As renovation designers and contractors, we love to see our clients maximize their new living spaces, kitchens, bathrooms, or basements. 2024 is an odd year, as showy renovations meant to impress others are out and ideas intended to maximize space, storage, and function are in.
Kitchen Trends
Durable Essentials
A Workspace Built to Last
People want more durable kitchen surfaces, such as quartz, which provide a natural balance of beauty and practicality. Quartz countertops contain no grout lines, making the counter extremely easy to clean and maintain over time. Similarly, you’ll want cabinets and doors built to last and maintain their beauty even with heavy use.
One such product is FENIX® high-pressure laminates, perfect for use in kitchen cabinets. Soft to the touch, extremely matte, and fingerprint resistant, it is also highly resistant to scratches, abrasion, acid-based solvents, and household cleaners, making it ideal for home countertops and bathrooms, contemporary-style cabinets or even a sleek kitchen island countertop.
Expanded Kitchen Functionality
Now You’re Cooking
With the massive jump in home cooking since the pandemic, people have sought to increase functionality and durability within their kitchens. Function is the new beauty standard with pure form taking a back seat when considering appliances and other functional space within your kitchen.
Steam Ovens
You Can Beat the Heat
There are a few reasons why steam ovens are all the rage in 2024. Beyond adding a sleek touch to any kitchen design with their polished, modern look, these trendy ovens offer pro-quality results by maintaining humidity and delivering more tender, nutritional food.
Unique Backsplash Choices
Protect the Walls, Please Your Eyes
In 2024, look for more artistic backsplash options, such as geometric patterns, intriguing tonal choices, and hand-thrown ceramics.
The natural variation and one-of-a-kind expression of hand-crafted pieces in particular brings an edge into design, lending itself equally to filling out entire walls and more strategic placement as accent tiles.
The days of the planned yet boring backsplash are numbered.
The Power of the Pantry
Everything Old is New Again
A well-designed pantry can be a game changer. Why? Because everyone can do with more storage space. More homeowners are including pantries or large space storage in their kitchen renovation wish lists. This is especially true for large or extended families living in one house and in smaller homes where utilizing all useable space is essential.
With the cost of everything going up, taking advantage of quantity discounts from places like Costco is a smart strategy to make your dollars go further, but you’ll need somewhere to store the extra items. Having a pantry provides the extra space needed. Adding more cabinets, pull-out drawers or rotating organizers for easy access throughout the kitchen will also help keep things organized.
For entertaining enthusiasts, built-in wine racks or appliance garages can free up valuable counter space.
In smaller homes, maximize vertical space with floor-to-ceiling shelving and explore clever storage solutions like corner cabinets, hanging organizers, or drop-down pullout drawers.
Pantries are no longer just for dry goods. According to the National Kitchen & Bath Association’s 2024 Kitchen Trends report, more homeowners are incorporating small appliance stations and coffee bars within their pantries.
This multi-functional approach allows for better organization and streamlines workflow in the kitchen while keeping counter clutter to a minimum.
Home Office Trends
The Multi-function Home Office
Duality in Design
The home office is here to stay, as many people have settled into a hybrid work-life balance. A home office serving as a multi-functional space makes sense, especially for busy families, as not many of us can dedicate a space solely to work. A well-thought-out home office can double as a guest room, playroom, TV, or crafts room. The possibilities are endless and best suited to your specific needs. The best thing to come out of the work-from-home trend is the rise in intelligently designed multi-functional furniture available to accommodate any space. There is a lot of love given to multi-functional furniture pieces as well, like games tables or transformer tables that can start as a console table/desk and extend to seat a large dinner party.
This is great for multi-functional rooms or smaller condos where you want to make your space as functional as possible. Even bedding has become smarter, as you can now buy a hydraulic bed whereby the mattress easily lifts without disturbing the bedding, revealing space that can be used for linens, blankets, and even winter coats. The hydraulic system is ideal for a multi-purpose spare room that goes from a weekday office to a weekend guest room.
Another thing to consider with multifunctional spaces is that they will now see more use and more wear and tear, so it makes sense to invest in durable materials such as high-density foam for chairs and sofas. The quality of foam used has a direct impact on the longevity of the piece of furniture, with bargain products lasting as little as a few years before losing shape and support, whereas high-quality high-density foam can last 20 to 25 years by simply flipping and turning the seating surfaces once a year.
