetry.
- A layout that makes it simple to maneuver around your room, including enough space to easily pass through a doorway and move around the room with a mobility aid.
- A curbless or fully open shower, equipped with a built-in bench or pull-down seat, slip resistant flooring, and grab bars. Today’s grab bars come in styles and finishes to complement the rest of your bathroom design and match plumbing fixtures and cabinet hardware.
- Multiple showerheads including a handheld shower, that simplifies bathing for anyone who may need assistance.
- Underfloor heating for a luxurious addition to a tiled bathroom floor, that makes the bathroom design more comfortable and is soothing to sore, tired feet.