We all love kitchen week on The Block and this year was no different. Ronnie and Georgia, Mitch and Mark, Tanya and Vito, Luke and Josh and Kirsty and Jesse delivered five absolutely stunning kitchens in Week 7 of The Block Fans vs. Faves. Our partner, Kinsman, helped the contestants designing and building the kitchens and due to our partnership we saw quite a few Häfele goodies in all of the kitchens as well.

But first of all, let us talk about waste management. In case you missed the episode that went on air on Sunday, 27 September 2021, bins were the hot topic picked by the three judges, Darren Palmer, Shaynna Blaze and Neale Whitaker. When we design kitchens, instead of thinking about the traditional kitchen triangle, we more and more hear the term working zones. In fact, there should be five working zones incorporated in a modern kitchen:

• Cleaning Zone (consistent of sink, bin, dishwasher)
• Cooking Zone (stove, oven, other appliances)
• Preparation Zone (bench space)
• Consumables Zone (fridge, pantry, etc.)
• Non-consumables Zone (crockery, cutlery, pots and pans)

The judges this year put a spotlight on waste and in fact, this was what separated Kirsty and Jesse from a perfect score of 30 to an actual score of 29.5 in the end. They didn’t include a bin in their Butler’s Pantry.

Let’s have a look at all the kitchens in detail.

House 1 – Ronnie and Georgia

Ronnie and Georgia are the clear favourites this season and we can’t blame the audience… Their kitchen delivered on a luxurious level with neutral tones. Benchtop and Splashback was delivered from Caesarstone Australia which complemented the Camden Oyster Grey Matt cabinet finish from Kinsman beautifully. Their interiors added a warmth to the kitchen as they chose the Chadstone Prime Oak Woodmatt for their design.

Ronnie and Georgia’s kitchen didn’t just look magnificent and luxurious, it also had a few functionality features that we couldn’t look passed. One of it of course being the LeMans II corner storage solution. The LeMans II is one of our most popular clever storage solutions when it comes to the typical dead corner cabinet. The pull-out shelves make it extremely easy to access items stored in the back of the corner that typically end up lost and never to be seen again. Don’t stress, we all know of a corner cabinet like this!

Their Butler’s pantry had all they needed and overall the kitchen scored a total of 27 points out of a perfect 30 score. Nothing to shy away from and we know for sure that the future owner of this house will love this space as much as The Block audience did.

House 2 – Mitch and Mark

If you watched the kitchen reveal, you know Mitch and Mark’s kitchen started quite a few discussions amongst the judges. They opted for the beautiful cabinetry finishes of Sorrento Stone Grey Matt, Sorrento Classic White Matt and Montauk Classic Matt Way. The benchtop as well as splashback were also supplied by Caesarstone. Kinsman assisted the couple with designing the kitchen and as well as in the kitchen before, we spotted a couple of Häfele goodies.

Mitch and Mark have also used our Loox LED strip lighting and of course integrated a Ninka bin. We’re not going to highlight the importance of waste management in a kitchen again… The big controversy in this kitchen were the amount of drawers in contrast to traditional pantry shelves. Mitch and Mark opted for drawers over shelves due to the easy accessibility of items stored in the back which lead to a lot of head scratching by the judges. While we agree with Mitch and Mark to an extent in terms of making space more accessible, we also agree with the judges that drawers aren’t the perfect solution for everything. There are many great clever storage solutions for base cabinets that are not drawers nor simple fixed shelves. We encourage you to browse our Kitchen Storage section to find options for all cabinets, no matter the size. Always having functionality and accessibility in mind!

In the end, Mitch and Mark finished kitchen week on the last place with 22.5 points.

House 3 – Tanya and Vito

Tanya and Vito followed the theme of their house and delivered a sophisticated mid-century modern kitchen that they designed with the help of Kinsman. They chose the Ballina Essendon White Satin, Ballina Rose’ All Day, Archie Prime Oak Woodmatt and Avalon Classic White Matt finishes for their cabinetry. Highlight of the kitchen was the self-sourced Terrazzo Island Benchtop that they flew in from New York.

We also spotted one of our bins as well as Loox LED Strip lighting and warm LED downlights. The judges were questioning the placement of the fridge but overall were wowed by the window design that uplifted the whole kitchen and is a piece of art in itself, as commented by the experts.

Overall, Tanya and Vito could achieve 4^th place with their kitchen as they scored 25.5 points.

House 4 – Josh and Luke

Josh and Luke can be incredibly proud of their contemporary, urban kitchen with dark finishes and a magnificent timber feature on the island bench by Christian Cole. The brothers opted for the Ballina French Dark grain Puregrain finish for the cabinetry and Black Aluminium Square Frame Doors with Acrylic Inserts, all from Kinsman. The Christian Cole island benchtop feature is complemented by a Caesarstone benchtop and splashback.

We spotted some Loox LED Strip Ligthing and warm LED Downlights in Josh and Luke’s kitchen but the highlight for us was in their Butler’s Pantry. Our Climber overhead cabinet had its feature there with black translucent glass slats. It blended in with the overall design beautifully.

The twins can be proud of 26 points from the judges on their kitchen and achieving 3^rd place in week 7 on The Block.

House 5 – Kirsty and Jesse

House 5 might have been the last to judge, but it’s been the winner of the night! Kirsty and Jesse delivered a beautiful kitchen, Hampton’s style that was loved by everyone and just fell short by half a point of a perfect score. The country couple mixed beautiful dark navy cabinetry with brass features throughout. The cabinetry the chose were the Montauk Ink Matt and Montauk Ink Matt with Patina Mesh Brass Inserts by Kinsman. The benchtop was supplied by Caesarstone and also featured a brass inlay.

Their stunning design was highlighted with the Loox LED Strip Lighting and warm LED Downlights and of course featured one of our very own bins. A bin in their Butler’s Pantry would have gotten them over the line to a perfect score of 30. As the judges commented throughout the night, a Butler’s Pantry is basically a self-functioning small version of the kitchen and therefor needs a complete Cleaning Zone, including a bin.

However, with this kitchen, Kirsty and Jesse can be more than proud. 1^st place and 29.5 points certainly sets the scene of what we can expect once the house is complete. We cannot wait to see more to come.

Kitchen week is always exciting for us as it allows us to come in and show you what to think of. While all five teams can be extremely proud of themselves as they delivered beautiful kitchens, with a kitchen of this size and scale, we always think of more ways to make a kitchen more functional. Corner storage, overhead cabinets, pantries – there’s a lot to create a more functional space and even on shows like The Block, there’s more that could be done in that space.

For now, enough said – let’s keep our eyes focused on the stunning rooms that are yet to be revealed. Are you ready?

Image courtesy goes to Kinsman and the talented Melbourne-based photographer Marcel Aucar. The kitchens wouldn’t have looked as stunning without the great eye for detail by stylist Ruth Welsby.