Homeowners Are Craving Outdoor Kitchens

Homeowners are craving outdoor cooking spaces this upcoming spring season, says the American Institute of Architects’ latest Home Design Trends Survey. From higher-end outdoor cabinetry with beverage dispensers to grills with connectivity, owners are looking to extend a home’s indoor features to the outside.

Indoor kitchens were also a hot feature for architects, the study showed, with the number of kitchen projects increasing. At the same time, the sizes of those rooms remained stable. Wine refrigerators and wine storage jumped 10 percentage points on the popularity list. Smart home features in the kitchen grew by five percent. Recycling centers and butler’s pantries also grew slightly, while double islands dropped by seven percent. Induction cooking and undercounter appliances also dropped slightly. Concealed lighting – e.g., as you’d find under wall cabinets – was listed as a popular feature. So was mixing countertop materials.

Door-less, no threshold showers lead the trend list for bathrooms, with tub-free bathrooms trending strongly, as well. For those clients who sought tubs, freestanding models were the most popular. Many of those are extremely contemporary in style. While kitchen sizes were not growing, bathroom sizes are, the study noted. Surprisingly, given the general aging of the population, adaptability/universal design features decreased slightly from the year before. Water-saving toilets decreased slightly, as well, while smart toilets nearly doubled in popularity. Smart toilets can include bidet-style features, which are becoming increasingly affordable, as well as heated seats, lids that lift automatically as someone approaches, and even connectivity for playing song lists.

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