The New Year is in full swing which means it’s the perfect time for a little bit of home transformation! If you’re considering giving your kitchen a facelift then why not take inspiration from this year’s most coveted trends and pick kitchen cupboard doors, splashbacks, work surfaces and furniture in some of 2014’s hottest materials.

Wonderful Wood
Wood is a classic material for kitchen cupboard doors, work surfaces and furniture, but you can incorporate this beautiful and durable material and choose something that will really stand out from the usual oak and pine. For a more unique look pick a less used wood like mahogany, mango or ash. Alternatively opt for painted wood. Distressed effect wood is very much de rigeur but it’s a far cry from the patches and splotches of the 90s. To create a fabulous aged effect, choose unfinished wooden doors and paint them in a base coat of your chosen colour. Then paint on another layer in a contrasting colour. Leave to dry and sand with coarse sand paper in the areas where natural wear and tear would occur. Once you’re satisfied you can seal your doors with varnish. The beauty of using this effect is that you can pick any colours you like, so your doors can look chic and subtle in muted tones or add bags of fun and character with bright and bold clashing hues.

Glorious Glass
Glass is a very versatile material that can be used in any area of your kitchen. One way to give your space an instant new look and add a modern touch is to fit a coloured glass splashback to replace your traditional tiles. You can find glass splashbacks in a myriad of different colours or even opt for a multi-coloured splashback made from recycled bottles. Glass furniture allows the eye to see whatever is behind it which has the effect of making the space look larger and allowing more light to circulate. If you want to take this theory to the nth degree then choose moulded Perspex dining furniture that’s completely clear and add a pop of colour with some fun table mats.

Marvellous Metal
Metals such as chrome and brushed steel have been popular in kitchen for many years but this year the hottest metallic trend in the heart of the home is copper. You can incorporate copper on your kitchen cupboard doors or pick copper kitchen accessories if your budget is limited. or if you’ve got plenty of cash to splash then forget the wallpaper and create an incredible feature with a copper wall. You can achieve the effect using copper sheeting, or you can cheat by cutting a piece of MDF to size, spraying it with car paint and mounting it to your wall – but make sure you spray outside or in a very well-ventilated area and wear a face mask. Alternatively, you can give tired and out of fashion ‘brown furniture’ a new lease of life by painting them in metallic tones.