We all have our favourite cafe, loved for its atmosphere, look and taste or quality of coffee and accompanying pastries. And it turns out that the obsession with cafes and coffee culture has become so prominent that the cafe kitchens home decor trend is set to be huge in 2024.
Recreating the look and feel of a coffee shop in our own kitchen, however small, is indeed going to be one of the biggest kitchen trend of the upcoming year.
This year, we already got a taste of this trend in smaller doses with kitchen coffee stations and the cafe curtains trend popping up on our radar. But according to the Pinterest Predicts trend report for 2024 published earlier this month, ‘cafécore’ will be taking over our entire kitchens in the new year as searches for ‘coffee station decor’ rises by +145% and ‘cafe aesthetic’ is up by +820%.
Cafe kitchens home decor trend
It seems that 2024 will be the year of the kitchen as decorating this often forgotten, utilitarian room of the house is getting a lot of love. First we learned about the maximalist ‘kitschens’ trend and now we're here to introduce cafécore.
‘Cafécore is about bringing the coffee shop aesthetic into the home – think breakfast cupboards, chalkboards and curated coffee bar styling,’ explains Al Bruce, founder of Olive & Barr.
‘It has the aim of creating a warm, welcoming space reminiscent of your favourite coffee shop, this trend is focused on upgrading your at-home coffee experience and embracing the elements that will allow you to do so.’
The great thing about this trend is that it doesn’t discriminate between different sizes of kitchens and whether yours is a rental or not, so you can recreate the cafe kitchen look in any home. Here's how...
1. Add a coffee machine
Start with the cafe-level coffee-making essentials. No cafe can function properly without its best coffee machine. So we recommend investing in one if you are a lover of a good cup of coffee. It will also make for the perfect centrepiece to your cafe kitchen.
‘My advice for homeowners who want to recreate the warming and cosy experience of a cafe at home, is to ensure they invest in a quality and statement coffee machine - chrome always works well,’ says Simon Ribchester, head of design at Beams.
Whether it’s the best bean-to-cup coffee machine or a pod machine that you prefer the most, anything goes.
The caveat that we have to get out of the way with the Sage Barista Impress is that it's a serious spend. At £729.95, this isn't a coffee machine in most budgets, but it might be one to daydream about or save towards if not - thanks to just how incredibly good it is at making coffee. The unique selling point of this particular machine is the in-built grinder to give you elevated control over your cup of coffee.
In the world of bean-to-cup coffee machines, this is on the more affordable side, retailing for £479. It's also a very capable coffee machine, with heaps of customisable controls that will allow budding baristas to really take control of their brewing process. When reviewing the Breville Barista Max+, our tester was struck by just how stylish this machine was, with a design that would fit nicely into most kitchens.
With an RRP of £109.99, but with the opportunity to find this machine on sale for much, much less, we can whole-heartedly recommend the L'OR Barista Sublime. In terms of cost per use, if you buy the XXL pods in bulk, it works out as around 30p per coffee. That's true value if you still want to have coffee at home amidst the cost of living crisis.
Simon Ribchester brings years of design expertise to the Beams team, having successfully navigated the ever-evolving landscape of design. He brings his relentless passion for innovation and a keen eye for aesthetics to all his work at Beams.
2. Use the cafe colour palette
When selecting your new kitchen colour scheme, why not opt for shades inspired by coffee and incorporate the cafe kitchen look that way.
‘Consider coffee-inspired colours as a colour palette, latte beiges, creamy off whites and natural wood tones will enhance the overall cosy and calming ambiance of the area,’ Simon suggests.
While this can manifest in the paint on the walls or colour of your cupboards, there are also smaller changes you can make to incorporate these shades if the budget doesn’t allow for the bigger ones, or if you live in a rental.
Add accessories such as the cafe curtains and tea towels in the same palette or if you have your dining table in the kitchen, you can add cushions and a tablecloth in those shades too.
3. Embrace open shelving
‘Finally, consider adding open shelves above the coffee station for a stylish way to display your favourite mugs, coffees, and everything in between,’ Simon advises.
But make the displayed selection as curated as possible to avoid a cluttered look. ‘Avoid overcrowding the shelves with unnecessary items to avoid it becoming visually distracting,’ he adds.
This is where you can put your favourite coffee cups and mugs, alongside your ground coffee, flavoured syrups and decorative items such as a cafe chalkboard.
We can’t wait for this cosy and wholesome trend to truly explode in the new year. Now, who's for a flat white?
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