Exploring the Concept of a Wellness Kitchen
I truly see the kitchen as the heart of the home. It's a place for us to gather as family and friends, but also can be viewed as a sacred space where we nourish our bodies. How you feel in a space determines how you use it. While those pursuing healthy, fulfilling lives have always cared about the source and sustainability of their food, only recently have many begun to ask: Why don’t we hold our kitchen to the same standards of wellness as the food we keep in it?
This brings us to the concept of a Wellness Kitchen, a concept that transforms the most popular room in our home into a better reflection of ourselves. These kitchens use design and technology to foster a healthier lifestyle for our bodies, our minds, and the planet.
Who is the Wellness Kitchen for?
The wellness kitchen is typically crafted for those who are fitness-minded, health-conscious, and sustainability-oriented. With wellness all-around within the home, you can turn your best intentions into positive actions. Imagine the concept that you can sleep, breathe and eat your way to a healthier life!
Environmentalism impacts our everyday life, routines, and choices.
Easier access to environmental information has influenced the kinds of materials and products consumers are choosing for their homes, and in recent years this has conveyed into choices that the sustainably-minded are making for their kitchens.
There are many elements of A Wellness Kitchen, and they are ever-evolving.
Here are a few that I am currently most interested in, and the reasons why:
Display and storage: Making healthy choices more accessible
I have always been a proponent for open shelving, primary for accessibility -- but the reasons to display our food in a more visible manner has a deeper meaning in a Wellness Kitchen.
Eating and digestion begin with the eyes. Visible food storage for vegetables and herbs is designed to help us regulate proportions. All of us need more options for climate-controlled storage of fresh foods with a range of temperatures and humidity levels that keep food well organized, and also visually tempting. Refrigeration in the ideal Wellness Kitchen feature, glass doors and shallow shelves for easy visibility, multiple compartments for optimal preservation, and sometimes -- even hidden refrigeration compressors to cut down on noise pollution.
"Have nothing in your houses that you do not know
to be useful or believe to be beautiful"
Mindful Minimalism: Make Space
At the core of my design approach, I ascribe to this quote by designer William Morris: "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” The same goes for your kitchen, and simplifying by paring down your belongings goes a long way.
Decluttering is therapeutic, and truly a healthy form of self-care. As an easy way to move toward a Wellness Kitchen, create an intentional space for every kitchen tool and gadget, and by doing so, remove all the items you do not use. In the kitchen of the future, cupboards, and shelves packed with barely used, bulky appliances are being replaced with bowls of organic fruit, drawers of fresh vegetables, and natural ingredients for easy-to-prepare meals.
Let's Gather Around: Design for Socializing
Imagine your kitchen as a space designed to gather and nourish family and friends, with multiple workstations (for working together on cooking or small gardening projects) coupled with purposeful seating areas. In the new Wellness Kitchen, these ideas take center stage.
More thought is given to seating and prep spaces and how they can be organized for the easy flow of both people and conversation. The addition of adjustable surfaces allows people of different heights and abilities to work and socialize together.
Another way to keep sustainability in mind in a place meant to socialize is with a Soda Steamer, which produces sparkling water without purchasing cans and bottles -- saving space and the environment. Water jugs placed on the counter with cucumbers or fruits is a great way to easily access naturally flavored water and a friendly reminder to stay hydrated.
Keeping our Planet in Mind: Recycling and Composting
Disposing of food waste in a responsible and environmentally friendly manner is a key issue for those pursuing more sustainable lives. Food waste in the garbage creates odors and attracts pests. It also means collection has to be more frequent.
A smart trash system allows for composting and recycling that takes place right in the kitchen. It also eliminates the garbage day smell and has fewer trucks driving around - a win/win for your home and the community.
Home Grown Goodness: Easy ways to Bring Elements of Gardening into the Home
In a Wellness environment, fresh food is harvested from in-house gardens. If you have the space, I love the concept of a hydroponic kitchen garden. Not only is it a health-forward choice providing the tastiest produce, but it can also offer a way for families to feel like they are growing their food together, making meals more meaningful.
If you are interested in creating a wellness kitchen in your home, contact me at kelly@kellymarieinterirodesign.com.