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| Poliform Varenna, Always leading the industry |
Fortunately for me this was a free trip as part of the KBDi (Kitchen & Bathroom Design Institute) awards program, that's right! for winning the 2014 Australian Bathroom Designer of the Year this was a gift!
This was my first trip to this event and i must say i really enjoyed the furniture side of this event, a few halls of emerging designers which did blow my mind...got lost for hours!
Living Kitchen is a bi Annual event that alternates with Milan, it is in only it's second year and i have no doubt in years to come this will be a very big event. A little small with ONLY 212 exhibitors (still massive in Australia eyes) mainly focussing on appliances but there was some really cool things.
It is always good to see trend directions, materials and applications at these events. There was a real clear direction this year; Wood, Marble, Metal's, and muted colour. The feeling was natural and the push was hand made, knowing the origin and history of the product.
The element i love the most about these events are the design weeks attached to them, people throwing open their doors, creating design installations and hosting great parties. Cologne Design week was no different. We had some great times, meeting some great people.
I hope you enjoy my images, there are few that are not my shots and they will be tagged.
Cheers
Darren Genner
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| Barazza new cooktop - Refined ellegance |
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| Poloshed Copper as a accent was massive, love the depth these polished pendant offer. |
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| TEXTURE! Dekton's new sheet material |
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| The push for hand made and made with love |
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| Incredible Copper tapware |
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| Benchtop are getting thinner and stronger, materials allowing the direct connection of burners "HOT" |
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| TEXTURE!!! |
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| Herb gardens & greenery in the kitchen |
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| Solid Surface fronts - in this case Corian |
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| Neolith Panels applied vertically, can be used as benchtops or cladding |
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| Dekton panels - LARGE |
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| The nights out with new friends and great design are as inspiring as the events themselves |
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| Cologne Design week, great times with great people. Darren & Elissa from Darren James Interiors & Belinda from Staron Asutralia |
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| Our chef for the night - yes the one with a Knife! |
IMM Furniture Fair & Living Kitchen 2015 – Design Trends
Darren Genner of Minosa & Darren James from Darren James Interiors - Trends - KBDI design tour 2015
This years show in Cologne brought us back to nature and origin, the need to be connected to natural elements and finishes was very refreshing as was the push for bespoke pieces and hand made qualities.
Trends
• Main materials in use - Timber, Blonde Oak and Walnuts mixing with marble (Carreras & Calcutta) accented with Metallics. Copper & Steel was very strong.
• All materials where showcased in their most natural form, raw in some cases adding real depth and character
• This natural theme even expressed with a lot of greenery, herb gardens built in to kitchens or green walls.
• There was a real push for real timber not veneer, construction methods are tweaking and we are seeing real wood make a strong reappearance on the market place which offers a lot of warmth and texture that veneer can not offer.
• Colours are muted and soft, very neutral tones. White is still strong and very popular.
• Benchtops are getting thinner; more refined which we love. 12mm & 6mm, Advancements in materials are making a lot of things possible, we have even see these thin materials applied vertically, which was also a nice touch.
• Most glass surfaces where dark, moody. Tinted mirror was strong
• Stone surfaces are more natural in there finish, not a lot of polished on display. Mainly flamed or honed.
• Timbers are oiled or waxed again no high gloss
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