The kitchen is, by far, the most important room in your home. It’s the hub of activity, communication, and nourishment for the family. So when you are designing your dream home, the luxury kitchen just has to be right.
The tricky thing is that kitchen styles change over time. So it’s important to keep up with current kitchen trends in 2022 before committing to building your home. But you also want to design a timeless kitchen. If you only stick with what’s trendy, your kitchen may look out-of-date in just a few years.
In 2022, homeowners want several primary things from a new kitchen design: comfort, functionality, eco-friendly materials, and beauty.
But just how do you achieve these goals and create the modern luxury kitchen of your dreams?
Below, we’d like to share 15 luxury kitchen ideas that are very popular in 2022 that we think will stand the test of time.
A spacious Modern Craftsman Kitchen with large eat-in kitchen island and white cabinets.
1. Larger Kitchens with More Space
Bigger is better! With more people working from home or working hybrid jobs, homeowners want larger homes, overall. People also expect more from their kitchens now than ever. So luxury modern kitchen designs have more living space, more eat-in room, more storage, and more workspace.
A Tudor-style kitchen with two kitchen islands.
2. Dual Kitchen Islands
One interesting design trend right now is that homeowners want more work surfaces in their kitchens. If you have more than one cook, you need more elbow space for everyone.
Having two kitchen islands is a great way to do this. Then you have one island for guests (or a homework station) and one for food prep.
This style of kitchen works well for larger households and multigenerational living arrangements, especially if your in-law suite doesn’t have its own kitchenette. It’s also perfect for those who love to have large gatherings of friends and family who prioritize entertaining.
A large pantry with open shelves and an extra counter for food preparation and small appliance storage.
3. Larger Pantries and Storage Spaces
While some people opt to use moveable kitchen furniture to add storage space, custom cabinetry and shelving is the most popular way to boost storage capacity.
Homeowners are looking for:
- A large pantry or larder for non-perishable food storage, cleaning supplies, and paper goods.
- Larger attached ancillary spaces – utility, pantry, mudroom, and/or laundry room.
- Multiple food prep stations – like the counter above in this enlarged pantry.
- Beautiful kitchen-adjacent storage spaces that could double as a home office.
A luxury kitchen with a home office in a cozy corner nearby.
4. An Attached Home Office
Many of our clients’ luxury kitchen designs include home offices adjacent to the kitchen. Whether you desire dual home offices or just one workable office space, having at least one office beside the kitchen allows you to monitor the happenings in the household and divvy up your time between work and cooking in the afternoons.
To make it even better, choose kitchen features involving clean lines and ecological materials that support your values and sustainability.
A stately butler’s pantry with dark gray cabinetry, a wine cooler, and a wet bar.
5. A Butler’s Pantry
A butler’s pantry provides ample extra storage space for stemware, fine china, fine silverware, and table linens. Today, it is generally located beside the kitchen and often between the kitchen and formal dining room so that the counter space can be utilized for food service. A butler’s pantry can also perform double duty as a wet bar with space for custom wine storage if you prefer.
A traditional walk-in scullery with storage and food prep areas.
6. A Scullery or Prep Kitchen
If you are more interested in food prep and hiding your cooking mess than having a place specifically for the storage of fine china, a scullery may be your best bet. It can also be called a prep kitchen or a second kitchen.
A scullery is generally a hidden smaller room with cabinetry, shelving, and counter space for food prep. It generally also has a sink for cleanup and may have a second dishwasher, as well. Some sculleries also have a second refrigerator or freezer. It’s also the best place for storing small countertop appliances out of sight.
A thin brick backsplash loaded with aesthetic impact by Exum
7. A Custom Backsplash Full of Personality
Trends in backsplashes for modern luxury kitchens include materials that pack a big punch in the aesthetics department.
Some of our favorite backsplash materials for 2022:
- Glazed tiles — There has been a shift from matte to gloss. Easy to clean. Reflects light
- Ceramic or porcelain tiles — With bright colors, interesting textures, or unique patterns.
- Metallic —Tiles or panels in a matte finish.
- Natural stone – Marble and quartzite with large veining.
- Glass sheets/glass tiles — In custom patterns and colors.
- Brick — We prefer thin brick, as pictured above, although there are other options for real or faux brick backsplashes, as well.
Dark gray cabinets and natural wood open shelving and a white subway tile backsplash.
8. Exciting, Bold Cabinet Colors
A white kitchen has a timeless appeal. And with white cabinets, it’s easy to introduce colors through tile, paint, appliances, or wallpaper that could be more easily changed. But in a new kitchen trend recently, many people are going beyond white to infuse color into the kitchen in new ways, adding their own sense of style.
Some of the most popular colors, other than white, include black, dark gray, blue, or green kitchen cabinets.
If you are ready to do something special with color in your dream kitchen but aren’t sure about choosing materials and colors, yourself, an interior designer can help you bring your greatest dreams to life.
Wide-planked rustic hardwood floors add charm.
9. Hardwood Floors
Dining rooms and living spaces have enjoyed the beauty of hardwood floors for years, in many homes. But today, luxury homeowners also want wide-planked hardwood floors like rustic hickory to continue into the kitchen, as well.
This is one of those kitchen ideas that is here to stay. Hardwood flooring isn’t just beautiful and functional for your family, it can increase your home’s resale value, as well. Especially in the luxury market.
There are several keys to keeping your wood floors looking beautiful in the kitchen. Consider using a protective mat/rug near the sink to catch little splashes of water and to prevent water damage in that area.
If you are concerned that your family may be a bit too hard on wood floors, you can also opt for tile that looks like wood. (For the best flooring for dogs, click here.)
Rustic, oversized pendant lights bring character to this modern kitchen.
