With any home improvement endeavor, there are a variety of factors to consider before you start. When it comes to kitchen designs, there are two main aspects to consider: the aesthetic appeal and function. You want to make sure the visual design is one you enjoy seeing every day and are proud to show guests. You also want to make sure your decisions make sense for your lifestyle. The layout should be conducive to how you use the space and provides utmost practicality.

From the material of countertops and cabinets to the colors of the walls and appliances, every element of kitchen design has a powerful influence on your satisfaction. Making sure they all seamlessly complement one another is essential, but it can also be challenging. 
Family Affair 70 Gloss 2.25 - Saddle

Modern Kitchen Design Trends

Whether it's a kitchen makeover or you're starting from scratch in a newly built home, the vast range of choices can be overwhelming. To spark some ideas and help guide your decision-making process, it might be helpful to learn about some of the latest kitchen design trends.

Incorporating high-tech appliances
Technology has made its way into every area of our lives including our homes. Smart devices and appliances are becoming more popular to use in the kitchen, offering the same advanced and innovative capabilities we used to only see in smartphones, computers and other personal gadgets. Many of these pieces of equipment, such as refrigerators and dishwashers, commonly come in stainless steel finishes. When evenly dispersed throughout the kitchen, they can help give the room a modern appeal. The sleek, shiny surfaces can also offer a polished and refined appearance, with the silver shade being a wonderful complement to just about any decor.

Disguised appliances
If this high-tech look isn't something you favor, and you prefer a more country-style feel, that's OK. You can still reap the benefits of upgrading appliances without sacrificing the more traditional aesthetic. How? By disguising them behind doors that look identical to your cabinets. Instead of having a silver dishwasher stick out like a sore thumb against a strip of white wood cabinets, for example, use the same panels on the exterior of the appliance and create a cleaner and more uniform look. This is a great way to hide elements of the kitchen that are necessary but throw off the room's decor. Seven Springs Hickory - Brey

Style integration and convergence throughout home
Forbes recently named integrated spaces as one of this year's top kitchen design trends. Kitchens can sometimes feel small and cramped, especially when they are closed off from other areas of the home. Even if you have an open space layout, it can make rooms look disparate or thrown together, particularly if you aren't careful about where certain elements meet. To create a more cohesive look, more homeowners focus on creating a consistent design that flows from room to room. By establishing continuity, you can make your kitchen feel more spacious and certain areas of your home less isolated.

The kitchen should connect the home, not divide it. So how can you go about executing this kitchen design trend? One way, which we already discussed, is to hide appliances using the same color and materials of surfaces used in other areas. This same concept applies to other elements of the kitchen as well. For example, why not use the same type of hardwood flooring in the kitchen as you do in the hallways and adjacent rooms? The consistency of design makes it easy for the eye to flow from one area to the next, ultimately making the home seem bigger and more spacious.
Parker Pointe - Plaza

Soft, neutral color palettes
White will always be a primary color both in and outside the kitchen. However, there is room for other neutral tones, ones that offer just as much flexibility. According to Interior Designer Jane Lockhart, gray is starting to gain popularity as the go-to choice for kitchens.

"Charcoal, grays and even neutral pastels like pale blue, pale green gray and tinted whites are the new alternative to the standard white," said Lockhart.

Lockhart also added that homeowners are starting to use lighter tones of wood, such as whitewashed, oak and walnut surfaces. Using lighter hues for bigger spaces, such as the cabinets, floors and walls, can make the room feel bigger than it actually is. Keep in mind that using softer color palettes doesn't mean the kitchen design has to be bland. The key is using these muted tones as a canvas for the larger areas of the kitchen, then being strategic with the bold statement pieces and pops of color.

Sharp contrasts
To create an impressive juxtaposition in your kitchen design, mix materials and colors. As HGTV explained, you could use white lacquer cabinets and black countertops to create a sharp contrast between two colors that have timeless appeal. Then, depending on the look you are trying to achieve, offset it with a different material and color of flooring, such as a rustic hardwood, to create a striking balance between contemporary and traditional.

Regardless of which surfaces and elements you mix and match, incorporating various textures and styles into the space can make for an engaging environment and should be used to create a counterpoint.

Starting from the ground up
Once you have your aesthetic in place, it's time to get to work. Start with the bare elements of the kitchen: cabinets, walls and floors. The latter will, ideally, be the very first place you start.     The kitchen floor design you choose can act as a canvas. Once you have that in place, you will be able to build on it to create the kitchen of your dreams. Whereas tiles used to be one of the most popular choices for kitchen flooring, more homeowners are realizing that quality hardwood flooring is one of the most versatile and sophisticated-looking surface options. It can be used throughout the entire home and comes in a wide range of materials and colors, offering virtually infinite style options. Plus, hardwood flooring tends to give a more authentic, welcoming and elegant look than alternatives.