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The Shakers are a Protestant religious group who came to America from England in 1774 and practised a belief that God was at the center of everything, nothing was beyond his reach or his eye. Shaker aesthetics were orientated around that thought, everything they created followed the philosophy of form, function and proportion. In fact it was a Shaker belief that simplicity and beautiful craftsmanship were both forms of prayer.
Shaker kitchen ideas are defined by the tenets which this religious group lived by. ‘The guiding Shaker principles of honesty, utility, and simplicity found expression in various crafts,’ says Nicholas C. Vincent from The Metropolitan Museum of Art(opens in new tab).
‘Rejecting excessive ornament because it ostensibly encouraged the sin of pride, Shaker furniture makers focused on form, developing creative solutions such as asymmetrical drawer arrangements and multipurpose forms to add visual interest without resorting to pure decoration,’ continues Nicholas.
Of course, the majority of modern Shaker kitchen styles take inspiration from these aesthetic designs, rather than prescriptively following the tenets behind then. Modern kitchen ideas see the beautiful Shaker-style cabinetry paired with bright colors, patterns or decorative details to create an individual style that reflects your own personality. These painted kitchens are often matched up with freestanding kitchen ideas, too, such as dressers and freestanding islands.
If you have (or you’re planning) a traditional Shaker style kitchen, you certainly haven’t made a bad choice. When done well, they are a timeless investment and if you decide to change your colour scheme in a few years, you can easily update the look with a fresh coat of paint. So that’s all wonderful, but what are your options if you’re looking for an alternative kitchen or an unusual detail that doesn’t fit with the shaker aesthetic that has dominated our homes for a while?From stainless steel fit for a nineties loft apartment to honey-hued tones reminiscent of a mid-century Californian bungalow, keep scrolling for some of our favourite design ideas to make your kitchen stand out from the crowd.
If you’re driven by sustainability, consider including a material such as cork, which can work fantastically as a backsplash instead of kitchen tiles. Cork is a natural and renewable material, it’s affordable and it can also help with acoustics and insulation, what’s not to like? It doesn’t have to be dull to look at, either, take a lead from designer Beata Heuman’s cork wall and choose sheets of patterned cork which have an interesting terrazzo or marbled look to them. If you do choose cork as a backsplash or even as flooring, just be aware that it isn’t naturally waterproof, so you’ll need to seal it first with a coat of water-insoluble polyurethane.
Another eco-conscious option is to create a kitchen worktop from recycled plastics. Brands such as Smile Plastics and Surface Matter use would-be waste materials and turn them into custom surfaces. The plastics they use – including discarded chopping boards, plastic bottles and cosmetics containers – help to determine the colour and pattern of the finished material and there are some wild combinations available. In surfaces created from old yoghurt pots (breakfast time coming full circle!), you’ll get charming flecks of silver from the foil lids. Just note that these surfaces do require a little extra care to avoid damaging or warping them.
If recycled plastic surfaces aren’t to your taste but you’re hoping to make a statement with your kitchen work surface, you can still make a relatively plain and simple kitchen look like the bee’s knees with an interesting worktop that can withstand family life and actual cooking. Marble looks striking – especially when it’s heavily veined – but it can mark easily so you need to be careful with liquid and hot pans. Wood is warm and lovely but it too needs regular upkeep to prevent water damage or heat rings.
How about trying something like hardwearing polished (and sealed) concrete? Even with signs of use it will continue to look good. Slate is a great thwack of punchy colour for a work surface and it’s hardwearing and heat resistant, copper is an excellent choice too – especially when contrasted with a solid colour on the units below. The beauty of using a material such as copper is the way it ages and develops a patina over time, so it will look incredible when it’s brand new but even better as it accrues signs of use.
Shiny stainless steel kitchens reminiscent of Eighties and Nineties loft apartments feel incredibly appealing again. As cool as they are in small doses, a whole room of wall-to-wall stainless steel could end up feeling a bit like an industrial restaurant kitchen, so don’t go too heavy on the metal unless that’s a look you’re intentionally going for.
