Kitchen trends for 2025 – Unleash the colours! Nine inspiring kitchen design ideas for the year ahead

Written by Andrew Published Oct 10, 2024 Category The Kitchen Expert

Naked Kitchens’ head of design Jayne Everett shares her insights about the hottest styles and ideas that are inspiring people’s kitchens right now – and what to look out for in 2025…

As the co-founder and head of design at Naked Kitchens, Jayne Everett is endlessly innovating with new kitchen styles, colours and materials – and she has a keen ear for which of the latest ideas have got people buzzing, in our Chelsea, Bloomsbury and Norfolk showrooms and across the country.

Here she shares her insider knowledge on the trends that are currently bubbling away in contemporary British kitchen design, ready to take off in 2025…

1. The kitchen as a unique work of art

One of the most exciting things that Jayne has spotted is a general shift in people’s attitudes to their kitchen design.

“Until quite recently people wanted their kitchens to sort of fade away at the edges, to blend into the background without a sharp distinction from the surrounding decor,” she explains. “But more and more we’re finding people are thinking about their kitchens almost like a single, bold work of art.

“They’re looking at colours, textures and details like handles and how they all work together in this distinctive, layered space where you can express yourself and create something unique and striking. Of course, from a designer’s point of view, that’s a dream.”

*Bold colour combinations and layers of texture - it's the kitchen as a work of art*

2. Bolder, braver colour combinations

Goodbye monochrome kitchens – hello brave new colour world! “It’s actually quite rare for us to do a kitchen in a single colour these days,” says Jayne. “People are looking for a bolder, braver palette, and a mix of colours and contrasts.

“Even in more neutral-toned schemes, we’re generally introducing a vibrant colour pop in one of the cabinets, or perhaps the interior of a glazed cabinet.”

*Fresh colours: the Anmer kitchen with cabinets in First Flight blue*

3. Fresh colours

“In terms of colour, I predict that 2025 will be a year of fresh, airy, breezy colours. Our own colour palette is evolving that way – the newest additions are First Flight, a lovely light blue, and a rich earthy green called Wolferton Green.

“Our colours are always inspired by our local Norfolk surroundings, and right now we’re putting the accent on the freshness of the coast and the countryside: the breeziness and the great wide open spaces. I think we’ll see more of that kind of feeling appearing in kitchens.”

4. Layers of texture

In interior design, texture is how something ‘feels to the eye’ – and Jayne says that more customers are thinking about how they can introduce layers of texture; mixing smooth and rough, natural and man-made surfaces for visual interest.

And not just visual interest – tactile enjoyment is also important. “We’ve been doing more reeded and fluted textured doors and panels– when you run your fingers across them there’s something deeply satisfying about it, like an old-fashioned washboard.”

“But you don’t need to overdo texture,” Jayne adds. “A few little textured pieces here is fine. It’s all about layering and balance.”

*Layers of texture and timber as a timeless colour in the Wolferton kitchen*

5. Timber for colour – and timelessness

Exposed timber has always been a great way to bring texture into a kitchen – but Jayne observes that people are also starting to think of woody tones as part of the overall colour scheme.

“When you’re using very bold, contemporary paint colours, then balancing that with some pieces in the natural, understated colours of oaks and other timbers provides the kitchen with that timeless quality. Timber makes a kitchen fashion-proof.”

6. Natural walnut

One timber in particular that’s really taking off – and set to be even more popular in 2025 – is natural walnut.

“Previously people always turned to darker walnut for their cabinets because they wanted that deep, rich look. That’s beautiful of course and will never go out of style…. But we are seeing a trend now for walnut that looks very natural – lacquered rather than stained – where you can see the grain in the timber and all the lovely tonal variations. That’s definitely one to look out for in 2025.”

*Textured reeded doors in natural walnut, and a waterfall splashback*

7. Bolder worktops and ‘waterfall splashbacks’

Worktops are getting chunkier – with customers starting to favour a 30mm surface over the more usual 20mm size. And they’re getting bolder in pattern too.

“We’re doing some very striking worktops at the moment – there’s definitely a trend for eye-catching marbled surfaces,” says Jayne. “And one way people are maximising that is to go for a worktop that continues seamlessly onto the splashbacks.

“It’s a bit like a waterfall island, where the worktop cascades down the sides onto the floor, except here it’s the splashbacks flowing onto the work surfaces. It’s incredibly effective as a visual statement.”

8. ‘Wow’ storage elements

On the storage front, there’s an ongoing trend towards highly personalised storage, as people realise they can make their kitchens very bespoke and precisely tailored for the way they live, the things they cook and the way they cook them.

“Drawers, larders, pantries and so on are getting super-personalised, which we love doing,” Jayne says.

“One definite trend in storage is for the ‘wow’ element. The thing that nobody else has got that makes using the kitchen a daily joy – and blows the socks off your visitors. Drinks stations are great for this: we’re making some stunning bars, bespoke wine storage, hidden coffee-making compartments and so on. That’s great fun.”

*'Wow' storage: a bespoke coffee and drinks station*

9. Secret spaces

One more fun trend for 2025 is the use of hidden spaces within the kitchen – that is, incorporating and often concealing utilities, cosy sitting nooks or or even whole rooms in the kitchen design.

Jayne explains: “We all do so much more than cook in the kitchen – all of life happens there, whether it’s family time or working from home. It’s great to incorporate other features and rooms into the design.

“Pocket doors are excellent for this…We recently built a gorgeous little office space in a kitchen and hid it behind these beautifully constructed pocket doors.

“I think we might see more and more in this area. Once you’ve opened people’s eyes to the endless possibilities of a bespoke kitchen they start asking for all sorts of weird and wonderful things…. Luckily, we love a challenge!”