FRENCH PROVINCIAL VS HAMPTONS KITCHEN: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

When it comes to choosing a design for your new kitchen, the French provincial and Hamptons styles continue to be popular options. At first glance, it’s easy to see that these two themes share similarities – both have an elegant, sophisticated aesthetic and use natural materials and a neutral palette in their design. However, on closer inspection there are also a number of differences which set these two styles apart – let’s take a look!

French Provincial Kitchen

The French provincial kitchen epitomises French sophistication while also incorporating rustic touches for a country feel. With this style, the attention to detail is obvious, with intricate touches in the carved cabinetry, ornate hardware and decorative moulding. These delicate features are offset by sturdy furniture and natural textures. When it comes to styling, antique touches can be introduced in the form of interesting accessories and wooden furniture.

Like the Hamptons kitchen, you’ll often find wooden floorboards. Stone benchtops, such as marble, granite or engineered stone, offer an attractive and functional addition and add a touch of luxury to the space. Timber benchtops are also a popular choice in a French provincial kitchen, adding warmth to the space for a cosy, country feel. When it comes to colour scheme, it’s about keeping the palette neutral while also retaining an overall sense of warmth.

Hamptons Kitchen

The Hamptons-style kitchen is all about combining a sense of elegance with a relaxed, coastal vibe. With the Hamptons kitchen, there’s an emphasis on introducing natural light into the space and connecting the kitchen with the outdoor area if possible. The Hamptons kitchen is designed to create a welcoming space which is perfect for entertaining. Rather than ornate and rustic touches, the Hamptons style has more emphasis on clean lines, simple design and crisp colours.

As we’ve seen with the French provincial style, stone benchtops add a touch of elegance, and natural materials, particularly wooden floorboards, are widely used. However, rather than a focus on the antique look, it’s about using materials such as timber to create a relaxed, coastal feel.

Combining aspects of both

The exciting part about designing a new kitchen is that you don’t need to be a slave to a particular style. If you love the laidback feel of the Hamptons kitchen but are also drawn the rustic touches of the French provincial style, there’s nothing to say that you can’t combine aspects of both. To ensure that all elements work together, it’s best to speak to a professional kitchen designer to get the balance just right.

As Western Australia’s most awarded kitchen designer and manufacturer, the team at The Maker lead the industry when it comes to luxury, customised kitchens. Whether you interested in designing a Hamptons-style kitchen, or have another option in mind, our experienced designers will help you incorporate functional and aesthetic design trends to deliver the kitchen of your dreams.

For stunning kitchen design ideas, speak with The Maker today on 1300 270 000 and make an appointment to visit our showrooms.