The kitchen is the heart of the home, or so they say. Whether you’re a MasterChef-level cook or microwave meals are the best you can do, you’ll want to make sure your kitchen looks as smart as the rest of your home. If you’re unsure of how to achieve an open-concept kitchen in your HDB flat, we’ve rounded up some of the chio-est that we spotted on the web to give you some inspo.
1. Minimalist Japandi
Image credit: The Local INN.terior
Strip lighting, curved edges and warm neutrals make this open-concept kitchen one for the Pinterest boards━especially if you’re going for that minimalist Japandi look. Other than the kitchen island, which sits squarely in the middle of the space, everything else is flush against the walls, with half-height and overhead cabinetry, as well as concealed doors and kitchen counter space.
Image credit: The Local INN.terior
Space is maximised through a recessed countertop that allows for the placement of a sink, plus allowance for a full-height door to swing outwards. By positioning the stovetop on the kitchen island, the entire island table top gives you ample space for prep work; exposed shelving on both ends of the pill-shaped island makes it visually less obstructing in the room.
One thing to note, however, is that unless you install a cooktop with an integrated ventilation module, or a portable kitchen hood, this open-concept kitchen would not be very compatible with heavy duty cooking.
2. Modern minimalist
Image credit: Space Atelier
For a more modern look, this second open-concept HDB kitchen by Space Atelier adopts darker wood tones against clean white, making use of the flat’s breadth to create an extra long kitchen island with an embedded sink, positioned across from the stove top, and the fridge forming the last corner of this kitchen triangle for maximum efficiency when cooking. Strip lighting illuminates the overhang of the island countertop where it faces the dining area for a classy finish, while electrical outlets grant the homeowners an added convenience━think portable induction stove tops for hotpot nights.
Image credit: Space Atelier
Designed with the same wood finish as the rest of the entrance foyer and living room, with strip lighting under the cabinets adding a warm glow, this open-concept kitchen is seamlessly integrated into the rest of the living area in this flat.
3. Dark contemporary
Image adapted from: Jialux Interior
Moving on yet again, we have a dark contemporary open-concept kitchen that’s sure to set your heart aflutter━if the modern luxe vibe is what you’re after. Lighting up the kitchen island is a mid-century modern multi-globe pendant light with brass hardware, complementing ultra dark wood, as well as white marble-esque countertop and backsplashes.
Instead of using the same dark wood throughout the kitchen, the overhead cabinets are fronted with black glass for subtle contrast.
4. Scandi-style open-concept dry kitchen
Image credit: @intr.studio
Oat shades and pale wood are the bedrock of this Scandinavian-style open-concept dry kitchen in a resale HDB flat. Instead of the usual sintered stone or quartz countertops, a Onewood top was installed━the homogenous reconstituted timber (HRT) is eco-friendly, sustainable, durable, and water resistant.
The mosaic tiles with white grouting that form the base of this large kitchen island match the wall behind the display shelf, breaking the visual monotony of the space without being too jarring.
5. Dark Scandinavian farmhouse
Image credit: @intr.studio
The Scandi style isn’t limited only to light teak and cheerful IKEA-style finishings, as this dark Scandinavian farmhouse kitchen proves. Dark wood and white are the predominant colours of this kitchen, with a tall wine fridge fronted with a matching wooden door.
White kit-kat mosaic tiles form the base of the kitchen island, with a matching wall behind the sink. These tiles, coupled with the floating shelf running above the countertop and arched fluted glass of the service yard door, lend the space a rustic, farmhouse vibe. A pair of Library pendants add a classy touch that ties the design together.
6. Concrete monochromatic grey
Image credit: @ethereall_
Standing in stark contrast to the other open-concept HDB kitchens that we’ve featured on this list thus far is this very dark, concrete-and-wood kitchen that celebrates greys and blacks. They’ve opened up the long kitchen to run parallel to the dining area with its long, narrow concrete table, and matched the dark wooden chairs to a grey and brown grunge backsplash.
Image credit: @ethereall_
Floating black shelves running above the kitchen sink prevent an excess of black cabinetry, which might make the space appear smaller than it is. They’ve also designed it such that the kitchen island is against the wall right next to the service yard entrance so it appears more organic, while running parallel to the kitchen and dining table, making the whole space feel much longer. In pairing black chairs with the black kitchen island, it blends into the space, allowing the dining table to take centrestage.
7. Quirky minimalist
On the other end of the colour spectrum is this quirky open-concept kitchen with pops of colour, found inside a yellow-themed HDB flat that belongs to 2 artists. It’s minimalist yet vibrant and full of energy, thanks to additions such as the red pendant lamp, yellow arch in the corner of the wall, and checkerboard base of the kitchen island.
Greenery, a pair of chairs in different colours at the kitchen island, and assorted colourful knick knacks add character and personality to the kitchen, offset by the white and light teak that make up the rest of the room.
