Islands

The design response was guided by the natural landscape visible through the windows – hazy olive greens, soft neutrals, natural timbers and marble benchtop..

Craftsmanship without clutter

This well-connected kitchen balances great looks and impressive functionality – several elements reflect thoughtful craftsmanship without weighing down the design with showy detailing

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Original wood floors have been dark stained – adding to the contrast and drama with the modern island in stone..

Viva la differenza

A centre-of-attention villa kitchen featuring solid beech doors, custom brass accents and last but by no means least glorious swathes of rich Picasso Calacatta marble that remind the owner of her travels through Europe

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Contemporary island features cantilevered benchtop for breakfast station.

Twice as effective

Here, two kitchens – one on-show and one for behind-the-scenes Asian cooking – are created in one footprint; features include a hidden cabinet entry, a long dark ceramic island, and a high-power wok scullery

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The island bench takes centre stage as the hero of the design, crafted in natural marble with basalt fluting and highlighted by subtle strip lighting.

More than an addition

This continuous multi-zone kitchen has a strong, moody presence derived largely from material choices – a hero fluted marble island, rich timber cabinetry and soft brass accents all play their part

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The kitchen with modern island is designed to quietly anchor the interior – seamlessly connecting the cognac bar, formal dining room and family living area.

Quiet drama

This project achieves a deft balancing act – the kitchen was to be discreet yet noticeably refined while the scullery was to be an understated workhorse while maintaining a visual connection to the kitchen

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The kitchen connects seamlessly to the lounge, fireplace setting, and dining area complete with rectangular wood dining table.

Head of the family

A refined, contemporary kitchen overlooks dining and living in an open-plan space – contributing to the wider cohesive material palette while still holding its own as a key architectural feature

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Cool white stone benchtops and an integrated white sink establish a crisp, monolithic surface language.

Expanded horizons

Strategic spacial reconfiguration for this dual-toned kitchen project makes room for a generous scullery while gleaming mirror splashbacks refract the surrounding waterfront landscape

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A sumptuous Hiroshi Green quartzite slab extends over the front of this island, adding a dramatic feature to the kitchen and wider space

8 kitchen islands to inspire

The star of your kitchen and often your living spaces, the not-so-humble kitchen island comes in all shapes, materials and sizes – let this collection of sculptural stand-outs fire up your own project

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Floating steps lead out to a newly designed garden, reinforcing the connection between inside and out. THe kitchen has a modern island with engineered stone benchtop.

Continuity meets subtle separation

A generous, long kitchen-dining space – quietly dramatic in scale – has its proportions enhanced by richly detailed walnut joinery, fluted cabinetry, and strong blocks of colour

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The kitchen and dining areas enjoy open indoor-outdoor connection.

Light-hearted by the sea

This modest sized beachside kitchen makes the most of every detail to lighten the space, creates flowing connections and ensures there's a place for everything – walnut cabinets and aged brass accents feature

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The coastal kitchen with modern island has an appropriate indoor-outdoor vibe.

Modern yet homely

This kitchen – part of a reshuffled/revamped space, offers light, warm cabinetry finishes and the refined coolness of stone benchtops and splashback

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The kitchen, modern island included, is set back within the architecture of the home.

The wash of the sea

Refined touches abound in this coastal kitchen – a waterfall oyster stone benchtop; dark, touch-to-open cabinets; and fluted glass-fronted upper cabinetry all balance the elegant and the practical

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Renovated kitchen with Carrara marble flooring and open layout.

This kitchen was part of a large renovation that included removing walls and replacing the dated marble floor tiles with new large format slabs of 20mm thick Carrara marble.

The kitchen offers a wealth of work surfaces with natural task lighting provided by a skylight and strip lighting. The double sink and induction hob have an understated presence.

The kitchen offers a wealth of work surfaces with natural task lighting provided by a skylight and strip lighting. The double sink and induction hob have an understated presence.

Kitchen island with tile finish by Buck and Simple.

