As in domestic realities, residents of Japan often have to be content with small dwellings, so traditional interior design and minimalism style are widespread. Japanese-style cuisine (photo of interiors below) requires the balance of all details. Only then will the design really be cozy and functional in Japanese.
Characteristic features of the style
The Japanese style in the interior of the kitchen is not a wallpaper with sakura branches, a photo with girls in a kimono and a lamp with hieroglyphs, but a thoughtful and full-fledged interior in which every single detail is important. It is important to observe minimalism: close household appliances with opaque doors, abandon ruffles on curtains and massive furniture, buy a smooth hob.
It is worth giving preference to natural materials and fabrics, stone and glass. Repairing a Japanese-style kitchen involves straight lines with a minimum of rounding. Soft pillows that can be placed on chairs and soft diffused light will perfectly complement the interior. It is allowed to combine different lamps so that the lighting of each zone is individual, but it is better to abandon the cold spectrum.
The Japanese style in the interior of the kitchen is simplicity and convenience. The kitchen set and the entire interior should be as functional as possible, and it is better to leave more free space in the room itself. All elements must be harmoniously combined with each other. The fact is that cooking for the Japanese is not a banal daily process, but a whole ritual that ensures the harmony of body and soul.
Wabi and sabi
Two complementary elements form the basis of the aesthetic worldview of the Japanese. Wabi and sabi personify the beauty of everything imperfect. When creating a Japanese style in an apartment, the entire interior design must obey these concepts. Wabi is simplicity, modesty, inner harmony. Sabi - beauty, carried through the centuries, which reflects the fleetingness of everything that surrounds a person in life, humility. An ideal living space can be created only by understanding the essence of harmony in Japanese. In order to bring the true spirit of Asia to your apartment, you need to carefully consider all the details.
Color palette
The small Japanese-style kitchen is a bright and spacious room, functional, with ample storage space, which is especially good for small-sized Russian apartments. Japanese philosophy is based on unity with nature in harmony, therefore, in the design of interiors there are usually the colors of the earth (sand, light brown, beige), sky (white, pearl gray and light blue) and water (deep blue and turquoise). The main symbol of harmony is a black and white sign of the interaction of male and female principles.
Very carefully, you need to use cornflower and purple shades in the interior. This is the color of thinkers and philosophers, but the shade affects the human psyche extremely negatively. Correctly combining this noble shade in the interior is quite difficult. From the pink-lilac range, only a neat combination of delicate pink (sakura color) with black is suitable. The elements of fire correspond to red, but for the design of a kitchen in the Japanese style (photos confirm this) it is better to use it as an accent, no more. It is enough to put a decorative figure of a red dragon on one of the shelves or hang a spectacular amulet.
Black color in the interior of the kitchen in the Japanese style is used selectively for printing on paper, fabric or wood. Do not overdo it with a beige-brown gamut (especially with yellow and orange, which are allowed only in limited quantities). Green is great for such a design, but it is better to choose muted shades, for example, coniferous, olive, pale lime, green tea. These colors combine perfectly with black and brown.
It is good to combine colors within the milk coffee and caramel range. The Japanese-style kitchen looks impressive, designed in the main color of ivory and light oak in combination with dark furniture. A kitchen apron is usually made of ceramic tiles - this is a convenient and stylish solution that has been tested for decades. The most common shades are white, which is suitable for any interior, neutral beige, Japanese or green or blue are acceptable.
Materials for wall decoration
Photos of the Japanese-style kitchen confirm that in the design of such rooms are usually used natural finishing materials or their artificial counterparts, the most appropriate natural options in appearance. Bamboo wallpapers imitating natural panels will look spectacular. Wallpaper can be replaced with plastic.
Well suited for cladding the working area of the skin - glass panels. Such elements can be done by yourself by drawing hieroglyphs or sakura branches on the glass. Then the interior will definitely become individual and unique. The glass or mirror surfaces themselves not only look stylish, but also visually increase the area of the room.
In large kitchens, the relaxation area can be decorated with natural wood with stone inserts. You can choose Japanese-style murals for wall cladding. You can often wash them, which is an important detail for a room such as a kitchen. Decorative stucco is well suited for Japanese-style cuisine. Recently, glass aprons over plastered walls have become popular - this is a fresh trend that fits perfectly into the interior.
