Room of the Week: An Affordable Art Deco-Inspired Kitchen
The brief was an era-appropriate modern kitchen in an older home. The result is a showcase of curves and Art Deco style
Vanessa Walker
11 February 2019
Houzz Australia & New Zealand Editor. I work on beautiful house and garden stories all day and have come to believe the best homes are the ones that people are happy in.
Houzz Australia & New Zealand Editor. I work on beautiful house and garden stories... More
In a Q&A format, we talk to the designers – and examine the creative thinking – behind some of Houzz’s most loveable rooms.
Images by Elouise van Riet-Gray
Answers and styling by Estelle Cameron, creative director at Designtank
Who lives here: A family with three children
Location: Holland Park, Queensland
Room purpose and size: A 3.7 x 5-metre kitchen
Answers and styling by Estelle Cameron, creative director at Designtank
Who lives here: A family with three children
Location: Holland Park, Queensland
Room purpose and size: A 3.7 x 5-metre kitchen
Brief
An open-plan kitchen that’s in keeping with the era of the original house, while modernised. The house was built in the 1930s so we were going for an Art Deco-inspired aesthetic.
Curved brickwork at the front of the house inspired the curves in the island bench and the cabinetry on either side of the cooktop.
An open-plan kitchen that’s in keeping with the era of the original house, while modernised. The house was built in the 1930s so we were going for an Art Deco-inspired aesthetic.
Curved brickwork at the front of the house inspired the curves in the island bench and the cabinetry on either side of the cooktop.
Starting point
An Art Deco theme.
Key design aspects
Colour palette: Black and white.
An Art Deco theme.
Key design aspects
Colour palette: Black and white.
Materials palette: Medium/dark timber floors, white two-pack polyurethane cabinets, Quantum Quartz stone benchtops in Domino (black with a large white fleck to give the appearance of terrazzo, which is in keeping with the Art Deco-inspired theme).
We had custom terrazzo priced but it was out of budget. This reconstituted stone gave the look we were after without the price tag.
Key pieces of furniture/fittings: The Detroit pendant lights are from Milton Lighting. The bar stools are from a chain store but are no longer in stock. The tapware is from Blanco. The colour of the polyurethane cabinet finish is Dulux Lexicon and the benchtop is Quantum Quartz.
We had custom terrazzo priced but it was out of budget. This reconstituted stone gave the look we were after without the price tag.
Key pieces of furniture/fittings: The Detroit pendant lights are from Milton Lighting. The bar stools are from a chain store but are no longer in stock. The tapware is from Blanco. The colour of the polyurethane cabinet finish is Dulux Lexicon and the benchtop is Quantum Quartz.
Thinking behind the arrangement of furniture/fixtures
A family friendly, functional kitchen with a nod to 1930s Brisbane Art-Deco style.
A family friendly, functional kitchen with a nod to 1930s Brisbane Art-Deco style.
Challenges you worked around
As with all kitchen design, the challenge lay with combining a practical layout with the desired look. Smart storage solutions and functional placement of cleaning, preparation and cooking zones are what make a kitchen a success or failure. The finishes and design style are then layered on top to create the perfect mix of ‘works well, looks great’.
As with all kitchen design, the challenge lay with combining a practical layout with the desired look. Smart storage solutions and functional placement of cleaning, preparation and cooking zones are what make a kitchen a success or failure. The finishes and design style are then layered on top to create the perfect mix of ‘works well, looks great’.
Why do you think this room works?
This is a modern kitchen in an old home, so to make it work it needed to link back to the original design of the home. The prominent bricked curves on the home’s front facade were inspiration for the curves seen in the kitchen on the benchtops and cabinets. It’s a modern take on Art Deco style that suits the location and the home.
Tell us
What do you love about this kitchen? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to save your favourite images, like this story, and join the conversation.
More
Want more great design? Take a look at last week’s Room of the Week: A Modern Kitchen With a Dash of Old-World Charm
This is a modern kitchen in an old home, so to make it work it needed to link back to the original design of the home. The prominent bricked curves on the home’s front facade were inspiration for the curves seen in the kitchen on the benchtops and cabinets. It’s a modern take on Art Deco style that suits the location and the home.
Tell us
What do you love about this kitchen? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to save your favourite images, like this story, and join the conversation.
More
Want more great design? Take a look at last week’s Room of the Week: A Modern Kitchen With a Dash of Old-World Charm
What are you working on?
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I'm not usually a fan of dark benchtops but they've done the Art Deco aesthetic so well in this kitchen that it really works.
The kitchen looks fabulous, it's a great design and a stylish execution. I also like the white fridge, it really complements the rest of the kitchen.
Fabulous, love it.