How to choose a kitchen apron for your work area

One of the most important elements of kitchen design is an apron - a part of the working wall between hanging and floor cabinets. This area is most polluted, especially in the area of ​​the sink and stove, therefore, along with aesthetic requirements, stringent requirements for practicality are imposed on finishing materials. Only then can an apron for the kitchen be considered good, when it is pleasant to look at it and it is easy to care for it.

What are they made of

A few decades ago, the question of what to make an apron in the kitchen did not arise: if you were lucky to find a tile, they did it from it, if not, they just painted it with oil paint. As one of the options, ordinary paper wallpaper was glued, which was varnished. That's the whole choice. Naturally, the tile in this case is the best possible option.

Composite apron for the kitchen - from tiles and mosaics

Today the choice is much wider. There are both traditional tiles and many other materials for the kitchen apron:

• Ceramic tiles and mosaics.
• Made from photo-printed tempered glass.
• Stone and materials based on it (porcelain stoneware, for example).
• MDF.
• Plastic and plastic panels.
• Metal.

Despite the abundance of materials, ceramic tiles are still the most popular. And all because it is in a very wide range of colors and sizes. The second most common apron is made of plastic - it is easy to care for it, and it is also inexpensive. Therefore, it is popular. In third place, perhaps, is a glass kitchen apron. And all because it gives an unusually wide range of design and design possibilities. Its only drawback is its high cost. All other methods of decorating the wall of the working area are not very popular. Some are due to not the best qualities (MDF, for example, does not like moisture and high temperatures) or the difficulty of mounting on walls (porcelain stoneware and stone). However, all of these materials can be used.

Ceramic tiles are still popular

Dimensions

As for the length, questions usually do not arise: the entire wall or part of it, which is occupied by the kitchen set, requires special care. Therefore, everything is simple with the length. But the width of the lined area should be larger than the open space. That is, the finish should start below the level of the countertops of the floor cabinets and end above the level where the hanging cabinets end. This stock is desirable in the area of ​​5 cm. More or less depends on the size of the finishing material, in particular ceramic tiles.

Ready-made apron for the kitchen from ceramic tiles

Since there are no lockers above the stove, the apron is made higher in this place. And again: its width should be such that the cabinets hung from the sides lay on the tile with their side. It's more convenient to clean this way.

You can read about the development of a kitchen-living room design here.

Tile apron

The most traditional type of work wall decoration in the kitchen is ceramic tiles. It is good because it is easy to clean and has a long service life. Modern technologies make it possible to make it in different shapes, colors and sizes, which gives ample opportunities for design.

The disadvantage of a tiled apron in the kitchen is the complexity and duration of installation, the high price for the tile itself and for installation work. The presence of a large number of seams can also be considered a disadvantage. They are rubbed with special compounds, but it is the seams that get dirty and lose their attractiveness in the first place. We have to remove the old grout and process them again with a new one.

Nevertheless, it is the tile apron that is most often made in kitchens.The tile can be small in size - a square with a side of 12-15 cm.

Ceramic Square Tile Apron

There are tiles more like bricks in size: rectangular. This tile shape is also called "hog". It is more difficult to lay it - there are more seams, but the apron looks interesting. You can find a brick-like model, or you can make it blue or green. They all look good.

There are large-format ceramics. It can have dimensions with a side of 60-70 cm. Moreover, it can be both square and rectangular. You can choose such a model that one unit will overlap the entire height of the apron. This is good because such an apron has fewer seams.

There are collections of tiles of various non-linear shapes, with patterns. They look, of course, great, but it is more difficult to care for: all cracks, irregularities and bends are more difficult to scrub off than a flat surface. Another disadvantage of such tiles is the high price, much higher than average. If all this does not scare you, keep in mind that you need to order it with a margin of about 10%. Firstly, the inevitable waste during laying, secondly, there is a battle during delivery, and thirdly, if you are a little mistaken in the calculations, you will have to wait a long time again, and it is not a fact that such a tile will be. Many collections are produced in very limited quantities. And they simply may not exist. For the same reason, you should always keep a few pieces in case of repair. After a few years, even mass collections are discontinued.

There is also ceramic mosaic - very small tiles, from which whole panels can be assembled. It is even more difficult to lay it, but the wall is very effective.

There is another type of ceramic tile - with photo printing. Before firing, a drawing is applied to the ceramic surface with special ink. Then it is covered with glaze and set at a high temperature in the oven. Even photographs can be applied using this technology, but fruits or flowers are more often chosen for kitchen aprons.

As you can see, there are already a lot of options for a tiled apron for the kitchen. And there are 5 other materials.

Small kitchen design features are described here.

Glass apron for kitchen

This type of material began to be used for finishing the work wall in the kitchen relatively recently, but it is quickly gaining popularity. It is even easier to take care of a glass apron than a tiled one - there are almost no seams, the surface is smooth. Almost any pattern can be applied - from smooth color to volumetric photography. The technique of applying photographic printing to glass is called “skinned”.It is on aprons in this version that volumetric 3D drawings can be applied.

How to make your own photo printing on glass

The only drawback of a glass apron is its high cost. This is due to the complex technology of drawing the pattern. But you can do it yourself. The technology is not the same as that used in enterprises, but the craftsmen are the craftsmen to find a way out of any situation.

