2024 Kitchen and Bath Trends
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the online home design platform Houzz, recently released independent reports on design trends for kitchens and bathrooms. The AIA’s research is gathered from a panel of 500 AIA architects who specialized in residential design. Houzz’s research is from their community of homeowners who have recently completed a renovation project. AD Pro also reported on the trends spotted at the 2024 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS).
During the pandemic the popularity of open kitchens took a nosedive. That was short lived and open kitchens are once again in demand. Full working pantries continue to be extremely popular especially as the space for dirty dishes while entertaining. The open concept is flowing outside with a blurring of indoor and outdoor spaces and AD Pro saw a huge increase in outdoor appliances at KBIS including fancy pizza ovens.
The AIA reported that coffee bars, induction cooktops and steam ovens are in high demand. AD Pro reported that thinner more compact appliances were everywhere at KIBS. Brightly colored appliances were trending at KBIS, too.
Houzz identified that brass cabinet hardware is on the rise as well as special spaces for pets. The end of the island pictured to the left is open for the dog’s bowls. Speaking of islands - Houzz found that islands over 7’ long are hot!
Different colors for the wall cabinets and base cabinets are trending. Drawers instead of doors in the base cabinets are here to stay. They are more accessible and work well for aging in place as well as providing more storage.
Quartz is the most popular countertop material as per Houzz, even with it being banned in Australia due to the increasing cases of silicosis by the fabricators. One great find at the KBIS was the introduction of silica free countertops.
Opening the kitchen to an outdoor living space continued to grow in popularity with outdoor kitchens the leading trend reported by both Houzz and the AIA.
According to the Houzz survey for style trends, the most popular style for kitchens is transitional, with modern and contemporary styles in a close second. Farmhouse style peaked in 2019 and continues to decline popularity.
The AIA found that the top trends in bathroom design include larger curb-less showers, outdoor showers, universal design for aging in place, and shower stalls without a separate tub in the bathroom. Houzz reported that only 10% of renovations include a separate bathtub.
In 2021, we reported that we were seeing the trend in outdoor showers and now it has tripled in popularity nationwide. We are seeing the outdoor shower being accessible from the primary bath for everyday showering as pictured to the right. If the house is on the water there is typically an outdoor shower at grade for sand removal.
Houzz renovators cited an old and outdated space as their primary reason for the project. Therefore 89% of the homeowners change the style of the bathroom. The desire for clean lines resulted in modern as the number one style for bathroom remodels with contemporary in a close second. Traditional and farmhouse are not as desirable.
Concerns with sustainability are growing with an increase of water saving faucets, low VOC paint and LED lighting.