Trends New Zealand Trends Volume 31 No 2 New Zealand | Page 68

Preceding page and above: A custom
backpainted glass splashback
featuring bamboo plants caters
to the clients’ love of Asia in this
apartment kitchen by interior
designer Kim Duffin.
Facing page: This two-tone design
celebrates connections and contrast.
The green of the island upstand
continues as a negative detail under
the slender, modern benchtops. Rich
cabinet hues – one polished, one
matt – set off the wood flooring.

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Often a kitchen design is not so much about
the individual elements, but rather about how
they come together – this is particularly true of
the material and colour palette.
This sleek kitchen in a riverside apartment
replaces a 20-year-old work space that had
suffered from poor connections to the views and
adjoining spaces. Designer Kim Duffin removed
walls to improve the outlooks from all areas, the
kitchen included.
“The owners had spent the pa st 10 years in
Europe and Asia and wanted an Oriental influence in the new design,” says Duffin.

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“To achieve this, I designed a custom glass
splashback with a bamboo motif. This was laid
as two panels, with the shelving and rangehood
positioned afterwards. However, to prevent
the bamboo green colour from taking over, the
splashback evokes these fast-growing, iconic
plants in silhouette, while the raised cabinet on
the island introduces the appropriate tone.
“The green appears again as a shadowline
beneath the benchtops.”
Contrast as well as connection features in
the design. The green sets off the metallic blue
of the perimeter and island base cabinetry.