Kitchen Design
5 Striking Kitchens With Industrial-Inspired Style
Exposed bricks and beams, factory pieces, mixed metals and reclaimed wood give these rooms distinctive character
“Industrial” embraces a wide range of styles — it can mean taking inspiration from a rugged 18th-century warehouse or adding modern-day factory accents to a polished space, going rusty and crusty or super-sleek, exposing old brick walls or cladding new ones in floor-to-ceiling subway tile. Here are five diverse takes on industrial style in the kitchen, each with its own personality and mix of industrial elements. Take a look and see if any of them offer you industrial-strength inspiration.
Industrial elements:
Designer tip: Make it easy for people to grab drinks while staying out of the main work area by placing a fridge and glassware outside of it.
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- Exposed brick walls
- New divided-light bronze windows that resemble old iron factory windows
- Exposed rafters
- Original copper air vent pipe exposed along the backsplash
- Rolling ladder to access high cabinets
- Cable track lights
- Stainless steel French door oven
- 5-inch natural walnut plank floors chosen for their resemblance to the original pine floors.
Designer tip: Make it easy for people to grab drinks while staying out of the main work area by placing a fridge and glassware outside of it.
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2. Warm and Unfussy Industrial in New Hampshire
Designer: Heather Alton of New England Design Elements
Location: Windham, New Hampshire
Size: 280 square feet (26 square meters)
Renovation goals: An easy flow for the homeowner and her young daughter to have fun working in the kitchen together. An uncluttered room with warm industrial style.
Style inspiration: In her first attempt to update the room, the homeowner had replaced an existing light with the metal drum pendant seen here, which clued designer Heather Alton into her client’s penchant for unfussy and warm industrial style. Also, the coffee-pantry station seen here had been a coat closet, and upon discovering the closet empty and unused, Alton knew she could put it to better use. It now has an extensive coffee bar and charging station and houses all the homeowner’s small appliances, including the microwave. This keeps the main countertops pleasingly uncluttered, just the way the homeowner likes them.
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Designer: Heather Alton of New England Design Elements
Location: Windham, New Hampshire
Size: 280 square feet (26 square meters)
Renovation goals: An easy flow for the homeowner and her young daughter to have fun working in the kitchen together. An uncluttered room with warm industrial style.
Style inspiration: In her first attempt to update the room, the homeowner had replaced an existing light with the metal drum pendant seen here, which clued designer Heather Alton into her client’s penchant for unfussy and warm industrial style. Also, the coffee-pantry station seen here had been a coat closet, and upon discovering the closet empty and unused, Alton knew she could put it to better use. It now has an extensive coffee bar and charging station and houses all the homeowner’s small appliances, including the microwave. This keeps the main countertops pleasingly uncluttered, just the way the homeowner likes them.
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Industrial elements:
Designer tip: Use large-scale tiles to cut down on visual clutter. “Because of the vastness of the room and the ceiling height, smaller tiles would have felt too busy and competed with other elements in the room too much,” Alton says.
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- Salvaged wood
- Floor tile that looks like concrete
- Metal accents, including cast-iron plumbing pipes
- Open shelves hung by turnbuckles and cables
- Studded detailing around the island
- Copper-colored vent hood
- Oversize subway tile
Designer tip: Use large-scale tiles to cut down on visual clutter. “Because of the vastness of the room and the ceiling height, smaller tiles would have felt too busy and competed with other elements in the room too much,” Alton says.
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3. French Patisserie Meets Polished Industrial in New Jersey
Designer: Alison Griffin of Griffin Designs
Location: Bernardsville, New Jersey
Size: 452 square feet (42 square meters)
Renovation goals: While this homeowner had a great sense of style, she needed help fixing the kitchen’s awkward layout to flow better and accommodate the way her family functions there. She wanted to lighten and brighten up the space and incorporate graphic industrial touches.
Style inspiration: “My client had a strong vision of the look she wanted: French patisserie-inspired style with subway-tiled walls, bright white cabinets, some open shelving and accents of black and metal,” kitchen and bath designer Alison Griffin says. The homeowner also had a love of chalkboard paint, especially to foster her young boys’ creativity, and she wasn’t a fan of upper cabinets.
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Designer: Alison Griffin of Griffin Designs
Location: Bernardsville, New Jersey
Size: 452 square feet (42 square meters)
Renovation goals: While this homeowner had a great sense of style, she needed help fixing the kitchen’s awkward layout to flow better and accommodate the way her family functions there. She wanted to lighten and brighten up the space and incorporate graphic industrial touches.
Style inspiration: “My client had a strong vision of the look she wanted: French patisserie-inspired style with subway-tiled walls, bright white cabinets, some open shelving and accents of black and metal,” kitchen and bath designer Alison Griffin says. The homeowner also had a love of chalkboard paint, especially to foster her young boys’ creativity, and she wasn’t a fan of upper cabinets.
