Planning a kitchen remodel in 2022? The last thing you want is something in the design that starts to feel dated in a few years. That’s why a look at kitchen design trends 2022 should be where you begin your remodeling plans.
Most kitchen trends can last ten years or more. Trends don’t change all at once. The evolution is incremental, adjusting a bit year by year until one trend falls out of favor and a new one replaces it. Keeping on top of 2022’s kitchen trends will ensure your kitchen design has a full lifespan ahead of it.
We’ve scoured past trends, talked to experts, and even peeked into the future to find out what looks are going to last through the next decade. Here are seven you can count on to keep your kitchen fresh.
Or if you already know the trends, get started with our design team.
1. Minimalism
Kitchens in 2022 and beyond will continue to keep things tidy and spare. You can expect kitchens in the next several years to lean-in to smart functionality and more technology. You’ll see more cordless, app-controlled, voice-controlled smart appliances and other features in the kitchen.
Minimal design always includes clean-lines but watch for the incorporation of even more lines in the kitchen in the form of fine-grained woods, geometric patterns, and angular design on faucets and appliances.
Designs in 2022 and beyond will also feature organic, free flowing shapes in the mid-century modern style. You’ll see both geometric lines and organic curves next to each other, hanging out in perfect harmony.
2. Permanent Bold Color
Permanent bold color is a risk in kitchen design because you can’t be sure how long a particular color will avoid looking dated (remember that bubbly shade of pink from the 80s?). But the last several years we’ve seen bold color make its way back into the kitchen—and not just as an accent color.
Look for bolder, brighter colors on everything from the cabinets to the kitchen sink. There is no hard and fast rule about which colors to choose. Blues and greens are already well established in kitchen design. When in doubt, select colors that can double as neutrals like deep plums, navy blues, gray-greens, and earth tones.
3. Mixing
The concept of curation has replaced eclectic style substituting quirky for customized. If you don’t have some personalization in your kitchen design, it will come off as boring in 2022. Plan to include custom details that bring meaning to your design: collectibles arranged in a vignette, patterns from a favorite foreign country, or a handcrafted element.
Mixing will also feature in 2022 in the design basics of your kitchen. Mix cool and warm tones in metallics, woods, and paint. Bring sharp angles and organic curves together in the shapes in your kitchen. Blur the line between the kitchen and the living room by adding a cushy chair to the corner of the otherwise hard-surfaced space.
4. Layering
Layering is the new buzz word in design these days. You can layer textures, patterns, lighting, and more. You’re essentially just starting with a theme then bringing in variations of that theme on top of one another.
Patterns within patterns offer a sort of quilt look that’s gaining popularity in design. Choose a single pattern then layer it into different areas of the space in different colors. Layer lighting by ensuring you have ambient, task, and accent lighting.
5. Statement Island
Up and coming in kitchen design trends 2022 is the statement island. There are many ways for an island to make a statement. It can have different color cabinets from the perimeter of the room. It can have a bold countertop color. It can feature some distinct statement pendant lights.
An up-and-coming island trend is to have a double island. Instead of one long island, consider breaking them up into two smaller islands. Include a bar-style island at an outside edge of the kitchen and a task-oriented island in the middle of the kitchen. Stack the islands two deep with a walkway between to increase the workspace.
6. No Cabinet Knobs
In the minimalism thread, you’ll see fewer cabinet knobs and pulls in 2022 and beyond. Flat front cabinets further enhance this simple approach to the kitchen cabinets.
Cabinet handles tend to catch the eye. They can be used effectively to add some detailing that really makes a design. However, in this case, the idea is to let the cabinet stand on its own. A beautiful wood grain shouldn’t be interrupted but left alone to shine through.
7. Dark Oak & Walnut
Oak and walnut have fine linear grains so it’s hardly surprising that they have become the favorites for 2022 kitchen trends. Walnut has a naturally deep color that lends well to neutral yet distinctive color palettes. A flat front walnut style cabinet will be the top choice for kitchens.
Oak already had its heyday in the kitchen, but this is a totally different experience from the oak of the 90s. Dark stained oak gives it a deep gray color that perfectly complements the no-nonsense kitchen trends today.
8. Natural Materials
The overly refined materials of the past, often sterile and manmade, are out of vogue. Refinement has been redefined for 2022 with natural materials like stone, cement, and wood making a showing in neutral colors. They direct attention to other elements of the design and keep things on the minimal side but with a grounded feeling.
Consider cement countertops or quiet stone countertops with little grain or veining. Go with woods in medium browns with linear grain. Design your kitchen with minimal “ingredients” that you understand and relate to.
“Bare” materials are far from plain. They open up the world of possibilities and let the beauty of simplicity and nature shine through.
Paying attention to kitchen design trends of 2022 will help you achieve a kitchen remodel that will stay relevant into the next decade (at least). Dig in to the details on cabinet trends that will last beyond 2030. Or read up on what trends to avoid.
