Designing a kitchen that’s timeless and trendless

Truly understanding your customer’s needs to create a kitchen that transcends time.

When it comes to thinking about redesigning a kitchen, it’s easy to fall in love with the latest and greatest trends. Especially in an era of Pinterest and social media swipe, there’s no lack of beautiful inspiration to get customers excited about a beautiful waterfall countertop or stunning statement marble.

While we appreciate a good trend, we think about a kitchen remodel as something that stands the test of time: an investment that’s trendless. Its design should reflect a true understanding of your customer’s needs and personal style, and doesn’t get caught up with of-the-moment “shoulds.”

Before any project begins, like a kitchen overhaul or update, it’s important to have an understanding of how long your customer is to be in their current home. If it’s for only a few years, easy resale value may be a priority. If it’s their forever home, ask them questions that help them think about what could truly spark joy in their space. Regardless, understanding their needs is a critical first step.

“You want to encourage people to think about how they move around the kitchen,” says Mary Baber, Marsh’s Design Manager. “Have them pretend they’re in the space in order to understand what they need.”

When considering different design elements, it’s also important to have your customers think about what they need their kitchen to accomplish, beyond its utilitarian purpose. Does it need to be a calming, respite? Or is it a space that needs to inspire energy (especially early in the morning). These considerations, that go deeper than the visuals they’re drawn to, will help you dial in color, texture, and layout in a way that transcends trends.

“It’s our job as designers to give the person what they want, but to also guide them,” continues Baber. “We want them to be happy, but also to not make a mistake that they could regret later.”

Once you have a clear picture of their needs, start thinking about foundational elements of the kitchen onto which you can layer more trendy, dramatic finishes. Color is a great place to start, not only with the walls but also with the cabinets.

“Start with white cabinets, then add punches of color with an island, or oven hood,” says Baber. A space that’s separated from the main kitchen space, like a coffee nook, can be another place to play with bolder design. “It’s a smaller investment, and won’t be that much of an upheaval to redo.”

If your customers are interested in something other than white for their cabinets, color can still feel timeless. Baber recommends looking at color that may have started off as a trend, but has stayed popular for at least three years. Take soft greens for example. While Sherwin-Williams Evergreen Fog may have been the color of the year in 2022, it’s quickly become a soothing classic.

Keeping cabinets and countertops timeless provides a solid base for more trend-forward wall color, decor, and accents, like barstools. And continue to look back, throughout the decade to see what is still, consistently being used in kitchen design to understand what trends are now timeless.

At the end of the day, the difference between a trendy and timeless kitchen is the thought and focus placed on what your customer loves and needs. With that as your north star, the kitchen you help them design will last the test of time.