Alice Hayes is an award-winning, certified master kitchen and bath designer.

Today’s kitchen is modern and sleek yet warm and inviting.

“Today’s kitchen design aims for a cleaner, simpler, less-ornate look,” says certified master kitchen and bath designer Alice Hayes of Kitchens by Deane, with stores in Stamford and New Canaan. “Everything is lighter and brighter with white the most important color for cabinetry.”
Alice recently received a Home Design award from Westchester Home magazine for a kitchen in a Waccabuc, N.Y., home.
The kitchen, which is modern and sleek yet warm and inviting, uses a variety of contemporary design elements, which include a kitchen island clad in dark-chocolate cabinetry. The dark wood provides contrast with the rest of the kitchen’s white walls and cabinets and exemplifies some of today’s new trends.

A New Look

A few years ago, Alice says, kitchen designs were more ornate, with darker colors and “busy” detail in items such as backsplashes, molding and trim. “Today, clients want a look that is clean and contemporary. We do a lot of shades of white with dark accents. We find that when people do want color, they go towards taupe, gray, beige and other soft neutral colors, which provide a soothing ambience.”
Alice says the dark accents popular today are usually walnut or darker cherry.  Some driftwood tones are also gaining in popularity. In terms of cabinetry, white rules the roost with glass-paneled doors still popular. “They are usually mixed with cabinets that have solid doors,” Alice says.
Different types of stone are still the most popular for counters and islands.  “Clients still want their marble and granite,” Alice says, “but we are seeing a move to the use of some wood on center islands. Dark maple and cherry, with a highly durable finish, are popular. For backsplashes, solid marble rather than tile is another trend.”
Wood floors still trump tile, with clients preferring darker tones. “Stone still has its adherents, but wood has definitely gained,” she says.
Stainless steel is the number one choice for appliances, but clients now mix and match with items like wood hoods and wood cover panels for stoves, refrigerators and dishwashers. “Some clients want an all-stainless look, but others want to break it up,” Alice says.
Kitchen size is another element that has changed somewhat. “No longer is big automatically better,” Alice says. “Some people want to re-design within their exiting space, while others are willing to bump it out to gain a lot more room. But even with larger kitchens, the goal is to make them efficient.”
Alice says she uses a “zone approach” in her kitchen design. “I think in terms of areas for prepping, cooking, baking and cleaning up,” she said. “Sometimes we add a second sink so people are not fighting over the space. And two refrigerators can also help with design efficiency. You have to assess each client’s needs individually.  Everyone has different lifestyles.”
Alice says another new trend is the impact of wireless communications, such as phones and laptops. “You no longer have areas dedicated to these items, just a good spot in the kitchen for setting them down.”

Please Yourself First

Planning for re-sale is no longer as important as it was a few years ago, Alice says. “Now clients want a kitchen for their own special needs and desires. They want one that will be appealing to another buyer, of course, but most seek to satisfy their own needs first. Investing a lot of money for the purposes of ‘flipping’ doesn’t pay off the way it did a while back, and clients realize this. I tell them to plan something for their own use and enjoyment.”
Alice, who lives in Ridgefield, has been with Kitchens by Deane since 1989 and says she enjoys her work immensely. “It’s a lot of fun,” she says. “You get to meet people, work with them to fulfill their wishes and then see the positive change the results make in their lives. Deane is a great organization, with 10 designers and our own support staff. I am very happy with what I do.”

For information: kitchensbydeane.com.