Make space for more personal style

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Green, wood and character: things are getting adventurous when it comes to Ottawa kitchens and bathrooms, including entries for the 2024 NKBA Awards Show.

At the National Kitchen & Bath Association's (NKBA) Ottawa chapter's Design Excellence Awards held earlier this month, we saw a lot of colour (especially green), a more prominent use of wood (especially walnut) and an injection of personal style into well-used spaces.

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“It's about connecting with nature,” says chapter president and celebration chair Natalia Pierce. “People are still “I think our requirements for our homes are greater because we have a mixed workday. They need to perform better to meet our needs.”

But they also want kitchens to become more personal, says designer Benjamin John Ouellet of BJOID Inc., one of six industry experts from across the continent who judged submissions for this year's awards. That means incorporating more of the “fundamentals of living space” into kitchens.

“We're seeing wallpapers, curtains, rugs, patterns and textures that we've never seen before, and it was so cool to see that represented in these design awards.”

This year's awards received a record-high of just under 100 entries in 16 categories, ranging from classic and contemporary kitchens and bathrooms to best renovations, bonus rooms and achieving the look on a budget. Trophies were awarded to first and second place winners in most categories.

The awards ceremony took place on May 4 at a galactic-themed gala at the National Arts Centre, hosted by former CBC anchor Lucy van Oldenbarneveld, with just over 160 people in attendance. The theme was a reference to the date of the event informally known as Star Wars Day.

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“It didn't feel like a costume, partly because of the day,” Pierce says. “There was a lot of sparkle.”

Trophies were also awarded to the voted bathroom and kitchen. All kitchen and bathroom submissions were eligible for public voting over three weeks in March. For the second year in a row, the winner was a design by Vida Kiani of Kari Design & Build, who took runner-up in the bathroom category, while the voted kitchen category was won by Lavanya Devi Gurumoorthy of Deslaurier Custom Cabinets.

The final award went to Mark Smith, industry representative for cabinet and furniture hardware company Berenson, for his significant support of the association and the industry over the years. The award, called the Doris Lacroix Award, is named after Ottawa kitchen design pioneer Doris Lacroix and is given to an individual or company in the association who makes an exceptional effort to give back to the community.

“Mark is such a wonderful person,” Pierce said. “He was truly deserving of this award.”

Recurring themes

When asked about recurring design elements across the submissions, the judges noted:

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color: “We've seen some really interesting and fun color choices this year,” Ouellet says. We've seen blue, green, multiple colors in designs, and even a comeback with black. Blue has been on trend for a while, but green and black pair well with natural wood tones, which are also on trend.

wood: Natural woods are also making a comeback, particularly walnut cabinets with neutral stains. “Walnut is very popular because it's such a beautiful wood,” Pierce says.

tile: While there were some slab tiles used in both the kitchens and bathrooms, there was also a lot of handcrafted, textured zellige-style tile, says Anne Marie Brunette of Sheridan Interiors, the only local judge. “It worked really well with both traditional and contemporary designs. I think they did really well this year.”

Wellness: Bathrooms are becoming more about feel than look, says Ouellet, which means more features like heated floors, towel bars, adjustable shower seats and lighting, flexible shower systems and scented options. Brunetto has also seen increased interest in steam showers, air-dry shower systems (no more squeegees!) and cooled drawers or cabinets for cosmetics and medicines.

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Despite recurring themes, judge Adam Gibson of Adam Gibson Design praised the individuality of the designs: “Each project has a unique quality that we love as designers. Most of the designs were really well thought out.”

Surprise announcement

Caroline Castrucci of Laurysen Kitchens, who presented the Doris Lacroix Award to this year's winner, announced that Laurysen would make a special donation to the NKBA Ottawa chapter's efforts to build a new kitchen at the Chrysalis House women's shelter. The chapter has been raising funds and donations over the past two years and plans to build the kitchen later this year. Castrucci announced that Laurysen will donate all of the cabinets, “which is just amazing,” said Pierce.

List of winners

Bathroom – Classic/Traditional: Price Group 1
1^st Location: Victoria Preece, Lauriessen Kitchens
2^and Location: Mirian Ferguson, Fe + Luz Design Studio

Bathroom – Contemporary/Modern: Price Group 1
1^st Location: Caroline Trepanier, Distinctive Bathrooms & Kitchens
2^and Location: Renee Marcil, Distinctive Bathrooms & Kitchens, Tim Rutherford, Design Truth Whole Home Design Solutions

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Bathrooms – all styles: price group 2
1^st Location: Tanya Letourneau, DBK Ottawa
2^and Location: Vida Kiani, Kari Design & Build

Bathroom – Contemporary/Modern: Price Group 3
1^st Location: Cansu Kizilturk, Tremblay Renovations
2^and Location: Lisa Poirier, Westyle Interior Design

Kitchen – all styles: price group 1
1^st Location: Marcia Perrotte, design MCP
2^and Location: Rachel Price, Lauriessen Kitchens

Kitchen – Classic/Traditional: Price Group 2
1^st Location: Julianna Dykstra, Distinctive Bathrooms & Kitchens
2^and Location: Victoria Preece, Lauriessen Kitchens

Kitchen – Classic/Traditional: Price Group 3
1^st Location: Alanna Wharton, Deslaurier Custom Cabinets
2^and Location: Stefania Crilly, Spruce Design, Sarah Edgerton, The Cabinet Connection

Kitchen – Classic/Traditional: Price Group 4
1^st Location: Julia Enriquez, Astro Design Centre
2^and Location: Wael Bakr, Laurysen Kitchens, Silvana Meliambro, Peridot Design & Build

Kitchen – Contemporary/Modern: Price Group 2
1^st place: Carly Morin Coe, Raywall Cabinets
2^and Location: Caroline Nantel, Louis L'Artisan SA

Kitchen – Contemporary/Modern: Price Group 3
1^st Location: Deirdre Jorssen, Eastboro Designs
2^and Location: Zeina Agha, Laurysen Kitchens

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Kitchen – Contemporary/Modern: Price Group 4
1^st Location: Julia Enriquez, Astro Design Centre
2^and Location: Louise Cardinal, Louise Cardinal Concepts

Make it look cheap – bathroom
1^st Location: Tim Rutherford, Design Truth Whole Home Design Solutions

Make it look cheap – kitchen
1^st Location: Mirian Ferguson, Fe + Luz Design Studio

Best Makeover (Before & After) – Kitchen
1^st Location: Marcia Perrotte, design MCP
2^and Location: Xiang Xiang Zhang, Lauriessen Kitchens

Best Makeover (Before & After) – Bathroom
1^st Location: Ashley Hart, Pretty Little Designs
2^and Location: Josie Cleroux, Tremblay Renovations

Bonus Room
1^st Location: Shannon Callahan, DesignWise
2^and Location: Louise Cardinal, Louise Cardinal Concepts

People's Choice – Bathroom
Vida Kiani, Cali Design & Build

People's Choice – Kitchen
Lavanya Devi Gurumurthy, Deslauriers Custom Cabinets

Doris Lacroix Award
Mark Smith, Berenson

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