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Farmhouse Kitchen: A Complete Guide

The farmhouse kitchen has been one of the most popular kitchen designs for a few years. Once or twice, recently, it was even the number one kitchen design request on HGTV, the television channel whose broadcast programming is dedicated to home improvement and real estate. The popularity of this kitchen design is perhaps due in part to its flexibility, where it can be adapted to different personalities by going more traditional, more modern, or anywhere in between.

To know if it’s for you, you should learn a bit about what exactly the farmhouse kitchen is, its pros and cons, and other various considerations. You can assume a lot about this particular kitchen design from its name. “Farmhouse” kitchens have a very farmhouse feel, of course, but there’s more to it. Curious? Here’s a complete guide to farmhouse kitchens:

History & Features

The farmhouse design style pretty much began and is borrowed from the earliest days of farmhouses, so it’s centuries old. It’s main features include natural hues, shaker cabinets, open shelving, overhead wood panels, and the distinct farmhouse sink.

Pros & Cons

The pros of the farmhouse kitchen design, apart from its overall charm and natural feel, are plenty. There is the durability of its main features, such as the farmhouse sink, which is large, spacious, and can withstand your kitchen’s worst in its often metal basin. Another pro is the open storage, making your stored items easy to access and organize.

The cons to farmhouse kitchen design are a more relative issue depending on your design goals. For example, you won’t be able to include sleek finishes or busy patterns, and can’t leave too much on and around your countertops as farmhouse kitchens emphasize avoiding clutter.

Countertops

The farmhouse kitchen design can be achieved through most kinds of countertop surface materials and layouts. If you go with stone countertops, lean towards choosing one with more natural patterns, color, and texture. One of the more innovative ideas in the world of farmhouse kitchen countertops is to pair stone with a wooden butcher block!

Cabinets

Cabinetry in the farmhouse kitchen design is flexible and can be very fun to pick out. For example, if you are going for a more modern kitchen, you can opt for white shaker cabinets. On the other hand, if you’re going for a more traditional farmhouse kitchen, you can be as bold as going with glass-door cabinets or open shelving. For the latter, going with real wood or shelves with an earthy color and finish would be a great move!

The Farmhouse Sink

The thing that anchors the farmhouse kitchen more than any other component is the sink. Sinks in farmhouse kitchens are very distinct – they are large, rather deep drop-in sinks with exposed fronts. If you go traditional with it, you can get the basin in copper or another rustic metal. Whatever it is, without a farmhouse sink, it can be argued that your kitchen doesn’t qualify for the farmhouse design.