Houses: Kitchens + Bathrooms Issue 16 June 2021

It’s undeniable that kitchens and bathrooms are the workhorses of our homes. In these rooms, we repeat our familiar daily routines of making, baking, bathing and soaking. But these service zones can also be elevated into inviting rooms that encourage us to take pleasure in everyday habits: to revel in the conviviality of a family kitchen, to savour the careful preparation of a meal or to immerse ourselves in the solitude of a long soak in the tub. As the houses in this issue of Houses: Kitchens and Bathrooms attest, the opportunities to express personality in the design of these domestic zones are plentiful. Designers are using materials, texture, tone and spatial organization to reflect the people who live in them and to create homes that are by turns tranquil, sensual…

Find more residential products: selector.com and productnews.com.au 01 Verde Alpi porcelain panels Verde Alpi is one of five new designs added to Artedomus’s range of Maximum porcelain panels. Vibrant white veining illuminates an intense green background. The marble-inspired surface can be used for splashbacks, benchtops and cabinetry. artedomus.com 02 Upte dining table Chunky American white oak legs combine with a colorful lacquer-painted top and brass or chrome accents in the Upte table from Merve Kahraman. The handcrafted rectangular table can comfortably seat six to eight people. There are also options for customization. mervekahraman.com 03 M Series Professional oven The Wolf M Series Professional oven has a bold, functional design that pairs Wolf’s iconic red control knobs with gleaming stainless steel. It incorporates LCD touch-screen controls, pre-set cooking programs, pyrolytic cleaning and a generous 144-litre capacity. subzero-wolf.com 04 Compact wine cabinets Euro…

Find more residential products: selector.com and productnews.com.au 01 Vitrail wall mirrors Designed by Inga Sempé for Magis, Vitrail wall mirrors come in a variety of shapes and sizes and myriad colour options. Taking inspiration from Venetian antiques, each piece features a clear, central mirror decorated with two coloured fragments. dedece.com 02 Blue Roma stone Sourced from the foothills of southern Europe, Blue Roma is characterized by soft, natural colours and dramatic veining. Blue Roma is a design-friendly stone that can add texture and depth to the bathroom. It’s available in Australia from Signorino. signorino.com.au 03 B.2 faucet series The B.2 faucet series from Duravit is defined by strong, clean lines. Bringing simple geometric forms to the bathroom, these faucets combine well with all Duravit ceramic and furniture ranges and can be used in the washing area, shower and…

Over the past year, kitchens have been put to the test as households in lockdown spent more time at home and the place for food production became a hub for work, homework and social gathering. With this perspective, we acknowledge the inherent adaptability and diverse spatial offerings of kitchens in 2021. In the projects surveyed here, we celebrate the ways in which human connections are forged in the kitchen, while baking or sharing a glass of wine before dinner. A place of refuge, the kitchen at Balmoral Blue House by Esoteriko (page 46) supports mindfulness and the art of slow-cooking while creating a calming mood. Meanwhile, the kitchen at Lindfield House by Arent and Pyke with Polly Harbison Design (pictured and page 60) establishes the vibrant heart of the home.…

The bathrooms of 2021 have been designed to transport our lockdown-weary minds into the fanciful realms of nature and the unknown. From a shower room open to the sky at Lindfield House by Arent and Pyke with Polly Harbison Design (page 60) to the dark, brooding, cavernous bathrooms of SRG House by Fox Johnston (page 82), these spaces welcome the daring and the sublime. Big bathtubs thrust into the garden at Las Palmas, Byron by Duo Architects in association with Davis Architects (page 114) and looking out over rooftops at Toowong Lighthouse by Alcorn Middleton (page 130) draw settings of nature and urbanity into the intimate spaces of the bathroom. To heighten the immersive quality of bathing, the bathrooms in this collection embrace tactility, chromatic spectacle and natural light. The handmade…

While embracing its mid-century roots, Wahroonga House leans away from the trappings of domesticity: even in functionally demanding spaces like the kitchen and bathrooms, the home’s task-focused areas have playful, animated designs. Sydney interior design studio Tom Mark Henry explores high-contrast colour palettes, richly textured finishes and formal expressiveness to create spaces more akin to a boutique hotel than a domestic retreat. The native bushland surrounding Wahroonga House informed a colour palette of greens, golds and browns with finishes hewn from nature. Clay and timber extensively feature, with tumbled terracotta tiles creating a floor that is soft and cool underfoot. Deep ochres emerge in walnut timber veneer joinery and burgundy trims. Such references to the colours of the Australian landscape give the interior a tonal richness that is familiar and uplifting. The…