‘Rock the Block’ Season Premiere Unveils 3 Kitchen Trends So New, You Didn’t Realize They Were a Thing
HGTV
Season 4 of designer showdown “Rock the Block” promises to be bigger and better than ever.
This time, four prominent HGTV designer teams spend $250,000 apiece over six weeks renovating four identical 5,000-square-foot houses in Berthoud, CO. The size of the homes and their budgets supersede all that’s come before, and the team that adds the most appraised value to their home wins.
Ty Pennington returns as show host, and this year’s teams include Bryan and Sarah Baeumler of “Renovation Island,” Michel Smith Boyd and Anthony Elle from “Luxe for Less,” Jonathan Knight and Kristina Crestin from “Farmhouse Fixer,” and Page Turner and Mitch Glew from “Fix My Flip.”
The first episode, titled “Kitchen Face-Off,” has the designers working on (you guessed it) the kitchens, as well as the dining areas, pantries, and mudrooms, plus the adjacent study and powder room, if they choose. Dave and Jenny Marrs of “Fixer to Fabulous” step in to judge this week’s efforts.
As usual, the winners will get their names on the street sign, while proceeds from these sales will provide up to 100,000 meals to the nonprofit Turn Up to Fight Hunger through No Kid Hungry.
As the designers work feverishly, they come up with some cutting-edge kitchen ideas that might inspire a few changes around the heart of your own home, too.
Hot trend No. 1: Stove coves are a ‘movement’
Kitchen with a stove coveHGTV
As Knight and Crestin observe their massive kitchen and dining space, Crestin gets an idea.
“I know that stove coves are basically a movement,” she tells Knight. “You like them, right?”
“I love a good stove cove,” he replies.
So what is a stove cove?
“A stove cove is basically a stove set into a wall,” Crestin explains. It’s like an alcove for the stove. While this might not seem like a big thing, the judges do seem to love it, so it’s quite clear that this team is already off to a great start!
Porcelain counters save money
Porcelain countertopsHGTV
Smith Boyd and Elle consider the basic island that comes with the house and think about how to take it to the next level.
“We could do something like having porcelain as opposed to natural stone, and that could save us a lot of money,” Smith Boyd suggests.
“While other teams are spending likely $10,000 on their countertops, we’re spending half that,” says Smith Boyd.
They save a total of $4,500 by using porcelain rather than marble.
“And in my opinion, it looks just as elegant,” Smith Boyd concludes.
The judges agree. As they gush over the countertops and learn the budget-friendly material they’re made from, Jenny admits, “I would never know this was porcelain. It’s beautiful.”
Hot trend No. 2: Why stop at one island when you can have two?
The Baeumlers’ kitchen with double islandsHGTV
Big kitchens leave a lot of space to fill, and two teams realize that today’s luxury homebuyers are interested in not just one island, but two.
“We’re going to make this an entertainer’s dream home,” says Turner. “And what better way to entertain than having two islands?”
“That’s exactly what they want,” says Bryan. “You’ll have the prep island, then you can serve on the other one.”
He and his wife, Sarah, decide to change the orientation of the kitchen so that both islands look out through the dining area to the mountains beyond.
The judges are impressed by that move and the islands in general.
“I love the double islands,” says Jenny. “I think that’s so smart.”
Hot trend No. 3: For that matter, is one kitchen even enough?
Kristina Crestin and Jonathan Knight’s prep kitchenHGTV
The proverbial prep kitchen, located behind the main family kitchen, is also a desired feature in today’s luxury home. Two teams decide to go with this hot trend.
Crestin calls it a “back of the house” kitchen.
“We chose not to make that other room behind the kitchen like a den or a bedroom,” she says. “To us, it makes sense and would add a lot more value to make it a back-of-the-house kitchen. I think the value of a second kitchen in a house this big will really be rewarded in the final appraisal.”
Turner and Glew agree, as they use the powder room and pantry space to create a prep kitchen.
“All the dirty dishes just go right back into your second prep kitchen,” says Turner. She’s added a dishwasher to her prep kitchen, and the judges love that. In fact, they dock Crestin and Knight points for not having a second dishwasher in the prep kitchen.
Add pet features to the mudroom
Dog feeding station in the mudroomHGTV
We (and the judges) are in love with the concept of a dog feeding station and/or a dog bathing area in the mudroom entry from the garage.
“Come in from the garage, drop your stuff, feed the dog,” says Knight.
His dog feeding station even has a filler spigot over the water bowl. Brilliant! The first thing dogs do when they come in from a walk is usually take a big, sloppy drink, and this way they don’t splash water all around them.
Turner and Glew also add an elegant dog wash to their mudroom, so the dirt the dogs drag in on their feet goes no farther than the mudroom.
“This little doggy wash is really smart,” says Jenny.
Elegant dog washing station in the mud roomHGTV
Who wins this week’s ‘Rock the Block’?
When all is done, dusted, and judged, Pennington explains that the winning team gets a thousand-dollar cash bonus to spend on their next project.
“We had to narrow it down to who had the best second kitchen,” says Dave, tipping his hand that the winners would be either Turner and Glew or Knight and Crestin.
And the win goes to Knight and Crestin, because their second kitchen is bigger and more practical and has a beautiful mountain vibe. Clearly, in this round of “Rock the Block,” these teams will need to go big or go home.
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