As ever, our mission is to bring you inspiration for your upcoming kitchen projects, as well as a few accessory ideas to add the finishing touches. Once again we are admiring a kitchen project from deVOL, as well as a stunning design from En Masse Bespoke.

The 2021 Designer Awards are held later this week, and on the shortlist for Kitchen Designer of the Year is  En Masse Bespoke, kitchen and furniture designers based in Essex. Head Designer and Founder is David Conlan, with En Masse winning the Best Use of Materials category in 2020. The project show above features timber cladding and dark cabinetry, with pocket doors used to great advantage, streamlining the overall look and disguising plentiful storage, including a breakfast spot.

A different view of the En Masse project, this time showing a glimpse of the courtyard and giving a sense of scale of the space. By En Masse Bespoke.

In contrast, we’re also hugely appreciative of this classic kitchen, from deVOL, it’s the Classic English style and is a recent installation within a Victorian home. Painted in deVOL’s own shade Trinity Blue, which is a fabulous contrast, showing up clear and bright against the dark parquet flooring. There’s a Mercury range cooker, with integrated extractor above and a traditional-style shelf. The Bum stools are also by deVOL.

It’s the details that give this kitchen a thoroughly traditional look … The ribbed front edge of the main sink (there’s also a small rinsing sink set into the island), and the glazed cupboards above the sink area with tongue-and-groove back panels all work together in complete harmony reinforce the classic, period-look of this project. All by deVOL.

Zenith by Bushboard is a new compact laminate range, available in modular sizes which make installation an easier task. The compact laminate has a slid 12.5mm core, with a range of 20 different design faces, including marble, stone and industrial looks. Sizes are formatted to work as a work surfaces, breakfast bar, splashback and upstand, designed to be cut on site by the installer, with standard installation equipment. Click for samples and a look at the whole range  here. For a particularly bold look, try Rouille, shown here, above, is Marbre Veneto, also available in an extra-matt finish.

A new kitchen nearly always requires a new floor as well, and designers tend to lean towards neutral shades and timeless looks – which allow for colour scheme changes in the future. This is a great design from Flooring Mountain, it’s Spanish Stone Linear Charcoal luxury click vinyl flooring. It’s click-to-fit, with a micro-bevelled edge and it’s water-resistant, so can be used in the kitchen and bathroom, and with wet underfloor heating. Each tile is 610mm x 303mm and comprehensive installation guidelines are available here.

We don’t often feature laundry appliances, but it’s that time of year … When thoughts turn to the possible purchase of a tumble dryer, and the prospect of damp washing hanging around the house through the winter is rather off-putting. Well in my case it is, so I started looking more closely at tumble driers. The I Pro Series 5 HD90-A2959 heat pump model by Haier has a lot of appealing features, including connectivity with the hOn App, a Hygienic feature that eliminates over 99% of bacteria, a large 9kg capacity drum, and an energy rating that uses up to 50% less energy than a vented dry. There’s a matching washing machine, both are available in white or graphite.

October Mist 1495 is the Colour of the Year for 2022 from Benjamin Moore. It’s described as a calm and gentle sage, and as an anchoring and uplifting colour. Very suited to kitchen and bathroom projects, and available in a good variety of finishes, including eggshell, matt, gloss, semi-gloss and flat.

More flooring suggestions, this time in the shape of Form in Cinder by Amtico. Shown above in the Pavestone format, replicating rectangular and square stone tiles, it’s also available as a hexagonal effect, which is interesting and would look good in a smaller space, such as a bathroom or cloakroom.

A new collection from Silestone ® by Cosentino is always eagerly anticipated, and the new Ethereal concept doesn’t disappoint. Shown above is Ethereal Haze, which is one of four designs that are inspired by the looks of natural marble and the beauty of  the sky – Dusk, Haze, Glow and Noctis Each colourway features deep and fine vein patterns on a shade of white. Ethereal uses HYBRIQ+ technology, where the production process uses 99% reused water and 100% renewable electric energy. The composition of the material uses 20% recycled raw materials also.

Silestone Ethereal Dusk, shown above,  is described as an urban look, with a bluish tone to the vein patterns, bringing a more modern look to the colourway. For more Silestone inspiration, a scroll through the gallery here won’t be wasted time!

With the continuing emphasis, and quite rightly so, on hygiene in the home and particularly in the kitchen and bathroom, we bring you news of the EKO Home Aroma Smart Sensor Liquid Soap Dispenser which can of course be used in the kitchen and the bathroom. It has a motion sensor for touchless dispensing, and is rechargeable via a USB cable provided.

We do love smart products, but we also appreciate clever products too … this is the Stellar Battery Free Digital Scale from Horwood. It’s neat and compact, and weighs up to 5kg, and is operated by just swinging the arm back and forth a few times to charge it up. It can add-weigh too, by using the reset function, so multiple ingredients can be added to the same bowl. Now that’s definitely a little idea to keep a note of for the Xmas list!

And speaking of Christmas, which has to be done, here are some gorgeous and colourful Aurielle champagne flutes, available from Dibor, in three colours  Amethyst, Sapphire and Turquoise. They look sturdy as well as pretty, ideal for anyone who is slightly scared by the sheer fragility of some fancy flutes and cocktail glassware!

Next Time: We will be looking at some suggestions for Xmas Prep in the kitchen!