Although this open-concept kitchen follows the L-shape of the flat, it must be said that the kitchen island serves to connect the other living areas to the kitchen, taking away the need for a partition wall or doorway.
8. All-white Shaker-style kitchen
Image adapted from: @ethereall_
Featuring a similar L-shaped open-concept kitchen is this entirely white, country-style kitchen. Again, the kitchen island helps to transition from the kitchen to the rest of the home without the need for doors or walls, even though the distinction is clearly delineated by the patterned tiles of the kitchen area.
Shaker-style white cabinets with brushed gold handles form most of the woodwork in the kitchen, while the top shelves are glass-fronted, allowing the homeowners to display their collection of glassware, while adding extra brightness to the room.
9. Sleek & modern with pops of colour
Image credit: @donn.interior
Perhaps minimalist with pops of colour is not edgy enough for you━if so, consider instead this modern open-concept kitchen. A kitchen island in cement screed, with ventilation blocks featuring cut-outs of alternating circles and squares, takes centrestage here.
A bolder take on checkerboards sees the black and white in large format tiles on the floor━the perfect accompaniment to the striking orange and cobalt bar stools, and orange pendant light. Semi-glossy, textured black square tiles break up the smoothness of the other elements in this kitchen, while floating metal shelves allow the homeowners to add more colour to the space in the form of prints and other decor.
10. Elegant farmhouse with sage green and white
Image credit: @ethereall_
We’re back with yet another farmhouse-style, open-concept kitchen by interior design company Ethereall. This elegant design combines the rustic farmhouse look with modern sensibilities, with clean lines and homey accents of sage green and oak.
There are the Shaker-style cabinets with gold knobs, glass door contrast pieces, and chic white floor tiles with black details which add subtle touches of colour. A glossy white marble tabletop on the kitchen island, with the white ball pendant lamps above, lend a modern touch to this kitchen.
11. Wood-themed dry kitchen
Image credit: @fifthavenueinterior
If you have the space for it, have an open-concept dry kitchen, followed by an enclosed wet kitchen. This way, the dry kitchen becomes a part of the extended home, where you can still do your food prep and the like, or entertain guests while adding the finishing touches to your meals. It’s not to say that you can’t cook here either, because the ID added an induction stovetop on the counter for light cooking too.
Extra storage space in this dry kitchen comes in the form of a small kitchen island with drawers beneath, plus extra tabletop space with a staggered height to the main dining table. Rather than being flush across the wall, the cupboards have also been built with 2 different depths, which gives the room the illusion of having extra space.
12. Jumbo kitchen island as focal point
The sides of the island have wooden veneers that match the parquet flooring of the living area.
Image credit: @puromuro.studio
There’s big kitchens, and then there’s big kitchens, such as this massive open-concept kitchen found in a Marsiling Road jumbo HDB flat. The humongous kitchen island with its asymmetrical, angled shape is the centrepiece of the spacious unit━a gathering spot for the homeowners and their friends and family.
Image credit: @puromuro.studio
They’ve built the island around a structural pillar, yet it’s been integrated into the island with the use of white tiles and brown grouting to match the rest of the home. Overhangs allow them to add bar stools, while the space below the tabletop houses a dishwasher and additional storage space.
Swivelling panels of fluted glass separate the kitchen and service yard.
Image credit: @puromuro.studio
13. Yin & yang statement kitchen
Image credit: @keyconcept.sg
Celebrate the multifaceted sides of your personality with a yin-yang kitchen like this design by Key Concepts. Keep one side for your dry activities, which in this case is the white half that houses the barista corner, oven and microwave━keeping things calm for your morning cuppa as you prepare for the day ahead. The other half, done up in vibrant burnt orange, is where you’ll find the stove and sink━the colour representative of the bustle and life that goes into cooking.
You may not necessarily choose the same colours, but it’s a great way to demarcate the dry and wet areas of your kitchen, or simply to make a statement in style.
14. Sandy neutral Kinfolk aesthetics
Image credit: @lemonfridgestudio
For those who love the Kinfolk aesthetic, take inspiration from the open-concept kitchen in this 5-room HDB flat. Subtle fluted panels form the base of the kitchen island, whose travertine marble top is echoed in the kitchen backsplash. All this texture is complemented by the matte sand-hued veneers on the cabinetry, designed without handles for a sleek, minimalist finish.
The kitchen island connects to the dining table, creating a seamless transition into the living spaces.
Image credit: @lemonfridgestudio
Best open-concept kitchens in HDB flats
You don’t need a massive house or condo to own your dream kitchen, and these open-concept HDB kitchens are proof of that. The sky’s the limit when it comes to creatively transforming your HDB flat, and open-concept kitchens are a good way to create the illusion of having more space than you actually have.
For more HDB reno inspo:
Cover image adapted from: @ethereall_, @keyconcept.sg, @donn.interior
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