Steel kitchens bounce light around a room really effectively, they add a contemporary edge to a space and they’re satisfyingly easy to wipe-clean, but combine metal elements with other contrasting tones and materials for the most interesting look. For example, try kitchen islands and sink units (the kind of style that always looks great on display in The Conran Shop) atop a wooden floor, a gleaming stainless steel worktop above textural wooden units, or freestanding steel open shelving to give a nod to the look.
If you want an alternative to a Shaker kitchen but you’re not looking for anything contemporary either, learn from the masters at design practices such as Retrouvius and Berdoulat and repurpose old cabinets or reclaimed wood such as hardwearing and warm-toned iroko to create your perfect kitchen units. The end look will not only be hugely characterful, it will be unique to you. Plus, it’s always nice to make your morning toast and feel thrilled in the knowledge that the drawer you just opened used to belong in a pharmacy or on a ship.
You can also experiment with details such as adding mirrored panels to cupboard doors where they’re safe from bar stool kicks and food prep. Or mix and match with entirely different materials on a central island versus the main units. If you’re concerned about creating a look that’s too rustic or ‘ye olde shoppe’, complement your reclaimed units with a new work surface made from a sleek-looking material such as brushed steel, granite, polished concrete or travertine. Maria Speake at Retrouvius will often combine old and new by inlaying modern laminate doors with strips of old drawer fronts reclaimed from schools, factories and museums – she proves that you can be really creative to find combinations of things that look good together and materials or tones don’t have to match perfectly. It’s also worth noting that your repurposed kitchen doesn’t have to be fitted, entire elements can be modular or freestanding pieces, which makes them even more flexible in the future.
If you already have a Shaker style kitchen but it’s not your kitchen-for-life (i.e it’s IKEA rather than British Standard), don’t feel guilty about updating it. It’s easy to make changes that will steer the general aesthetic in a new direction without needing to replace the whole kitchen. Companies such as Naked, Reform, Custom Fronts and Superfront offer replacement kitchen cupboard doors in an impressive range of materials and colours to fit IKEA carcasses, plus you could update touchpoints such as drawer handles and taps. They’re relatively small details but it’s surprising how much difference a handle makes when you change a brass cup-style to a wrought iron knob or a lucite bar.
Just because you don’t fancy a traditional panelled Shaker style kitchen painted in a glorious green or earthy red doesn’t mean you have to swerve wood altogether, in fact, by leaning into the natural tone or grain of ‘naked’ wood, you can create a really welcoming space that feels anything but clinical. Plywood is a stylish choice for a flat or a more modern house with boxy interior architecture – it’s an easy way to add a Scandinavian feel in a lighter birch or you could stain it for more of a mid-century California look.
Really clean and simple flat wooden cabinet fronts (when well made) are a chic backdrop for virtually any other decor, colours or materials in your kitchen, so they’re an excellent blank canvas. If you’re going full cottagecore; vertical or horizontal wooden panelling is another great option for more of a rustic or cosy feel.
No, Shaker kitchens are not old fashioned, in fact they are timeless. Despite originating in the 19th-century. They are an enduring look that are just as stunning in a modern apartment as it does as part of in a rustic cottage.
Adding color and pattern are great ways to make a Shaker kitchen look modern. Pairing contemporary elements with traditional cabinetry keeps the character of the Shaker kitchen but updates it to work seamlessly in a modern home.
‘Run your subway tile in a stack bond (more modern) layout, as opposed to the ubiquitous running bond layout. Also, the room’s lighting can be upgraded to include an eye-catching, modern design in a pop color, as opposed to a period light fixture,’ advises Gail E. Jamentz.
‘Colorful artwork framed in a modern way can add interest to the kitchen, as well as changing out the cabinet hardware to a more modern look. And lastly, selecting an unexpected style for bar stools or dining furniture will create some juxtaposition and interest in the room and make it feel fresh.’
source : houseandgarden _
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