By LINDA PARKER

We’re in the midst of London Design Festival  at the moment, so will be bringing you some interesting ideas over our next few features … In the meantime that definite hint of autumn in the air and the change of style and season has focussed attention on some new ways with colour. The announcement of the Colour of the Year for 2020 from Dulux is, quite frankly, a calm relief. It’s Tranquil Dawn,  which is a soft, gentle green that can be used throughout the home with ease, adding a touch of modernity to shades of white and a calming presence to darker, more adventurous schemes. 

This room is a great example of how a feature wall can be incorporated into a scheme, here, Tranquil Dawn provides a contemporary colour element without taking over the whole scheme; it doesn’t veer too far away from the calming neutrals and textures of the wooden chair and woven rug, and indeed it does impart an air of tranquillity. (And next year that wall could be painted shocking pink or damson for a complete change of pace!)

Another good illustration of a Tranquil Dawn-style colour scheme. This time it’s been beautifully executed by Mereway Kitchens, and this is Bridgwater from the Town & Country collection in Prosecco and Dark Sage. So it’s a slightly darker, contrasting with the ivory-with-a-hint-of-green Prosecco shade. Again, both colours look wonderful with natural timber elements – including the window joinery, breakfast bar and stools. Without banging on about ‘updating’ too much – it’s not necessarily what you want to consider when splashing out on a brand new kitchen – this is another scheme that could easily be given a new or different lease of life in years to come with a change of colour emphasis. 

If your starting point is a very plain and simple kitchen, and it’s in good condition, then a new tiled wall is a viable update. There are several points to consider though; if you are DIY-ing, make sure you can remove existing wall coverings or tiles without disturbing or damaging the work surfaces. Consider removing the wall cabinets altogether and replace with open shelves for a fresher, on-trend look. Follow the Colour of the Year trend with these Metro Sage ceramic tiles from Tile Mountain, also available in neutrals as well as Plum, Black, Red and Teal for more adventurous schemes!

Rational’s Chalet kitchen, shown here in the delightful lacquered Green Tea colourway, has elegant  leather pull handles, and added interest with varying levels for the centre island, plus matching work top and splash backs for the perimeter cabinetry. Make the colour stand out even more by teaming with pale walls and dark floors …

Get your tranquil scheme going … Would it be too much of a good thing to have two or even three of these gorgeous glass pendants hanging above a breakfast bar? Or maybe just stick to one above a dining table or even in the bedroom. It’s the Retro Palm Leaf Glass Pendant in Green from Cult Furniture; another little gem from Tile Mountain, this time it’s the Craquele Mint crackle glaze wall tile in Mint, which adds a rustic and aged look to a brand new kitchen or bathroom. And for a super-modern application of the colour of the year, try the Jug Kettle in Pistachio by Cuisinart, it’s got different temperature settings (85, 95 and 100 deg C) so you can use the water for perfectly brewed tea or coffee. 

And now, heading over to the dark side, we wanted to bring you news of some stunning dark designs – which of course would also look completely fantastic paired with Tranquil Dawn interpretations. This is the Somerton kitchen in Baltic Green painted finish, from the Burbidge Kitchen Makers collection. It’s such a bold, brave, ‘statement’ kitchen that is both traditional and unique at the same time. Paired with brushed brass handles and period-style taps and pendants, it’s an absolute dream of a kitchen that can be adapted to small and large spaces. 

The Tio kitchen by Rational comes in a huge selection of colours, but we think this combination of Metallic Anthracite and Bronze hits the spot as far as dark and dramatic is concerned – using dark colours in a large space concentrates the eye on the ‘active’ area of the kitchen and really defines the use of space and it’s functionality. 

This layout looks good for several reasons; spot-on black window frames; dark cabinetry, plus two feature walls – which add interest but don’t dominate the scheme as they are framed by white ceilings and intermingled with white walls. Great colour choices, along with dark cabinetry. Focus features here are the Grohe K700 Undermount composite sink to achieve that seamless look, also available as a top-mounted drop-in design for a different look and emphasis. The tap is the  Grohe Professional K7 with arched sprung coil containing the hose, SilkMove technology to provide excellent flow and temperature control.  Oh, and it’s also available in different metal finishes and colours as well as with colourful hoses …

Hop over to the Corston Architectural Detail  collection for some top of the class finishing touches for the new kitchen (or the whole house). The collection includes furniture and door handles as well as hooks, bracket and other items of hardware. Beautifully fashioned switches and sockets are also available, as well as lighting. In bronze and brass finishes, with transparent back plates and panels for an ultra-minimalist look. 

The new 40^th Birthday edition of the 100cm chrome heat storage range cooker from Everhot is simply stunning; if you fancy splashing the cash this particular model is around £8925. So yes, a big investment buy, but each model is hand-built, they are incredibly energy efficient, can run off a 13A plug socket, and can be moved to a new home as and when necessary.  

If you’re going for dark cabinetry, it’s a perfect opportunity to  choose light and bright work surfaces and/or splash backs. This is Mist from the MISTRAL range of solid surfaces manufactured from natural minerals and acrylic-based resin compound; look at the other colour options here. It’s absolutely true that there is a colour for every setting … if you fancy the dark side, go for Ignea or Zirconia, request samples here.