10. The Perfect Kitchen Lighting
During the day, the best lighting for your kitchen is natural light from a wall of windows, a skylight, or a dormer window in the ceiling (see image below). But for artificial lighting, LED lighting takes the cake with luxury kitchen lighting today.
LED lighting is available in almost anything you can imagine and in the most charming styles:
- Creative oversized pendant lights/statement lights
- Modern recessed lights
- Hidden under-cabinet lights
- Beautiful display cabinet lights
The key with kitchen lighting is to be sure that the chandelier or pendant lights you choose match the architectural style and decor style of the home. For Farmhouse, Industrial, Craftsman, and Modern kitchens, the chunkier and more whimsical, the better. For Modern kitchens, bold, creative, unique designs work well as the focal point for the kitchen.
Think black matte metals, weathered metals, weathered wood, and other natural materials. And for the lights, themselves, opt for a candle-like effect. Or, if you want something very out-of-the-box, have a custom light fixture made to suit your fancy.
A luxury white kitchen with a stainless steel farmhouse sink
11. A Stylish Statement Sink
The most popular statement sinks this year would still be farmhouse sinks. They are huge and versatile rectangular-shaped sinks that are as practical as they are beautiful.
Farmhouse sinks are available in white porcelain, stainless steel, brass, copper, black, and even glass finishes. You can add accessories to them, as seen in the image above, like draining racks, cutting boards, and silverware trays.
You can also find eclectic polished granite or marble farmhouse sinks, some of which even have textures or carvings on the front apron. Or explore other luxury sink textures for farmhouse sink aprons.
Modern luxury kitchen with state-of-the-art appliances in gun metal finish
12. The Best Appliance Brands
Once you pick out your luxury kitchen island, it’s time to decide where your cooking appliances are going to go, as well as the location of your sink. Some people prefer to have the sink on the island so they can face their family or guests while cleaning up. Others prefer to have a gas range on the island so they can entertain their guests while cooking.
Stainless steel is still the most popular finish. Although, you can also go with black or gunmetal, as seen above. Also growing in popularity, icy white. Or, choose custom color appliances tailored just for your color palette.
In 2022, popular appliance trends include:
Drawers
- Microwave drawer
- Refrigerator drawers in the kitchen island, scullery, or butler’s pantry
Smart Technology
People want everything to be able to be connected to their phones. The fridge, the oven, and even the coffee maker. Once you get used to it, you’ll wonder how you ever functioned in the kitchen before.
With Bluetooth wireless technology, you can preheat your smart oven before you come home and your oven can sense the weight of your food and adust the cooking settings automatically. Some even have built-in cameras. Or you can sync your range and microwave with other connected appliances. Even the lighting and Alexa.
Your smart fridge can keep track of your food inventory and shopping list. It will be like having your own personal assistant.
New Built-In Appliances
You’ll want to consider investing in these new technologies to make cooking healthier and easier without sacrificing counter space.
- Built-in vacuum sealers (Irinox, Wolf, Miele)
- Built-in steam ovens (Thermador, Wolf, Miele)
- Sous Vide ranges (LG, Signature)
- Espresso machines/coffee systems (Miele, Thermador, Bosch, Jenn Air, Wolf)
Two of Almost Everything
- Two refrigerators (one in the larder, pantry, or scullery)
- Two dishwashers (one in the scullery or one on each side of the sink)
- Two ovens (with at least one being a convection oven)
Unpainted cedar provides raw natural beauty in this kitchen.
13. Natural Materials That Reflect and Honor the Beauty of Nature
This year, people are interested in natural beauty and textures. This means more wood grain, unpainted wood, organic materials like rattan, and earthy textures that aren’t as polished and shiny. People want materials with character and warmth. That are not overly manufactured or artificial.
Some of our favorite ways to use wood in the kitchen include reclaimed wood ceiling beams, rustic hardwood floors, stained/unpainted solid wood cabinets, and range hoods.
For natural stone, marble with strong veining and quartzite are extremely popular currently in the luxury market.
Along with more natural stone, wood, and rustic metals, people are incorporating woodlands colors into their kitchens with dark grays, mossy greens, and dusty or baby blues.
A Craftsman kitchen with French doors opening to a moss green home office.
14. Glass Partitions or Glass Doors
While the open floor plan concept is still quite popular, things are changing in home design, especially in the luxury market. People want to have the ability to go to a home office and shut the door for an online meeting.
Glass partitions with glass doors will work well for a little Zoom privacy. Or, consider interior swinging french doors as seen in our Modern Craftsman home above.
A custom shiplap range hood in a Modern Craftsman kitchen.
15. Stand-out Statement Range Hoods
Another kitchen trend for 2022 is the dawn of statement range hoods. With microwave drawers being available now, you no longer have to have a less-than-aesthetically pleasing situation above your range.
This allows for large range hoods with customizable sizes, shapes, and colors. Whether you prefer industrial stainless steel, unpainted cedar shiplap, weathered metal, or a glossy white shiplap range hood, you get to make the call and bring all the personality you’d like to the party.
A Recipe for a Timeless Kitchen
Some things never go out of style. You won’t go wrong if you include the following in your kitchen design: a great layout, plenty of storage space, neutral-colored cabinets, and a modern luxury kitchen island.
The rest is up to you.
Ready to Find a Luxury Home Builder in the Lexington, SC Area?
At Blythe Building Company, we have built over 100 luxury homes in the Greater Columbia area and Lexington is one of our specialties. Lee Blythe is a Certified Master Builder who has established a reputation as a custom home builder with honesty, integrity, and professionalism.
Explore our home building process here. And our gallery of custom homes here.
Please contact us today if you are ready to get started on your dream home.
We build in areas like Lake Murray, Ballentine, West Columbia, Pine Ridge, downtown Columbia, Lake Carolina, and more.
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