For the manufacture of a glass apron using a skinale technique at home, two glasses of relatively small thickness are taken. If you find or buy a hardened one - great, but the usual, as practice has shown, lasts a long time. Ask the glass workshop to finish the edges and drill holes for the fasteners (or do it yourself if you can). The two glasses must be exactly the same in size, the holes for the fasteners must also match.

A film with a pattern is glued to one of them. This can be a ready-made self-adhesive translucent film, which is usually sold in wallpaper stores. You can order printing on film of any image in a specialized workshop (perhaps you will be helped by an advertising agency that deals with outdoor advertising).

It is convenient for them to stick the film on the glass

The glass is cleaned of dust, degreased (a mixture of water and dishwashing detergent or glass detergent), wiped off, then sprayed with water from a spray bottle. The protective layer is removed from the film and glued on one side to the wet glass: it is more convenient to work on it and there is less chance of making an air bubble. Then they take a dense and elastic material with smooth edges (you can use a rubber spatula) and expel excess water from under the film. The main task is to prevent the appearance of air bubbles. The glued film is left to dry for several days, and then holes are made in it for fasteners.

Both pieces of glass are folded and mounted on the wall. The film is squeezed from both sides and is perfectly protected from any influences. So that nothing happens to such an apron over time, the joint around the perimeter must be coated with silicone sealant (not acrylic, it turns yellow after a while). It can be done without a second layer of glass, but then the chances are high that the film will peel off, or dirt will get behind it, which will be visible.

Read about bar counters and their manufacture here.

Apron made of MDF and chipboard

If you need to quickly and inexpensively finish the working wall in the kitchen, you can install an apron from panels MDF... You need to choose from moisture-resistant products with a durable coating: you will have to wash often. Therefore, MDF is taken of medium or high density. The higher the density, the better: with a smaller thickness of the panel, it turns out to be more durable, but the denser material is more expensive.

Installed on furniture screws or, if necessary, on dowel-nails. A hole is pre-drilled in the required places. The diameter of the drill is the same as that of the wire rod or slightly less. To prevent the hats from sticking out, they make a small depression in the panel with a drill of a larger diameter than the size of the cap. In a store that sells furniture fittings, you can find plugs to match the panel. Here, under the leg of the plug, you can select the diameter of the drill: so that it becomes tight.

Before installation, an adhesive is applied to the back surface, then additionally sits on the fasteners. If the apron is obtained from one wall to another, there are no problems, but if there are corners, they must be trimmed somehow.To do this, you can use plastic or aluminum corners - depending on the style of kitchen furniture (furniture hardware stores).

MDF corners and joints are finished with aluminum corners

If we talk about color solutions, that is, monochromatic options of different colors, a fairly wide selection of surfaces that imitate different types of wood, there is an imitation of stone surfaces. There are also exclusive drawings, such as photo printing, flowers, etc.

The drawing is glued to the MDF board. This is a photo-printed film. Since the film must have a high density, such panels are decent.

About, how to choose the right kitchen furniture and how to arrange furniture read here.

Made of plastic

Plastic aprons are good because they are inexpensive and easy to install. At the same time, the plastic surface is well washed. For the production of aprons, ABS plastic is used. It is neutral to fats, acids, alkalis, but reacts poorly to contact with alcohol. Therefore, it is impossible to wipe with alcohol and alcohol-containing compounds. Physical properties - tough, durable and at the same time plastic - make it possible to make housings of household appliances from it. Even some parts in the car interior are made of such plastic. Therefore, aprons in the kitchen are only part of its application.

The temperature range at which such a plastic apron can be used is from -40 ° C to + 90 ° C. Its only drawback is that it reacts poorly to ultraviolet light. Therefore, it is undesirable to put it in kitchens where the working wall is illuminated from the window.

The choice of colors is wide, and the relatively low price and ease of installation allow you to change the finish if you are really tired of it. Any image is applied to the plastic, then it is covered with a double layer of varnish, which protects the design and prevents scratches. If you try, of course, you can scratch it, but accidentally hitting it is unlikely. In general, not a bad option. If we talk about the price, then the wall panel made of plastic, which is used as a kitchen apron, costs from 1.5 to 6 thousand rubles. Panel width 60-80 cm, length 2-3 m. Some examples of plastic aprons are in the photo gallery.

Wall panels are mounted on a relatively flat surface. Glue of the "liquid nails" type is applied pointwise and plastic is fixed on it. Its density makes it possible to hide minor surface defects.

Features of kitchen renovation in Khrushchev are described here.

Of stone and metal

The least common kitchen aprons are made of stone. Firstly, they are expensive, and secondly, it is not easy to clean off plaque from them: the surface, even very well-processed, has open pores, into which fat and soot, inevitable in the kitchen, are clogged.

Apron for the kitchen made of stone. Looks great in some interiors ... but it's hard to clean

Exceptions are stone-based products, in particular, porcelain stoneware. Its surface can be very smooth. But there is one more thing: the large weight of such a finish. Accordingly, complex installation and powerful fastening system.

They decorate the work wall in the kitchen with metal, but this is a very caustic phenomenon. Such an apron will only fit into minimalism and high-tech, and even then you need to try so that the room does not look like a meat cutting workshop ...

Metal kitchen apron

As you can see, you can decorate the working wall with different materials. There are options for different tastes and wallets. The main thing is to choose an apron for the kitchen so that the headset and the rest of the furniture become a single ensemble. Then the kitchen will be cozy.