This is an example of a mid-sized contemporary galley eat-in kitchen in Sydney with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, grey cabinets, quartz benchtops, white splashback, stone slab splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors, with island, brown floor and white benchtop.

Modern two toned kitchen with appliance pantry

Improva

Captain's House on Cape Cod

Bee's Knees Design, LLC

Large contemporary u-shaped eat-in kitchen in Boston with a farmhouse sink, shaker cabinets, white cabinets, marble benchtops, white splashback, brick splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors, with island and brown floor.

CUCINE - disegni, render e foto

ArchSIDE

Fotografo: Vito Corvasce
Large contemporary single-wall open plan kitchen in Rome with a drop-in sink, black cabinets, wood benchtops, black splashback, slate splashback, medium hardwood floors, with island and flat-panel cabinets.

Queens Road House

Geoffrey Holton and Associates - GHA

© Photography by M. Kibbey
Mid-sized contemporary l-shaped open plan kitchen in San Francisco with flat-panel cabinets, green cabinets, green splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors, wood benchtops, glass tile splashback, with island and brown floor.

Aqua Perma Solar Firma Kitchen

CplusC Architects + Builders

Michael Lassman
Contemporary single-wall eat-in kitchen in Sydney with a double-bowl sink, white splashback, black appliances, medium hardwood floors and with island.

Kitchen

Groom Construction Co., Inc.

Mid-sized contemporary u-shaped open plan kitchen in Boston with an integrated sink, flat-panel cabinets, stainless steel benchtops, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors, with island, medium wood cabinets and brown floor.

Contemporary Kitchen

This is an example of a large contemporary l-shaped eat-in kitchen in Boise with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, medium wood cabinets, granite benchtops, brown splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors and with island.

Parquet

Galimberti - Legno e Bioedilizia

Parquet, rivestimento e top cucina in Rovere "prima patina".
Large contemporary single-wall open plan kitchen in Milan with flat-panel cabinets, black cabinets, wood benchtops, medium hardwood floors and with island.

Counter Space Galore; Open Concept Town Home Renovation

Dependable Renovations Ltd

Large contemporary u-shaped eat-in kitchen in Calgary with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets, white cabinets, marble benchtops, grey splashback, matchstick tile splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors and a peninsula.

The Girl With the Dragon Print

Square Footage Inc.

Photos by Valerie Wilcox
Photo of a large contemporary l-shaped eat-in kitchen in Toronto with a double-bowl sink, shaker cabinets, blue cabinets, quartz benchtops, multi-coloured splashback, porcelain splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors and with island.

Architecture & Design by Elizabeth Roberts

BABA Antique Wooden Floors (Original Surface)

Fumed Antique Oak #1 Natural
This is an example of a mid-sized contemporary galley eat-in kitchen in Raleigh with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets, grey cabinets, stainless steel appliances, with island, medium hardwood floors, marble benchtops, grey splashback, stone slab splashback and brown floor.

Sacramento Chic Entertainer

Nar Design Group

This home remodel is a celebration of curves and light. Starting from humble beginnings as a basic builder ranch style house, the design challenge was maximizing natural light throughout and providing the unique contemporary style the client’s craved. The Entry offers a spectacular first impression and sets the tone with a large skylight and an illuminated curved wall covered in a wavy pattern Porcelanosa tile. The chic entertaining kitchen was designed to celebrate a public lifestyle and plenty of entertaining. Celebrating height with a robust amount of interior architectural details, this dynamic kitchen still gives one that cozy feeling of home sweet home. The large “L” shaped island accommodates 7 for seating. Large pendants over the kitchen table and sink provide additional task lighting and whimsy. The Dekton “puzzle” countertop connection was designed to aid the transition between the two color countertops and is one of the homeowner’s favorite details. The built-in bistro table provides additional seating and flows easily into the Living Room. A curved wall in the Living Room showcases a contemporary linear fireplace and tv which is tucked away in a niche. Placing the fireplace and furniture arrangement at an angle allowed for more natural walkway areas that communicated with the exterior doors and the kitchen working areas. The dining room’s open plan is perfect for small groups and expands easily for larger events. Raising the ceiling created visual interest and bringing the pop of teal from the Kitchen cabinets ties the space together. A built-in buffet provides ample storage and display. The Sitting Room (also called the Piano room for its previous life as such) is adjacent to the Kitchen and allows for easy conversation between chef and guests. It captures the homeowner’s chic sense of style and joie de vivre.

Glass Subway Tile Kitchen Remodel

JM Kitchen & Bath Design

White Kitchen, contemporary kitchen, kitchen remodel, denver kitchen, denver colorado, Black & White, Black & White Kitchen, Kitchen Makeover, Custom Lighting, Subway Tile, eat in kitchen,

Kingman Place

AllenBuilt, Inc.

Allen Russ Photography
Photo of a mid-sized contemporary l-shaped eat-in kitchen in DC Metro with an integrated sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, quartz benchtops, white splashback, with island, panelled appliances, medium hardwood floors and white benchtop.

Nuova luce alla storia | 140 MQ

studio falù

Ⓒ elanandez architektur
Large contemporary l-shaped eat-in kitchen with medium wood cabinets, marble benchtops, white splashback, medium hardwood floors, flat-panel cabinets and no island.

Luxury Penthouse

User

The hand-made Clive Christian kitchen with a 200 year old British Antique glaze is not only a functional workplace boasting the best in modern appliances, but also a perfect accompaniment to the ultimate luxury lifestyle.

