![]() ![]() Chrome, black leather, and high-tech appliances came to center stage in the loft-style postmodern kitchens of the ’80s and ’90s. The whimsy and personality of the ’70s stepped aside for the sultry texture of reflective brushed steel, the presence and gravitas of a big French door refrigerator with a bottom-drawer freezer, and kitchen accessories that imbue the sensual lines of Italian design, like track lighting affixed to the ceiling. “I love the look of a kitchen that appears like it’s owned by a professional chef who took a bunch of the stainless steel work tables home from work and turned them into home setup. “So when we talk about industrial or ‘high-tech’ design, there’s a ton of chrome/shine/stainless steel involved,” says Rock Herzog, the interior designer behind Cocaine Decor. Lucky homeowners might find that some of these relics are still alive in their kitchens: brown built-in wall ovens like the Hotpoint’s Coppertone collection, Frigidaire stoves in (you guessed it) avocado green-and GE refrigerators in that sunny harvest gold. The dominating color scheme of the ’70s was inarguably a muted rainbow of earthy colors, but even in their subdued tones, they still popped amongst the wood-paneled walls and matching cupboards. “I feel like kitchens really reflected their homeowners’ personalities back then, and I think we can all agree that the ’70s might be regarded as the most wonderfully garish decade of all,” says Elrod, the artist and design enthusiast behind Mexakitsch. In culinary terms, kitschy kitchens of the ’70s were the embodiment of a delicious casserole: warm and comforting, without any pretensions. Instead, the kitchen was a place to relax with friends, drinking Tab, and listening to Three Dog Night playing from an 8-track. Homeowners did away with the focus on appliances and technological innovations in the 1970s. Photo: Frederic Lewis/Getty Images 1970s: Over-the-top kitsch The color story in this kitchen is pink, blue, purple, and lime green. And that’s when I really started to see the kitchen as more than just a place to microwave a cup of mac and cheese–it’s the heart of the home. After I left that apartment, I made it a priority to find a place where I could really embrace the idea of making my own food. Little did I know that living without easy access to a kitchen-even if it’s just a place to make your coffee and zone out in the morning-is a huge bummer. Since I didn’t really cook much anyway, I initially dismissed the omission. I learned that the hard way when I lived in an apartment without a dedicated kitchen. In the past century, kitchen design trends have swung back and forth on the pendulum between “fun and funky” and “sleek and restrained.” From the sterile white porcelains of the ’20s to the macramé plant hangers of the ’70s, the kitchen was a physical representation of the American psyche: a gathering place, somewhere to enjoy your family and feel a sense of belonging and comfort. ![]() One of the most prominent places to see the shift in attitudes, both socially and design-wise, has been through the lens of the domestic kitchen. ![]()
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