Contemporary kitchens feel sleek and modern with a clean, elegant look. They’re designed for the 21^st century – often having built-in appliances and innovative storage solutions that maximise kitchen space.

But even with all that modern flair, it’s still possible to make the kitchen feel homely.

Our expert kitchen designers are here to tell you how to make your dream contemporary kitchen still feel homely and welcoming. 

Splashes of Colour

With clever use of colour throughout the kitchen, you can bring a kitchen to life. This colour can come from anywhere – it could be a window-blind, wall splashback, the finish on the soft furnishings, kitchen utensils... By tying these things together, you can benefit from the contemporary look without it feeling too ‘clinical’.

This kitchen makeover shows how a red-accented theme runs through this predominantly white and glossy space to give a feeling of vibrance and energy.

Add personal touches

Putting your personal stamp onto your kitchen space can instantly add a homely feel, without detracting from the contemporary design. Putting up framed pictures of your family, kids artwork, or strategically adorning some of the space with ornaments that you have collected will add a personal touch that will be able to go beyond ‘designer-homely’ right into the genuinely homely.

Some other personalised touches to consider:

• Decorative mugs with family names on them
• Hand-painted plates to hang on the walls
• Framed holiday photos
• Framed quotes from friends and family
• Leaning or standing artwork

Depending on the style of your kitchen, you can also opt to dedicate some of your space to books. If your kitchen is used by the family to hang out in, you can add some favourite family books for people to read while they’re having their coffee or breakfast. You can also add in some of your favourite cook books – or take it a step further and add in your own journals filled with recipes that you’ve discovered over the years.

Add Natural Elements

Natural elements like wood and stone tend to have a more ‘homely’ and ‘warm’ feel than contemporary kitchens. By taking a few leaves out of the ‘wood kitchen’ playbook, you’ll be able to make the space feel more homely.

Some wooden accessories to consider:

• Wooden chopping block
• Wooden cutting boards
• Wooden magnetic knife rack
• Wall-mounted wooden wine rack

The design of the kitchen can also incorporate more wooden features – such as kitchen doors or floors – to break up glossy spaces and add in more warmth.

Plants and greens

Plants are a great way to add some life into the kitchen and make it feel more homely. There are a lot of interesting ways to use greenery in contemporary kitchens.

The key to making a contemporary kitchen design more homely is to make sure that greenery is used as more of an accent than a feature. Split out bunches of flowers into smaller vases and place them strategically. If you’ve got a kitchen table, this is also a great place to put some plants.

If you’re busy, or don’t have a particularly green thumb, then you can also opt for artificial plants – artificial plants are highly convincing alternatives, require no time or upkeep and have been proven to have a similar effect real plant.

A small hanging herb basket on the wall or window will give another natural element to the kitchen, while also giving you access to fresh herbs for your cooking. For that extra touch – include a bowl of fruit on the kitchen table or a kitchen worktop to get your five-a-day and up the homeliness factor. Two birds with one stone.

There are lots of ways to keep that contemporary vibe and enjoy a homely touch. If you’d like to get some more top tips, why not check in with your local Dream Doors showroom and speak with one of our design experts about your dream kitchen.