Skirting boards in kitchens are a straightforward element to fall for should you’re making an attempt to maneuver away from something too smooth or trendy. They make cupboards really feel extra like furnishings, soften the general look, and can assist a kitchen mix extra naturally into the remainder of the home.
However kitchens should work onerous, and that’s the place issues get a little bit extra sophisticated. In contrast to residing rooms or bedrooms, this can be a area that offers with moisture, warmth and home equipment every day. And whereas swapping a kickback for skirting can look pretty on day one, it isn’t at all times essentially the most sensible selection in the long term.
So, should you’ve discovered your self questioning ‘ought to I take advantage of skirting board as a substitute of kickbacks in my kitchen?’ it’s value understanding what the consultants say. We requested kitchen designers and designers when skirting boards can work, and when a purpose-built kickback continues to be the higher choice.
Why skirting boards are tempting in kitchen design
It’s simple to see why skirting boards are beginning to seem in additional kitchen design schemes – notably in interval houses or basic shaker-style kitchens.
As Tim Higham, founding father of Higham Furnishings, explains: “The exterior plinth, or skirting model, is way more conventional and makes the cabinetry look extra built-in within the room.” Utilized in the appropriate method, it could actually create an exceptionally elegant look, particularly in kitchens the place the main target is on preparation relatively than heavy cooking.
There’s additionally a rising need to maneuver away from trendy kitchens that really feel overly smooth or purely practical. Skirting boards assist blur the road between kitchen and residing area, which is especially interesting if you need the room to really feel calm, cohesive and regarded, relatively than stark or utilitarian.
Tim is the founding father of Higham Furnishings, an award-winning London-based impartial kitchen firm that designs, makes and installs premium bespoke handmade Shaker kitchens, ranging in types from conventional to up to date, along with trendy ply kitchens.
Skirting boards vs kickbacks: what’s the distinction?
Whereas skirting boards and kickbacks would possibly look comparable at a look, they’re designed to do very totally different jobs. Kickbacks (also called plinths) are purpose-built for kitchens, sitting barely inset beneath base cupboards to permit area on your toes, home equipment and air flow.
Based on Tim Higham, that is precisely why most new kitchens are designed this fashion: “Most kitchens are typically designed with inset plinths, in any other case often known as kickback plinths, as a result of they swimsuit all of the points of recent residing,” he explains. “As a result of they’re barely inset, they’ll embrace air flow for home equipment and permit for built-in dishwasher doorways to open on the right top, whereas additionally proving a spot to kick your toes underneath the cabinetry.”
Skirting-style plinths, however, sit flush with kitchen cabinetry and are chosen primarily for his or her look. Whereas they’ll make a kitchen really feel extra conventional and visually cohesive, they don’t supply the identical built-in allowances for home equipment, airflow and day-to-day consolation – which is the place issues can begin to creep in.
Why do consultants normally advise towards skirting boards in kitchens?
Whereas skirting boards can look lovely in the appropriate setting, most consultants agree they’re not often essentially the most sensible selection in a kitchen. The largest situation comes all the way down to supplies. Customary skirting boards aren’t designed to deal with the identical ranges of moisture, warmth and put on that kitchen cabinetry faces every single day.
Ryan Wenham, chartered architect and inside designer at Larsen Structure, explains that skirting is extra susceptible on this surroundings: “Typically, I might not advocate this as skirting is extra vulnerable to warp and deform on condition that it doesn’t at all times have the protecting coating {that a} purpose-built kickback would have,” he says. In an area the place spills, steam and common cleansing are unavoidable, that additional sturdiness actually issues.
There’s additionally the problem of kitchen home equipment. Kickbacks are designed to take a seat barely again from the cupboard line, which permits for important kitchen air flow and ensures built-in home equipment – equivalent to dishwashers and tumble dryers – can open and function correctly. Flush skirting doesn’t at all times enable for these clearances, which might result in doorways catching, restricted airflow or awkward fixes in a while.
Upkeep and hygiene are one other concern amongst consultants. Paul Dore, managing director of County Stone, says his staff nearly at all times recommends correct kickbacks because of this: “Kickbacks are designed particularly for kitchens, providing a cleaner end and making it a lot simpler to take care of hygiene and entry items when wanted,” he explains. Cleansing skirting boards generally is a bit trickier, notably round home equipment and excessive water areas like sinks and dishwashers.
Finally, it comes again to prioritising operate. As Ryan Wenham places it, kitchens want supplies which might be match for goal, and whereas skirting boards would possibly work elsewhere within the residence, they don’t at all times stand as much as the calls for of on a regular basis kitchen life.
Ryan Wenham is a Chartered Architect and Registered Inside Designer who runs Larsen Structure. He specialises in up to date residential design, combining architectural experience with a sensible, people-first strategy.
Paul is managing director at County Stone Ltd who has constructed a implausible fame for creatively responding to extremely diverse and infrequently relatively ‘totally different’ kinds of commissions and contracts each within the home and business markets.
Design-led alternate options that give an analogous look
Should you just like the softer look of skirting boards however don’t need the sensible complications concerned with putting in them in a kitchen, there are a number of smarter methods to get an analogous aesthetic with out compromising how your kitchen works.
A lower-profile kickback is commonly the simplest swap. Slimmer plinths sit extra quietly at ground degree, giving a cleaner, extra refined end whereas nonetheless permitting for air flow, equipment clearance and day-to-day consolation. They’re notably standard in bespoke kitchens the place each element is designed to really feel intentional.
Customary kickbacks are sometimes round 150mm excessive, although bespoke makers usually cut back this for a sleeker end. Tim Higham, for examples, says that his staff normally makes them a lot decrease, at round 70mm, because it creates a extra refined look with out sacrificing practicality.
An alternative choice is selecting a flush, kitchen-specific plinth relatively than normal skirting board. Designed for kitchen situations however completed to match the cabinetry, this strategy delivers that furniture-style look – with out worrying about moisture, warping or awkward equipment entry.
And eventually, matching the color and end of a kitchen plinth to your cabinetry or close by joinery helps the kitchen really feel extra cohesive and avoids the plinth line changing into a visible distraction.
Should you’re eager to get began in your kitchen renovation, figuring out what not to do is simply as vital as figuring out what to do.So, it’s value attending to grips with these widespread kitchen design errors earlier than you begin planning.
