Remembering Our Very First Kitchen in the Early Eighties

Throughout the last few decades kitchen designs have certainly evolved, and in doing so, the kitchen has truly become the ‘hub of the home’. Stylish kitchen designs, natural materials and use of colour provides charm, warmth and cosy settings, where many activities and social functions now take place. However, growing up in the early eighties I remember our family kitchen being a very different place.

 Back then, we lived in a modest three bedroom semi-detached town house where our basic kitchen consisted of a stand-alone gas cooker, a medium sized fridge-freezer combined, a sink and four storage cupboards. As cupboards go, these provided the main storage for foodstuff, baking utensils, cutlery, crockery and the many pots and pans my mother had accumulated over the years. Made of formica and covered in thin layers of brown wood like laminate, these cupboard doors, drawer fronts and tops were unattractive and not at all sturdy. The floor was garish green tiles.

source: homedesignideasz.com

Some years later as the family grew, we invested in a tall cupboard, which we called ‘the larder. This came in a light blue shade and had three compartments. The top compartment had frosted glass panels, and it was here we displayed our crockery. In the middle and bottom section tins of food, rice and packets of dry legumes were stored. I remember being fascinated by the door on the middle section, which locked automatically in place when shut and opened downwards on hinges, providing a little more work space on which to prepare a bowl of cereal in the morning or a sandwich after school. Looking back now, the kitchen was totally mismatched, but it didn’t seem to matter much then, mum was always able to prepare and cook tasty wholesome meals for us to share.

 Today, kitchen renovations and remodelling are the most popular home improvement of all time. These new kitchen designs take into account the layout of the room, many of which have been made bigger by knocking two rooms into one, in order to accommodate all the activities that now takes place in this room. They also aim to achieve the ideal look and feel that’s right for the home by providing sufficient storage space helping to keep the worktops clear and the kitchen neat. The quality, styles and designs of today’s kitchen cupboard doors and drawer fronts bring a completely different look and feel to the kitchen and home, one that is chic and stylish.

 Where once paint and plain white tiles were the main features on the walls, many designs now incorporating glass, metal, decorative tiles, natural stone, solid wood, and other hard wearing materials. The kitchen is therefore able to withstand the constant thoroughfare of family and visitors. The addition of great lighting and attractive seating areas put the finishing touches to the perfect place to relax and dine.

 Gone are those days of having a basic, mismatched kitchen. With kitchens designers and manufacturers working hard to meet the needs, taste and preference of the modern day family, rest assured, there is a kitchen design out there to suit your home and lifestyle today.