Home Gym Trends
Focus on Yourself at Home
Lift Your Home Aesthetic While Lifting Weights
The resurgence of home gyms over the past few years will continue as they’re convenient, private, and comfortable spaces to work on yourself. There’s no commute, and you save on membership fees. Plus, you can work out whenever you like or have time – no excuses.
But having a gym in your home also goes beyond saving time and money. It allows you to tailor your workout routine to your specific needs and preferences. Whether you prefer high-intensity interval training or a more relaxed yoga session, a home gym provides a private space to focus on your well-being. To create a motivating environment, consider incorporating inspirational quotes, workout mirrors, or even a smart TV to stream fitness classes.
If you don’t have a lot of room in your home, consider maximizing your space with smart dual-purpose room ideas. Consider for example, a Murphy bed with a built-in pull-up bar or wall-mounted weight racks that fold flat when not in use. Utilize vertical space with shelves or cabinets to store equipment and free weights.
Remember, even basic bodyweight exercises or resistance bands can make for a great workout, making a home gym accessible for any budget. Also, if the plan includes lots of heavy equipment, ensure your floor can handle the extra weight. However, for most equipment, you should be fine, but a dense rubber mat overlay may protect the floor and your joints, while helping to absorb noise.
Bathroom Trends
Eco-friendly Designs
Make a Splash With the Following Bathroom Ideas
Your bathroom is often considered a space to retreat in the home. Ensure your peace of mind is complete by indulging in eco-friendly bathroom designs.
Sustainable resources like concrete, stone, porcelain, and glass are all becoming more prevalent, creating an environmentally friendly organic design that offers a stunning but practical finish.
Check This Out, Mate
Comfort can also be found in the familiar. Checkerboard design patterns are not new, but they’re definitely trending up, especially in bathrooms. A black and white checkered floor adds a pristine nostalgia that resonates with most aesthetics, making this one of the most popular bathroom interior design trends of 2024.
Space equals freedom, and freedom equals peace and tranquility. There’s been a shift away from traditional alcove tubs towards free-standing tubs. Whether white resin, marble or metallic, freestanding tubs sit directly on the floor of the bathroom with no feet or platform underneath. Due to their more traditional, transitional look, they’re best served in small space bathrooms, where the room can appear larger with a tub that consumes less space.
Fight Counter Clutter
And finally, and still speaking of space, storage is more important than ever when redesigning your bathroom.
The number one complaint about existing bathrooms we hear from our clients is a lack of organized storage space.
So additional cupboards and intelligently divided drawers can go a long way to keeping the spa-like serenity we all seek when hiding out in our bathrooms.
Laundry Room Trends
A Room Due Consideration
Enjoy the Time Spent Doing Laundry
Laundry rooms and mudrooms are no longer afterthoughts in a home renovation – they’re essential spaces for keeping a home organized and stylish. And just like with Home Offices and Home Gyms, a multi-functional room is a great consideration here as well.
Laundry rooms have come a long way from being a dark, dingy space in the basement. In today’s homes, laundry rooms can be stylish and are often found on the bedroom or main floor of a house with some nice details, storage options, and pops of colour to make them stand out rather than hide in the background, forgotten and considered once a week. Laundry rooms have become practical spaces that you can now enjoy spending time in – and who doesn’t want to spend time in a nice space?
A well-designed laundry room can enhance efficiency, organization, and even enjoyment of a mundane chore we are all forced to face at least once a week.
Location Matters
The best location for the laundry room may depend on a variety of factors. In the evolving landscape of residential design, the location of the laundry room has always revolved around each household’s specific needs and preferences – and it invariably ends up right where the new homeowner does not want it. In a two-story home, the question of whether to place the laundry room upstairs or downstairs boils down to whether you want the facilities closer to the kid’s mess or near the heart of the home so it is easier to switch laundry loads during a busy day. Some designers believe the laundry room should be located near the primary suite, and include a back door into the primary closet. This allows homeowners to easily shuttle clean and dirty clothes between the washer and dryer and their spot in the closet. However, you may want to consider adding in extra sound insulation so that a late night load does not disturb anyone’s sleep.