Browse black pendant lights in the Houzz Shop
Industrial elements:
Designer tip: The existing windows provide beautiful views to the backyard. “My clients had felt so closed in before that we wanted to let the window breathe,” Griffin says. “This meant tiling the entire wall and adding sconces rather than adding upper cabinets here.” Window frames and muntins painted black play off other black elements in the room and provide contrast to the bright white.
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Check out more photos of kitchens with sliding barn doors
- Vintage factory-inspired stools
- Industrial-style pendant lights
- Sliding barn door with a black metal track
- Silver metal on the door, vent hood straps and tile edges
- Refrigerator with a commercial kitchen look
Designer tip: The existing windows provide beautiful views to the backyard. “My clients had felt so closed in before that we wanted to let the window breathe,” Griffin says. “This meant tiling the entire wall and adding sconces rather than adding upper cabinets here.” Window frames and muntins painted black play off other black elements in the room and provide contrast to the bright white.
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Check out more photos of kitchens with sliding barn doors
4. Historic-Eclectic Industrial in St. Louis
Designer: Jennifer Chapman Designs
Location: St. Louis
Size: 215 square feet (20 square meters)
Renovation goals: Create a relaxed hub for family and friends. Redo the layout to flow better for the family and work well with the adjacent living room space.
Style inspiration: Interior designer Jennifer Chapman took her design cues from this 120-year-old home when completing the down-to-the-studs renovation. There was no way she was going to cover up the beautiful old exposed brick walls. “My clients were drawn to an eclectic, relaxed style. They did not want the design to feel too formal or designed,” she says. The result is a warm vintage-industrial style (think 100-year-old brick warehouse).
Designer: Jennifer Chapman Designs
Location: St. Louis
Size: 215 square feet (20 square meters)
Renovation goals: Create a relaxed hub for family and friends. Redo the layout to flow better for the family and work well with the adjacent living room space.
Style inspiration: Interior designer Jennifer Chapman took her design cues from this 120-year-old home when completing the down-to-the-studs renovation. There was no way she was going to cover up the beautiful old exposed brick walls. “My clients were drawn to an eclectic, relaxed style. They did not want the design to feel too formal or designed,” she says. The result is a warm vintage-industrial style (think 100-year-old brick warehouse).
Industrial elements:
Designer tip: Pendant lights over an island or peninsula are not a requirement. If you want a clear, uncluttered view through the kitchen, skip them. In this room, the clients wanted an unbroken view through to the focal point provided by the vent hood and surrounding shelves.
Learn more about this kitchen
- Exposed antique brick walls
- Stainless steel on the appliances, vent hood and island top
- Open reclaimed-wood shelves
- Streamlined faucet
- Wood floors
Designer tip: Pendant lights over an island or peninsula are not a requirement. If you want a clear, uncluttered view through the kitchen, skip them. In this room, the clients wanted an unbroken view through to the focal point provided by the vent hood and surrounding shelves.
Learn more about this kitchen
5. Fashionable Industrial Style in a Former Women’s Clothing Warehouse in Barcelona
Designer: Architect Felipe Araujo of Egue y Seta
Location: Barcelona, Spain
Size: 336 square feet (31 square meters)
Renovation goals: Maintain the original spirit of the former warehouse. Integrate entertaining and work space in a way that was spacious, stylish and practical by mixing industrial and chic contemporary elements.
Style inspiration: The space used to be a warehouse for a women’s clothing store. Architect Felipe Araujo restored its vaulted ceilings and wooden beams, door frames and moldings. A Spanish-made geometric cement floor tile anchors the room in graphic black, white and gray. The choice was inspired by the original concrete floors.
Designer: Architect Felipe Araujo of Egue y Seta
Location: Barcelona, Spain
Size: 336 square feet (31 square meters)
Renovation goals: Maintain the original spirit of the former warehouse. Integrate entertaining and work space in a way that was spacious, stylish and practical by mixing industrial and chic contemporary elements.
Style inspiration: The space used to be a warehouse for a women’s clothing store. Architect Felipe Araujo restored its vaulted ceilings and wooden beams, door frames and moldings. A Spanish-made geometric cement floor tile anchors the room in graphic black, white and gray. The choice was inspired by the original concrete floors.
Industrial elements:
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- High ceilings with original wood beams
- Large, open, warehouse-like feel
- Reclaimed-wood cabinets
- Erector Set-like open metal shelving
- Exposed ductwork
- Track lighting
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Designer: Fred Alsen of FMA Interior Design
Location: Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago
Size: 201 square feet (19 square meters)
Renovation goals: Highlight and complement the amazing original bones of this old Chicago building that had once served as a banjo factory. Create an easy flow and give each of the three family members their own prep and cook stations.
Style inspiration: The original exposed brick walls, wood posts and beams and 13-foot-high ceilings were a great jumping-off point. Most of the new finishes were inspired by the original materials.
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