Minimalist living meets our needs: when you come home after an eventful day with lots to take in, sometimes you want nothing more than refreshing silence and a blank space. Minimalism leaves you room to think clearly. Above all, your kitchen should be somewhere that everything has its own place, and where you can really switch off. Find out here how you can bring this atmosphere into your own kitchen.
Minimalism is not just an interior style, but rather a way of life. If you want to set yourself up in minimalistic style, first declutter your home and your life. Do you really need so much decoration? Do all of the pictures on your walls mean something to you? Do you actually use the juicer and all four of the spatulas that you own? First of all, you need to find out what’s really important to you on a day-to-day basis. Minimalism is especially popular among the younger generation, as it reflects their attitude towards life. Lots of people are trying to live consciously and sustainably due to dwindling natural resources and sensory overload from social media. By purchasing just a few products of high quality, you can reduce your overall consumption. This is also true of cooking. It’s better to use a few organic ingredients than lots of additives. A small number of vital kitchen appliances is better than unmanageable kitchen chaos. Having a clear system allows you to create order in your kitchen, and in your life, too.
Only in the second phase should you set up your living space in a minimalistic style. Every item that you grant a place in your life should have meaning or function. Keep only the number of plates and cups that you need. Give up that unused coffee service that’s gathering dust in the cupboard. Give empty surfaces room to take effect. Introduce a smooth worktop and bold kitchen mixer tap to conjure up a contrast out of perfect tranquillity and create accents with clean style elements. Such interior decoration for kitchens and living spaces creates a restful environment that leaves plenty of space for fresh new experiences. The Japanese have been familiar with this home and living concept for over 1,000 years. The philosophy of wabi-sabi provides the underpinnings for the minimalist movement. A pared-back design and a maximum of blank white surfaces create peace and harmony.
Those who want to live a minimalist lifestyle must learn the art of letting go. You have to withstand the temptation to carry on buying new things immediately after decluttering your home. Take a proactive approach to dealing with each room and trust that everything is exactly where you need it. You are unlikely to miss that third coffee service or the souvenir mug from your last-but-one holiday.
You can declutter your living space, but creating a minimalistic kitchen represents a whole new challenge. After all, there are so many brilliantly practical kitchen aids and decorative elements that can assist with preparing food and even cooking. As such, you should conduct an inventory: How much of your kitchenware do you use? Which dishes actually end up on the table? And do you really need those culinary-themed artworks above the worktop? Many kitchens contain objects that never get used. They rob you of space and distract you from what is essential. The solution: clear out your kitchen, leaving only the items that you actively use. These can be stored in a few well-sorted cabinets. Stick to the essentials when it comes to your kitchen fittings, too: for cooking, you only need an oven, a refrigerator, worktops and a sink.
When designing your kitchen, go for high-quality appliances and accessories. In the interests of sustainability, you want to be able to go on using them for a long time. If you find yourself wondering whether to purchase a particular kitchen appliance, ask yourself whether you really need it. Are you really going to bake enough of your own bread to justify buying a breadmaking machine? Every appliance takes up space. In a minimalistic kitchen, however, you should keep all of your worktops as uncluttered as possible. Less is more in this case. This allows you to showcase the materials to best effect.
Steer clear of unnecessary accessories and limit yourself to the essential kitchen functions. Modern galley kitchens or kitchen islands tend to come in a single colour. The cabinets open with a push-to-open function, such as BLANCO SELECT AutoMove Push-to-open for opening the waste collector in the base cabinet with ease. As such, handles or knobs are no longer required, and the smooth surfaces remain unbroken.
Minimalism foregoes bold colours and twee contrasts, opting instead for large expanses of muted colour. The sink and worktop combination appear to flow seamlessly into one another. You can achieve this effect with a white granite sink, installed in a similarly white granite worktop. Flushmount sinks come without visible edges, so that any crumbs left on the worktop can simply be swept into the sink. If the sink and worktop are the same colour, flush installation gives them the appearance of a single unit.
A sink can boast lots of additional functions, which are indispensable in a minimalistic kitchen. After cooking, you can place hot pots on the non-slip Top-Rails, which can be attached to the sink. Vegetables can be stored in a corner caddy until you need to use them. The colander can be hung within the bowl with ease. If you need extra worktop space, you can simply repurpose the sink. Sink systems like the AXIA III come with a moveable cutting board. The board makes the bowl disappear when you're not using it.