Of course, other designers believe the laundry room should be on the main level and tucked in a corner somewhere to hide the mess — depending on the space, some people might just have room for a laundry nook, while others might be able to have a full room, but it, of course, needs to be near plumbing and again, somewhere that hopefully doesn’t radiate too much sound throughout the home.
But for many, space will dictate that the laundry room remain in the basement. So making the basement an inviting space is the ideal here. Consider making a laundry room renovation part and parcel of a bigger basement renovation that can add living space, a play are or additional bedrooms to the functionality of your home.
With a basement laundry room, access to natural light is also a huge benefit, but if you don’t have a window in your laundry room, then the right kind of lighting is key. A layered lighting design is an ideal to make the space welcoming and functional rather than harsh and uninviting. And don’t forget to include smart LED lighting with motion sensors. The lights will turn on automatically when you enter the laundry room and it will turn off when you leave with your hands full of laundry. And as your lights will never be left on, there will be no wasted energy saving money on your hydro bills.
Wherever you locate your new laundry room, choose flooring durable enough to withstand water and keep it from spreading to other areas of the home. Consider porcelain or ceramic tiles, which comes in a lot of design choices, and is both water and stain resistant. If you are considering hardwood to match the rest of the home where the laundry is located, consider engineered hardwood made of high quality vinyl that looks and feels like hardwood.
The Fun Of Functionality
A well-designed laundry room should also be practical and make this dreaded chore as efficient and enjoyable as possible. If your laundry room has a limited footprint, it’s even more important to effectively organize it. Accessories that stow away easily or retract when not in use, like a drying rack, a folding counter, or an ironing board, help to keep the space from feeling cluttered or cramped.
For workflow optimization, consider arranging appliances in a way that facilitates a smooth workflow. Position the washer and dryer side-by-side or stack them to save space, and include a countertop or folding station for easy sorting.
Utility Sink
Perhaps the sink you want is not a traditional sink at all but a floor level mini-shower or mid-height shower and sink combo? Having extra room to rinse out messes — arts and crafts, dogs and cats, cleaning, et cetera. — as well as the ability to use this plumbed area for other cleaning purposes is beyond helpful.
Whether it’s cleaning off your kid’s pants after muddy play outside, the dogs who just had to roll in the mud, or pre-treating wine spills on table linens, a well-designed utility sink will always come in handy.
Biophilic Design Trends
Embrace the World of Colour
Bringing Nature Indoors
Nature is beautiful, colourful, and calming so we do we insist on sterile home interiors and realtor-friendly colour schemes? If you’re not yet ready to paint your walls vibrant colours, consider enlarging your view of the outside world. Large expansive windows, or even a seasonal sunroom is a way to make your home more at one with nature.
You can also use natural elements, such as wood or stone, or even specialized thematic wallpapers that help create warmth and texture in any room regardless of the style of the home embrace colour, again look to nature, and warm earth tones like terracotta, olive green, and chocolate browns, or deeper hues like chartreuse and buttery yellow tones that offer simple elegance and a sense of comfort.
No matter what colours you like, pops of colour can be incorporated with paint, wallpaper, a wooden wall treatment, or even pillows. Adding texture is another great way to enhance a space. Plus, there are so many different wallpaper “prints” available you can even mimic a stone wall at a fraction of the cost of a real stone wall. One new thing we like that’s been pretty popular as a way to bring the outside inside to a basement is the moss or artificial grass wall, after all adding greenery to any room brings a visual connection with the outdoors.
There are countless possibilities to brighten and enhance a room and show your personality.Your home is not a designer’s showroom but a place to find comfort in at the end of the day, and we are seeing more people embracing their own personality by incorporating custom art, family heirlooms, handcrafted items and eclectic pieces of furniture – these all help create connections to you, the homeowner.
Additional Design Considerations
With any room in your home, lighting is essential, so keep that in mind too. No one wants to cook, clean, work, or work out in a dimly lit space. Matching lighting to the design is one consideration, but always put the focus on the light and where you need it first when installing spot or stand-alone lighting. Your eyes will thank you.