Looking to add some texture to your kitchen during a remodel or refresh? Do you need tips about kitchen texture ideas? Often overlooked, texture is a kitchen design element that can completely transform the heart of your home. Using different textured finishes can instantly give your cooking space more visual depth and dimension.
In this article, we’ll share tips for infusing a variety of fascinating textures into your kitchen and bath design. Think through not just appearances but also what will improve user experience from the ground up. Read on as we explore the top texture trends taking full kitchen remodel design to all new levels.
Is It Important to Incorporate Texture in Your Kitchen Remodel Design?
Are you planning a kitchen makeover? Analyze the existing room’s textures or lack thereof. We’ll explore specific tips shortly. But first, let’s dive deeper into why kitchen texture matters.
What do we mean by “texture” when discussing interior design and major kitchen remodeling? In short, it refers to how various materials feel to the touch, like the smoothness of marble or the coarse grain of an oak wood finish. Applying thoughtful texture choices is key for kitchen remodels because it adds crucial depth, variety, and a humanizing element to spaces.
Without diverse textures, any interior design palette risks appearing flat and pale. Thoughtfully incorporate texture into your kitchen revamp to make the existing space feel lively, dimensional, and connected to real life.
How to Blend Texture in Your Kitchen
Prioritize including a wide range of textures in your updated kitchen. For your kitchen renovation, take into account these design tips for integrating textures:
Exposed Brick
The charming imperfections of exposed original or faux brick showcase the artistry of traditional masonry work. Consider creative new takes like herringbone orientation, whitewashed finish, or distressed palette. Or embrace the multi-tonal warmth by sealing the natural patina, allowing authentic character to take center stage.
Beyond just a single accent wall, explore expanding brick texture throughout your kitchen remodel. Contrast against smooth cabinetry by installing open corner shelving showcasing favorite cookware. Let the visual weight of tactile brick lend a cozy balance. Or take it to the next level with a hand-laid brick backsplash in variegated red and brown tones. Finally, ground the space with an accent floor rug with embroidered checkerboard adding softness underfoot.
The organic yet structural nature of brick texture makes sense and opens up so many creative directions! Blend other natural textures like wood beams or concrete for a harmonious, casual feel that welcomes family life.
Patterned Tiles
An impactful way to bring in texture revolves around the ceiling-high installation of statement tiles. For old-world charm, consider multi-tone terracotta with natural handmade imperfections echoing generations of architectural tradition. Or execute kitchen design ideas with a retro-cool postmodern twist by covering one wall in busy dimensional hexagons featuring glossy black-and-white contrast.
Want major drama? Opt for graphic oversized square tiles in bold black and ivory patterns interspersed with wooden inserts. Carry texture upwards with wooden beams matching the tiles for a coffered detail. Enhance rustic charm by selecting subway tiles in variegated shapes boasting whimsical vintage crackle glazing as they climb to the ceiling over the cooktop. Even if keeping your actual tiles neutral and uniform, just a single focal accent wall showcases how powerful layering textures through creative tiles can elevate your kitchen remodel.
Elegantly Carved Lines
For a lighter touch of organic texture, consider the timeless warmth of Shaker-style custom cabinetry featuring elegant raised panels and wooden knobs. Play up the beautiful wood grain patterns by selecting cabinets in oak or walnut rather than painted finishes. Carry secondary wood tones over to the countertops, open shelving, easel-style spice racks, and even wooden rolling carts for extra prep space boasting intimate hand-carved details.
Visually balance the weighty storage blocks of cabinetry by installing rhythmically carved wooden beams across the ceiling. For intimate dining nooks, choose slender turned wood legs for the table paired with ladder-back chairs that inject a barely-perceptible texture contrast to soft upholstered seats. It’s about exercising intentional restraint through the overall kitchen layout to let the graceful carved lines shine. The result feels both texturally subtle and intrinsically luxe.
Statement Wall
Make your boldest textural declaration with an entire focal wall showcasing an experimental medley of materials. Start by installing large-format porcelain window planks featuring an overscale ridged pattern with creamy whites and greys for dimensional nuance. Next, pepper in reclaimed wood architectural salvage pieces boasting timeworn patinas in square, rectangular, or asymmetry shapes.
Finally, continue building depth with a textural wall sculpture made from thin wood strips, metal wire, dyed canvas pieces, and found objects to craft a geometric abstract collage full of intriguing plays on light. Let this texturally intense statement wall become a true work of art. Surrounding cabinetry, shelving, and counters can take subtle twisting forms to echo the multidimensionality in a more restrained alignment with functional priorities. Anchored by the dynamic wall, the kitchen achieves harmony between artistic touches and ergonomic flow.
