NKBA Reveals Kitchen & Bath Trends
A member survey by the Hackettstown, N.J.-based National Kitchen & Bath Association revealed seven kitchen and four bathroom trends to watch in 2011.
Kitchens
1) Shake It Up
Shaker style cabinets supplanted Contemporary as the second-most popular style. Traditional remains the most popular style.
2) Dark Finishes
Dark natural finishes overtook medium natural, glazed and white-painted finishes.
3) A Place for Wine
Wine refrigerators seem to be on the decline, but unchilled wine storage is growing in popularity.
4) Bonjour Réfrigérateur
The French-door refrigerator has strengthened its position as the type specified most often.
5) Inducting a New Cooktop
Induction cooktops haven’t overtaken gas and electric models, but they’re closing the gap.
6) LED Lighting
LED (light-emitting diode) lighting use has increased from 47 percent to 54 percent while incandescent lighting continues its journey to obsolescence. (To read more about the future of incandescent bulbs, see “Product Trends,” page 46.)
7) Trashy Designs
A greater emphasis is being made to address trash considerations. Some 89 percent of kitchens include trash or recycling pull-outs.
Bathrooms
1) Quartz Countertops
Quartz continues to take market share from granite in relation to bathroom vanity tops.
2) Green Bathrooms
Not eco-friendly spaces—literally green bathrooms. A year ago, green color palettes were used by only 14 percent of NKBA designers, but at the end of 2010, that figure had risen to 24 percent.
3) A Worthy Vessel
Under mount sinks continue to dominate newly remodeled bathrooms; however, vessel sinks have become the clear second choice.
4) Satin-nickel Faucets
This trend relates to bathrooms and kitchens. From the end of 2009 to the end of 2010, the percent of NKBA designers who specified a satin-nickel faucet rose from 41 percent to 63 percent in the kitchen and from 45 percent to 57 percent in the bathroom.