What would the perfect modern city kitchen look like for a man? Much like fashion, interior and kitchen design is often targeted towards women. With this basic question in mind, we were inspired to think deeper and create a kitchen design worthy of a modern professional man on the go.
Let's talk about the client. When we think about a modern city life, we picture men and women dressed perfectly from head to tow. We think of professionals who work hard and long hours and who want to come home to a place that (1) reflects their hard work, (2) allows for easy living and (3) is showy enough for impressive entertaining. Keeping these three basic qualities in mind, we created a masculine looking kitchen that allows for just that. We started by selecting the Dark Marquina countertop. It is simply perfect when designing a more masculine inspired kitchen. The deep, rich black surface, which is unapologetically interrupted with white marbled veins, has an impressive and elegant appearance. This countertop is timeless like a black suit and impressive like a glass of champagne; both of which we can perfectly see around or on the Dark Marquina countertop at a cocktail party.
When designing a masculine city kitchen we wanted the counter top to be the star. The kitchen surface serves multiple purposes. It needs to be practical for a fast paced life where quick meals can be prepared and it needs to be beautiful to serve as the backdrop for dinner or cocktail parties. However, stereotypically, men are not known for creating the perfect table setting. A busy man, greater still, will most likely not have the time to prepare. However, the Dark Marquina countertop lends itself to be the perfect presentation surface for cocktail parties and will undoubtedly make any party instantly look like a thousand dollars. There is nothing else needed other than placing some simple appetisers such as olives, bread or other store-bought Hors d’oeuvre on the countertop. Couple that together with some elegant glassware to serve your favourite drinks, and you are set to go. And as the ceramic countertop is both stain resistant and antibacterial, feel free to even place some food items directly on the surface and go ahead and throw away those pesky coasters…now that is what we call low maintenance!
To complete the look of this kitchen, we extended the Dark Marquina countertop onto the wall to create the backsplash and paired it with simple black cabinetry, black hardware and stainless steel appliances. To give the design that “little something extra,” we even made the toe kick using the same Dark Marquina countertop (don’t forget it is also the small, overlooked details that will make your kitchen look even higher quality). Lastly, to give this otherwise “cool” kitchen some much needed warmth, we used a beautiful dark cherrywood for the flooring and window frame.
And there you have it, an impressive, elegant kitchen that simultaneously shows off your hard work and is conducive to a fast-paced city lifestyle.