Textured Kitchen Islands
As the visual anchor point and multitasking engine of food prep, your kitchen island material choices become a perfect spot to inject alluring texture. For one-of-a-kind elegance, fabricate your entire island countertop from a single polished slab of exotic marble, allowing dramatic veining to take the lead. Or take the organic look in an opposing direction with reclaimed chestnut wood plank tabletops purposefully showcasing nicks, imperfect knots, and hand-hewn carpentry.
For the supporting base, select exposed brick, ceramic tiles, or stacked stone textures featuring inviting imperfections and old-world appeal. Carry-over pedestal dining table seating also boasts weathered wooden plank tabletops worn smooth from decades of family meals. Though just one element, a thoughtfully finished kitchen island flaunting the natural luster of real wood and stone textures transports the entire room’s coziness.
Freestanding Furniture
Rather than permanent built-ins, consider introducing one-of-a-kind freestanding furniture pieces and sculptural light fixtures to interject fresh texture and depth. For relaxed dining nooks, hang intricate rattan orb chandeliers over farmhouse plank tables. Allow the interplay of natural light and shadows to envelop the space in new ways. Bring in a rolling kitchen cart island with a butcher block top and black metal hardware to add movable prep space when entertaining.
Or make a textural statement by installing and painting an oversized distressed metal and wood Baker’s rack against the wall showcasing all your favorite vibrant serveware. Artsy side chairs covered in fuzzy boucle upholstery fabric make a playful contrast. Seek inspiration from an interior designer on how to move beyond appliances and cabinetry.
Wooden Beams
Bring warmth to the small kitchen through architectural elements like exposed solid oak beams spanning the kitchen ceiling. Achieve a modern yet familiar vibe by leaving the intricate wooden grains unfinished. The raw, organic textures contrast beautifully against sleek cabinetry, polished concrete floors, and backsplash metallic tiles.
For intimate breakfast nook banquettes flanked by towering walls of glass-front cabinetry, consider a coffered ceiling insert featuring diagonal rough-hewn cedar slats. Paired with linen cafe curtains, pendant filament bulbs, and Scandinavian dining chairs, the dynamic beams foster both textural intrigue and cozy refuge. Let naturally variegated wood structures above define zones while almost feeling like an exterior element brought poetically indoors.
Key Aspects to Evaluate
Picking textures for a kitchen remodel? Look at all areas first. Thinking about how each part works together is key. It helps make choices easy when designing your dream space. Consider these things:
Kitchen Remodel Layout
Evaluate your family’s needs to determine the appropriate kitchen footprint for functionality. Even small kitchens can maximize workspace through thoughtful layouts without sacrificing access or one-size-fits-all assumptions. Create zones tailored for storage, appliances, prep, and casual dining based on your kitchen’s footprint and usage patterns. Consider how windows, doors, and room dimensions influence opportunities.
Storage & Organization
Assess existing storage space and identify organizational problems to address. Open shelves, painted cabinets in cheerful hues, white cabinets, and simplified white cabinetry help display goods while keeping the space feeling airy. Attach labels so everyone can easily return items to their homes.
Appliances & Fixtures
Look into energy-efficient and smart appliances to reduce your kitchen’s environmental impact without sacrificing performance. Evaluate the dishwasher, sink, and faucets to make energy-efficient appliances streamline workflows. Don’t forget small touches like an under-counter coffee station to personalize your dream kitchen. Consider plumbing needs for refrigerator water lines, pot fillers, and more.
Surfaces & Materials
The surfaces you select tie everything together, from hardy countertops designed for years of meal prep to flooring standing up to messy accidents. Play with paint, from colorful cabinets to accent walls in bold hues, to artistic murals. Incorporate task lighting, from under cabinet lighting to track to pendants, to create an ambiance for the culinary artists in your family.
Cost & Planning
Major remodels allow extensive customization but require significant labor costs and may take weeks to finish. More limited upgrades balance affordability with refreshed style. Prioritize changes that maximize the house and bang for the buck or remedy pain points, then embellish with splurges like rare stone surfaces as budget allows. Carefully determining needs beforehand minimizes cost overruns so realities can meet your most desired features.
Consult To An Expert Interior Designer
Struggling to determine how to effectively blend textures into your upcoming kitchen remodel? Mudosi Kitchen and Bath’s designers have been skillfully combining textures for more than ten years.
Schedule a FREE design consultation and estimate with us today. We handle everything from materials selection to contracting qualified installers. Contact us today to map out the possibilities!