Collingwood Warehouse Apartment

Elizabeth Schiavello Photography

Interiors photography by Elizabeth Schiavello. Kichen design by Meredith Lee Interiors
Photo of a mid-sized contemporary galley open plan kitchen in Melbourne with ceramic splashback, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors, an undermount sink, a peninsula and blue splashback.

Outside Inside House

Neil Cownie Architect Pty Ltd

A strong relationship between internal and external areas was sought for the main everyday living areas of the house, being the kitchen, meals area and dining room. Devices such as the highlight windows within these spaces allow a constant glimpse to the sky, the blurring of internal and external boundaries through the use of external materials within the house and the large openings making visual connections. The stone walls used externally have also been used internally to the south wall of the meals area and the copper soffit lining to the upper terrace runs internally in the bulkhead and ceiling to the kitchen, meals and dining room thereby blurring the internal and external areas. The ceilings within the dining room and kitchen / meals area are lined with timber battens. Along with providing warmth and detail to these spaces the timber battens also conceal acoustic insulation to assist with deadening the reverberant noise. The design and usability of the upper terrace itself was pivotal to the success of the house. It is the external area of the upper terrace that connects to extend the internal areas with the boundary between the two being blurred. A balance was reached between solar access and protection from the rain while maintaining a non-restricted view to the sky from internal areas through the use of glass roofs and automated awnings. Photo by Angelita Bonetti

Anbau-Chamäleon

Möhring Architekten

Fotograf: Stefan Melchior Architekt: Möhring Architekten
Design ideas for an expansive contemporary open plan kitchen in Berlin with a double-bowl sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, medium hardwood floors and with island.

Contemporary Kitchen with Medium Hardwood Floors Design Ideas

There’s a lot to consider when it comes to planning your kitchen design. Where do you even start? Gathering some inspiration in a photo gallery is always a good starting point, as looking at different kitchen designs often brings up ideas you haven’t even thought of yet.

Browse Photos of Kitchen Designs for Inspiration and Collect Your Ideas

You can browse through photos of all kinds of kitchen styles, layouts and sizes on Houzz to get started before jumping into any design software or contacting a local professional for help. Here’s a few considerations to keep in mind when planning your kitchen.

1. What Makes a Good Contemporary Kitchen Design, and Why is it Important?

For starters, you want to find a balance between aesthetics and function. You may have heard of the ‘kitchen work triangle’, which refers to the space between your fridge, sink and stove. You want everything within easy reach when you’re working in the kitchen and look beautiful at the same time. It’s a good idea to take note of both when browsing our photo gallery.

2. Consider Your Space to Determine Your Kitchen Layout

Firstly, consider the space you have, and the limitations that come with it. Do you have a small kitchen and need to maximise your workspace and storage? Can you allow yourself some more space and a big island with seating? Are you designing your kitchen from scratch or renovating an existing design? Which appliances do you already own and what are their measurements? Are there windows you need to take into consideration when planning cabinets? How do kitchen, living and dining areas connect? Depending on your space and needs, you want to use a shape that suits you. U, G, or L-shaped kitchen, with or without island or peninsula? Know your dimensions, plan cabinetry carefully and consider the placement of your appliances. You don’t want to end up with a finished design, only for your significant other to question where the fridge is supposed to go. Consider from the start where your fridge, oven, microwave and sink goes to save yourself from starting again from scratch - remember the kitchen work triangle! You also want to plan the layout of your cabinets. Maybe you’re planning for a pantry and can do with less storage space in your kitchen, so that your design can be one without upper or lower cabinets for a different look. A corner cabinet can be a smart storage solution if you want to keep the look clean and simple.

3. Decide on a Kitchen Style, But Don’t Forget Practicality

You want the style of your kitchen to reflect your personality and taste. We have curated a large array of kitchen styles here at Houzz, from traditional to contemporary to transitional and everything in between. Consider what your cooking style is for a start - Italy is known for its cuisine, so italian kitchen designs are generally popular. Also consider ergonomics - depending on how much time you spend in your kitchen, the height of your counters can make a big difference to your overall health. You also want to consider colour and finishes of cabinets, countertops and splashbacks. Which colour do you want your cupboards to be? Simple, timeless white or rather making a statement in black? Maybe rather a rustic wood? Also consider the colour of your floor - if you have dark floors, you may want to keep cabinets lighter. You could also go for an all-white look and choose black appliances for contrast. Once you know which style you fancy, don’t forget how you will be using the space. You want to keep cooking in mind, as well as how easy to clean and maintain the space will be. How many cooks do you need to accommodate? Do you have kids around? How much storage do you need? Maybe you want to go for open shelves rather than cabinets and allow for easy reach of key items you use when cooking. Again - remember the triangle! Lastly, choose lighting that both enhances the look of your kitchen as well as your cooking performance, providing light in all the right places.

4. Be Conscious of Your Budget

No matter what you plan for your kitchen design, cost is always a big factor. Be sure to plan with your budget in mind. It may make more sense to go for a modular kitchen design rather than custom build. You can save a lot of money if you get at least 3 estimates from professionals before locking in the job. And don’t forget to allow a 20% buffer for emergencies. Once you are ready to hire a pro, our directory will help you find one, no matter where you are. So whether you're looking for an Interior Designer in Melbourne or an Architect in Sydney, you can be sure to find a qualified expert for the job!