Floor and ceiling finishes
Japanese-style cuisine means clear lines, naturalness, practicality and functionality. Such trends should be observed in everything, so that the interior is harmonious and fully consistent with the style. For finishing the shelf, a laminate or linoleum imitating light wood, natural parquet of honey shades is suitable. In the working area, you can use natural stone or decorative tiles for sandstone, wild stone. It is undesirable to lay carpets, but an attractive path with a traditional Japanese pattern will definitely not spoil the overall picture.
As for the ceiling decoration, wooden beams or ceiling beams in the form of beams painted in beige and golden colors (imitation of natural wood) are often used. The same effect can be achieved if the ceiling is decorated with decorative plaster with alternating torn and flat surfaces in the form of strips painted in a darker color. The usual painting or wallpaper of neutral colors is acceptable - ivory, shades of coffee with milk, pastel turquoise.
Lighting and backlight
The Japanese-style kitchen-living room must have a main light source and several additional ones for individual zones. Lighting is best approximated to natural. Mandatory placement of additional lamps in the dining and working areas, recreation area. Ceiling, wall and floor lamps can be combined. In the dining area, stylized lights made of rice paper, glass or wood are often placed.
Japanese-style kitchen
The main emphasis in the interior of any kitchen is the set. This is a workspace that should be convenient, functional and, of course, stylish, consistent with the general idea. Both glossy and matte facades are suitable, but without panels (or better without handles, that is, with a push mechanism - this is not only stylish, but also very convenient). Frosted glass inserts are possible, but ideally there should be no plastic.
You can choose any shade of a tree, but for smaller rooms, light species are more suitable: milk oak, birch, light pear or apple tree, beech. For a spacious room, you can choose contrasting combinations with royal cedar, dark oak, cherry, ash or Locarno apple tree. The frame is suitable for wood or metal, the countertop should be thick and wide. In a small kitchen, a wooden worktop can be replaced with a glass one.
Household appliances in Japanese cuisine
Home appliances are welcome because Japan is a country of advanced technology. Only a dishwasher, oven and microwave is best hidden behind wooden facades. All equipment is better to choose the built-in, to avoid visual clutter of space.
Space layout
The requirements for the functionality of the space allow for a different arrangement of furniture: a direct kitchen, and a U-shaped or L-shaped, are suitable. These are standard options, but in large rooms it will be convenient to place an island or a peninsula - it all depends on the wishes of the owners. It is only necessary to observe the basic principles of planning - the symmetry of space, strict organization, proportionality. If the area is limited, it is better to replace the dining table with a wide bar counter.
All kitchen utensils and appliances must be hidden in cabinets. The Japanese style in the interior of the kitchen does not allow clutter of space. For the same reason, it is better to choose the doors for the headset not swing, but sliding. This saves space. Strict rules also require that the kitchen is always kept perfectly clean, even if you have to clean twice a day.
Studio zoning
You can separate the working area from the dining room (or from the living room, if you plan to make the interior of the studio in Japanese style) using a screen or a wooden partition, a sliding door made of wood and natural fabrics. Such decisions do not clutter up the territory and are economical in terms of cost. The only significant drawback is poor sound insulation.
The screen allows you to use the small space as useful as possible, refresh the design from time to time and get rid of the cost of erecting walls and partitions if you suddenly want to separate the kitchen and the living room in the studio. This traditional element of the Japanese-style kitchen greatly facilitates the space, so it is better to use screens in the interior.
Textiles & Accessories
The main requirement for a Japanese-style kitchen (with your own hands, that is, without the help of a designer, this can easily be realized) is minimalism, but not asceticism, so the presence of cute little things is allowed. Indoor flowers are quite consistent with the Japanese idea of naturalness, so do not rush to look for a new place for ficus. A flower pot can be placed on the windowsill. Those who want to adhere to the Japanese style in everything should buy a bonsai tree.
For an elegant figurine or a talisman in the Japanese-style kitchen, it is better to organize a niche in the wall. This solution visually expands the space, but do not be zealous. The choice of accessories is entirely a matter of taste. You can buy elegant porcelain, unusual ikebana or a bright fan.
It is not difficult to find curtains for Japanese-style kitchen on sale. You can choose silk, in harmony with the upholstery of furniture. But this material is not cheap, so to save money, you can design windows with bamboo folding blinds, which also look pretty stylish and cozy. Curtains should not cover the entire opening to the floor, their length optimally reaches the windowsill.