We're suckers for beautiful kitchen, bathroom and laundry cabinetry - shaker-style, beadboard, tongue and groove, heritage-style - we eat them all right up. But a flirty, feminine, flouncy alternative has recently reemerged onto the design scene, making gentle waves with its soft silhouette and easy functionality. Meet the sink skirt.
After first appearing in period homes, the sink skirt has, up until recently, suffered a bit of a bad rap, having often been done in gaudy, fussy fabrics with a total disregard for their untapped potential. But now it's official: sink skirts are departing from the sentimental and making a comeback in a big way - in country-, period-, and contemporary-style homes alike.
"It seems to be the changeable attire of the quintessential country kitchen," says Kasturi Wren, whose gorgeous cottage kitchen - complete with a sink skirt - was featured in the latest issue of Country Style. "It gives one's kitchen a soften edge and allows you to create opportunity for new patterns and colours. I love that they are making a comeback - one of my most popular reels on Instagram was the making of my sink skirt!"
Typically, the mini-curtains that we refer to as sink skirts hung exclusively under a sink - makes sense! Utilised to hide unsightly piping, cleaning tools and, let's face it, inevitable dust collection, the sink skirt started its life as a primarily functional spec where the restrictions of a cabinet door just couldn't quite fit the bill.
Now, however, sink skirts are popping up left, right and centre, offering a character-filled and decorative alternative to more classic styles of cabinetry and a great alternative for renter's looking to hide unsightly items in a temporary way. And we're not talking your Grandma's florals, either. Modern takes on the sink skirt feature stripes, relaxed linen weaves and fun prints. "My most treasured item is my cast iron sink," explains Kasturi. "I could have created a cupboard with fixed doors, but the idea that I could bring new texture and form consistent with a bygone era, while continuing the arts and crafts feel of my home, was just too delicious to pass up."
This is not to say that sink skirts will be completely changing the game in kitchens, bathrooms and laundries; the cabinet styles you know and love can still be used in conjunction with this new trend, especially when it comes to above-bench storage.
"We found the material from the local craft shop," says Kasturi, who reached out to her Instagram followers in search of someone to make the flouncy sink skirt of her dreams. "I had the line and the hook screws required for the job - it was really easy to put together."
A sink skirt is a fairly easy DIY job. Once you have measured and cut your fabric, added any details (like edge piping), gathered, sewn and hemmed, it's a simple matter of using velcro (but only if you don't need it to open and close) or threading the skirt over a rod or plastic-covered cord.