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The House Beautiful Real Style Awards 2026: These winning ingredients make cooking a joy and cleaning-up quicker
The House Beautiful Real Style Awards recognise the products that stand out for exceptional design, innovation and everyday usefulness. Carefully selected by our editors, these winning pieces prove that the most successful homeware combines beautiful aesthetics with brilliant functionality. Our kitchen category winners showcase the hardworking products that bring style and efficiency to the heart of the home. From ingenious gadgets to countertop heroes, these are the designs that make cooking, entertaining and everyday tasks feel effortlessly easier.
Whether you use it or not, there’s something about a wooden spoon on the side of a glass jar that deserves to be on display. This earns extra points for recycled glass and a mango-wood lid, crafted from trees that no longer bear fruit. A rubber seal keeps contents fresher too.
From £38
There’s a reason Le Creuset reigns supreme. This shallow casserole can brown, simmer, stir-fry and bake, while its joyful selection of colours truly makes it a one-pot wonder. Equipped with a lifetime guarantee, this is designed to become a future heirloom.
From £149
Chequerboard may be having a moment, but this pendant convinced us the trend has staying power. Hand-shaped from stoneware clay, then fired, painted and glazed, no two are exactly alike. Best of all, the avocado and off-white chequerboard pattern continues underneath – a small detail that prompted a collective ‘ooooh’ from us.
£175
Cuppa in an instant? Almost: you just need to allow for brewing time. With 100°C boiling water straight from the tap, there’s no need to clutter your worktops with a kettle. A dream for small spaces and minimalists alike, it delivers standard hot and cold water too, available in five finishes from chrome to gold.
From £1,250
With 48 colours to choose from, we love the visual tension of this cabinet’s painted frame against its exposed oak interior. The fluted-glass frontage and adjustable zig-zag shelving sweetened the deal – then we discovered the height-adjustable feet that tackle wonky floors…
£3,745
The decorative finish of these doors and drawers makes period detailing feel perfectly suited to modern homes. Paired with rustic tiles and timber, this kitchen leans into its heritage, while a few statement vintage finds set among the refined cabinetry feel just as at home in a contemporary scheme.
From £30,000
As a team of coffee lovers, this category was always going to be a closely scrutinised one. What won us over? The Bambino takes up little worktop space, is ready in just three seconds and, most importantly, makes a barista-style coffee. The steam wand produces silky microfoam, giving even latte-art novices a fighting chance.
£329
Cast-iron cookware can be an investment, which makes this £39 skillet a brilliant find. Suitable for induction hobs and solid-fuel cookers alike, it has excellent heat retention that makes everything from sizzling steaks to Sunday morning eggs light work.
£39
The Shaker kitchen traditionally leans, well, traditional, but we love Caple’s modern take. Handleless cabinetry and uninterrupted lines are paired with an ultra-slim frame that adds interest to a flat frontage. With 24 shades to choose from, colour obsessives are well catered for.
A bin is the one kitchen essential we’d rather hide away, but make it a retro shade of terracotta, add colour-coded recycling compartments and give it a sleek profile, and suddenly we’ve lost our case for concealment. With two generous 30L compartments and an oh-so-satisfying soft-close lid, this one can stay put.
£120
Worktops are often chosen to fit in, but our red marble laminate brings drama to cabinetry, its rich burgundy base and creamy veining come alive alongside timber and cream. The real gem? It does away with pattern repeats, creating a convincing finish.
From £199
A second sink bowl feels like a luxury right up until you have one. We love that this keeps things moving when one side is full of washing-up but the pasta still needs draining. Its ceramic finish is highly resistant to heat, stains and scratches – a multitasker made for hardworking kitchens.
£532
This contender toasted the competition thanks to both its iconic design and the fact that it’s built for a lifetime. Should any parts wear out, each component can be replaced easily at home – and we also love the brilliantly named ‘peek & pop’ lever, so you can lift the bread to check its progress without cancelling the process.
£224.99
We know we’ve found a winner when it goes straight to the top of our editor-in-chief’s wishlist. Shown here in Moss (but available in 20 other colours), this combines a sleek profile with a touch of retro charm and turns the everyday task of peeling and prepping into something altogether more stylish.
£15
Tall, slim and just the thing to squeeze into a small kitchen, this 70cm-wide fridge-freezer delivers the sought-after American-style double doors without the hefty footprint. Its generous 421L capacity keeps the weekly shop organised, no rummaging required. Plus, the ‘total no frost’ function means no more chipping away at ice.
£699.99
When we set out to create a collection of roller blinds with Hillarys, we wanted a soft neutral that could work across schemes but still introduce a subtle hit of pattern. Woven from recycled materials, this jacquard comes alive as it catches the light, revealing its graphic design.
This range cooker proves classic good looks needn’t mean old-fashioned. Lift a traditional lid to reveal a two-zone induction hob, while app controls and clever energy-saving features bring it firmly into the present. Of its 20 colours, teal (shown) gets our vote as on-trend but timeless.
From £9,900
We think of hardware as the jewellery of the room, so cupboard handles should never be an afterthought. This bamboo-shaped design is cast from solid brass and comes in three finishes, offering just enough personality for anyone wanting to stray from the usual cups, knobs and pulls.
£30.48
With designs featuring croissants, disco balls and mermaids, these characterful tiles won us over completely. But behind the personality-filled motifs is serious craftsmanship: each one is hand-painted, fired and finished with a glossy glaze, bringing the storytelling tradition of 16th-century Delft tiles into the present.
£27.50/each
‘First introduced to us as the Secret Santa gift everyone else wishes they’d received, this stainless-steel fish has been living rent-free in our heads ever since. Pop in a citrus wedge and squeeze for pip-free juice. Useful? Absolutely. But it’s the quirky looks that really hooked us.’ – Jessica Taverner, style & interiors editor
£9
Zara Home’s £30 scented candle costs a fraction of its £150 designer counterpart
Millie Mackintosh’s Dusk bookshelf is the understated living room buy you need
Dunelm’s gold rimmed 12 piece dining set - 50% off
Matilda Goad’s sellout matchbox sleeves return
