Blum kitchen inspirations

40 1 "Kitchens are bigger and have a new look," says Stefan Waldenmaier, Chairman of the Association of German Kitchen Furniture Manufacturers. Which means they have to meet new requirements. The more action going on in a space, the greater the number of items that need to be stored away. And the more diverse the activities in an XXL kitchen, the better it is to have a quiet design and divide a kitchen into work zones. The Rottanburgs have translated these requirements into working solutions. To keep distances short in their open-plan kitchen, they keep provisions close to where they prepare food; cooking utensils are under the hob and dinnerware is close to the dining table. Wide, touch-to-open fronts highlight the organised ambience. The Rottanburgs have opted for Blum products for their entire home. The top quality fittings give you load bearing capacities of up to 70 kg. And thanks to electric motion support systems, even heavily laden pull-outs and wide and heavy fronts glide open at a single touch. The DVD player and receiver are in a TV cabinet behind a handle-less front. They are easily accessed with AVENTOS and the one-touch SERVO-DRIVE electric opening/closing system. Kitchens are not the only place for enhanced user convenience! When guests pop by to see Beryl and Rodney Rottanburg in Johannesburg, South Africa, they're a bit puzzled when they enter the largest room in their house. What's this? It could be the kitchen (you can't miss the fridge and extractor hood). But it could also be the living room (there's a laptop on the island and a comfy sofa right next to it). So, what is it? Kitchen or living room? Well, the answer is both, and it means that the Rottanburgs are following a worldwide trend. More and more people are discovering the charm of open-plan kitchens, where cooking and dining merge into one. SHORT DISTANCES ARE EVEN MORE IMPORTANT IN LARGE KITCHENS The trend is particularly strong in Central and Western Europe. Let's take Germany, for example. According to "Arbeitsgemeinschaft Moderne Küche", 20 percent of all new homes have a combined kitchen/living area, and a study carried out by GfK Living has found that regardless of size, it's the 20 to 40-year-olds in particular that see their kitchens as the hub of their homes. kitchen inspirations |  Large kitchens