5 Outdated Kitchen Trends to Avoid in Your Custom Cottage Build
You’re designing the custom cottage you’ve always dreamed about. This can be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and getting the design details right is important. The cottage kitchen will be the heart of the fun as you gather and nourish your family and friends. You want to love your design decisions in the years to come. Luckily, cottage style often draws inspiration from multiple eras and mixes and matches tone, colour and pattern with a little more forgiveness. Many family cottages have been passed through generations, and each period has left its mark, so by diversifying your design inspiration, your brand new custom cottage can give a suggestion of generational history. A custom cottage kitchen too rooted in today’s trends (or worse yet, yesterday’s) will not serve you for as long as you’d like.
Ballantyne Builds partners with homeowners to build custom cottages in the heart of Ontario’s cottage country. Our work in the Muskokas and beyond supports families in living the way they have always dreamed.
What Kitchen Trends Are Out of Style?
Some trends are best left in the past. Though cottages tolerate more eclectic styles, some selections from trends on their way out will quickly date your cottage kitchen. Here are some trends to avoid to keep your cottage kitchen homey and stylish for many years to come.
Backsplash Trends to Avoid
We advise against intricate or busy backsplashes that might have you scrubbing grout instead of relaxing and having fun. While many designers note that subway tile backsplashes are decreasing in popularity, they might enjoy a more robust relevance in cottage kitchens, which naturally lend themselves to classic farmhouse material selections, such as whitewashed subway tile.
Cabinet Trends to Avoid
Some designers reduce upper cabinetry in their most modern designs. We don’t recommend completely eliminating half your storage space in your cottage kitchen unless you’re aiming for a minimalist experience. Natural wood tones, greys, and whites are common in kitchen cabinets. We suggest avoiding the blonde oak that raged through every 90s kitchen and sticking to a more timeless shaker or craftsman-style cabinet door in a classic shade or finish.
Kitchen Floors to Skip at the Cottage
Skip fussy floors that need refinishing or ones that quickly show dust and wear and tear. Opt for durable and easy-to-clean engineered hardwood, luxury vinyl plank, stone, porcelain, or ceramic tile to stand up against the moisture that lake life often invites into your home.
Avoid Kitchen Ableism
You probably plan to use your cottage as you age, and you may have older relatives that visit long before accessibility crosses your mind. Building your cottage kitchen without considering accessibility could sign you up for a remodel down the road. Consider the height of your countertops, the location of your appliances, switches, and electrical outlets, and the pulls and fixtures you select to build an accessible kitchen.
Kitchen Colour Schemes that Date Your Cottage
Be moody somewhere else. Cottage kitchens are great places for smaller experiments with colour, but drastic and bold design selections will age quickly. The opposite is also true. Don’t build an all-white cottage kitchen. A white kitchen speaks about every stain and scrape and shows all of the sand and gunk you’ve invited inside. Furthermore, all-white kitchens are headed out of the recent favour they’ve enjoyed in the past few years. Botanical palettes, subtle whites and greys, and warm earthy tones are all excellent colour inspirations for your cottage kitchen.
Try These Timeless Trends Instead
We understand the pull of bold choices when you have the opportunity for self-expression. The trick is to balance your unique preferences with timeless options to create a curated space that feels personal.
Custom Cabinets That Work
Personalize your cabinets to store everything you need, and then build a few extra for things you don’t yet know you can’t live without. Stick to classic cabinet doors and include pull-outs and built-ins to keep the organization simple.
Upcycled Vintage Elements
Consider converting existing vintage furniture, such as a farmhouse kitchen table, and converting it into an island. A vintage buffet with intricate scrollwork might make an excellent countertop peninsula. Could you source some authentic pulls to get the perfect look? Vintage elements lend their authenticity to your aesthetic, and using existing materials is an environmentally friendly option.
Arches and Gentle Curves
Curves appear more frequently in the place of classic right angles. Think edges of countertops, doorways, mirrors, and more. Arches are a timeless architecture staple and soften the feel of any space, a welcome vibe for a cottage kitchen.
Ballantyne Builds the Best in the Muskokas
Ballantyne Builds is pleased to be a premier contractor for cottages in the Muskokas. We love to help our clients realize their dream by helping them build a custom cottage that is personalized and perfect for their recreational experience. Let’s connect about your custom cottage vision.