One of the primary challenges was ensuring the kitchen maintained a cohesive connection with the rest of the home while also serving as a functional and hard-wearing space.

Finger tiles give the kitchen island a detailed yet understated presence.

Finger tiles give the kitchen island a detailed yet understated presence.

Island designed as furniture-like centerpiece with integrated seating at one end.

The island was to be treated more like a piece of furniture than a kitchen, with seating at one end.

Large island seats up to ten.

The island has a staggering capacity of seating for ten (not all breakfast stools shown here).

High-quality materials have created a kitchen that is both attractive and functional.

Modern country kitchen with timber and matte black features.

The owners had a modern country style in mind with timber elements and a matt black theme.

Open-plan kitchen and living areas form the central hub of the home.

The epicentre of this home is undoubtedly the kitchen and connected living areas.

Underlighting beneath the island benchtop enhances the stone’s texture, casting a dramatic glow that elevates the kitchen’s ambiance.

The island benchtop is underlit to dramatic effect.

Niche pull out storage cabinet elements in the kitchen island maximise storage and keep everything close to hand.

Niche pull out storage cabinet elements in the kitchen island maximise storage and keep everything close to hand.

Crisp white kitchen with sleek modern lines.

- Crisp and contemporary -

a modern kitchen island designed by Urbane Projects, showcasing its minimalist aesthetic and functionality

The homeowners wanted a kitchen that felt inviting but also embraced the elegance of bronze mirror finishes.

White leathered granite brings tactile beauty to the island.

White leathered granite gives the island both a tactile and aesthetic presence.

Kitchen with skylight and perimeter cabinetry with concealed lighting.

Kitchen with skylight and perimeter cabinetry with concealed lighting.

At the heart of this kitchen is a moody, modern material palette—anchored by cost-effective Black Wilderness cabinetry from Bestwood, delivering visual depth without breaking the budget.

The material palette, as requested, is dark – the cabinetry is cost-effective Black Wilderness from Bestwood.

The kitchen works well within its wider setting.

Modern kitchen island built by Penney Constructions

Internal spaces are spatially generous with a series of two storey voids that connect the ground and upper levels.

Island overhang suits casual use and socialising.

The generous overhang on the generous-sized island is ideal for socialising, homework, or light meals.

Kitchen island complete with breakfast sitting.

The dual-island layout features an outer island for seating and an inner island for cooking—an arrangement that supports both daily family life and effortless entertaining.

The layout has the outer island where you sit, and the inner island with the cooktop in front of the back wall with the sink area. The owners spend time at home with family and entertaining so the layout and design needed to be very functional.

Open kitchen-dining layout ensures visual and functional connectivity within the home.

The bigger picture – the kitchen is close to the home's dining area.

Curved and softened edges, as seen here on the island, enhance visual cohesion throughout the home.

Curved and softened edges, as seen here on the island, enhance visual cohesion throughout the home.

Early in the design process it was identified that on-trend curves would be showcased in this house – the kitchen included.

A breakfast bar adds to the kitchen's day-to-day functionality.

A breakfast bar adds to the kitchen's day-to-day functionality.

The pop-up extractor keeps the ocean views uninterrupted.

Sleek, impactful and bursting with functionality, the island also keeps sightlines clear to the ocean outlooks when the pop-up is retracted into the benchtop.

Designer: I used the pipe style extractors to minimise the obstruction of the mountain views and to echo the style of the round rustic feature table.

Designer: I used the pipe style extractors to minimise the obstruction of the mountain views and to echo the style of the round rustic feature table.

Now you don't see it – now you do. The central bar area reminds behind closed cabinet doors until the party gets started in this kitchen by Hub Design.

Now you don't see it – now you do. The central bar area reminds behind closed cabinet doors until the party gets started.

Contemporary kitchen island designed by C. Kairouz Architects.

Aiming for enduring appeal, the home/and kitchen avoid trends in favour of enduring design principles.

Looking for more inspiration, visit trendsideas.com

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