Today’s kitchen is more than a place to prepare meals. It is the focal point of the home. A place where people gather, host and hangout.

With this change has come a need to design a kitchen that isn’t just practical, but is warm, welcoming and dynamic.

As we move towards the end of 2020, you might be thinking about a kitchen redesign for 2021. But where to start?

Here are the top German kitchen design trends that you can expect to see over the next 12 months to give you some inspiration.

New statement colours

Let’s be honest, the colour of your kitchen sets the tone for the room.

And the colours you choose are especially important, as with lockdown and working from home, we’re all likely to be spending a lot more time in our homes for the foreseeable future.

For kitchen cabinets and workspaces, darker statement colours like deep blues or forest greens will become more prevalent. Accessorised with beautiful louvre-style doors and dark woods.

On the other side of the colour spectrum, expect to see whites softened with marble effect decors, adding style to a sophisticated look, finish and feel.

Another colour trend is the emergence of calming colours – think sea shell white, pale rosé, glacier blues, even soft greys. These softer, more serene colour palettes bring a relaxing atmosphere to the kitchen. They are particularly beautiful when contrasted with darker accents.

Minimalist island designs

Kitchen islands are a staple of modern German kitchen design. They beautifully combine practicality and storage, while creating the perfect area for cooking, dining or sitting down to enjoy a drink with friends.

Adding additional features to create a “dining island”, coupled with living room furniture will further add to the integrated dining experience you now expect from the modern kitchen.

Building an environment for cooking and socialising around a modern German kitchen island feature will give you the kind of area you can just as easily relax in at the end of the day as you could cook a family meal.

Smart storage in the kitchen

When planning your 2021 kitchen, you’ll need to take a more holistic approach to create a space equally dedicated to cooking, dining, living and housework.

Whatever size space you’re working with, every inch can be utilised to create storage space to remove clutter, while ensuring your kitchen remains a practical space for cooking.

Pantry spaces will be used to complement the rest of the living area, removing clutter and organising your essentials to meet the aesthetic, practical and functional needs of your kitchen.

You can also expect to see a rise in the use of hidden storage units.

With homeowners assessing the aesthetic appeal of a kitchen design just as much as the function, you’ll want a space that stores your growing list of appliances, without necessarily being able to see them all the time.

When you’re not cooking, the modern kitchen is going to become more of a multi-purpose living area, and you won’t want kitchen appliances cluttering the space.

Concealment and minimalism will be key objectives, so you can expect to see a lot more designs that fit into the “hidden kitchen” model.

Streamlined, innovative designs

Kitchen innovation and engineering is synonymous with German kitchen design and you can expect to see this become even more popular in the next year.

Homeowners want streamlined areas.

They need to be calming, contemporary and aesthetically pleasing.

You can expect this to be achieved by homeowners opting for more high-quality materials and finishes along with hidden storage units and integrated appliances.

Increasing desire for utility space

Utility rooms are an important space, and this extension of the kitchen will be expected to keep up with the increasing desire for beautiful design and clutter-free practicality.

Think taller storage units to make the most of vertical space in the utility room.

As with the rest of your kitchen, modern utility rooms are going to be more integrated and functional than ever before. Hidden shelves and pull out storage will be providing the same level of practicality, while neatly organising your appliances and supplies.

Smart storage for recycling is also becoming more prominent, as homeowners are able to recycle a wide variety of materials and food waste, and look for more innovative ways to sort and store it out of sight, rather than on work surfaces or in the corner.

Meeting your needs with a new German kitchen in 2021

However you decide to style your new German kitchen in 2021, keep in mind the functions it is likely to serve.

Many more of us have discovered the benefits of treating the kitchen as more than just a place to cook.

It has quickly become one of the most convenient and sociable rooms of the house.

When we’re able to gather, mingle and socialise together again we can look forward to enjoying it all in a cleaner, more minimalist and social space designed with more than food preparation in mind.