Whether you are planning or designing a new kitchen or renovating an old one, one essential aspect will be to choose a color scheme that works for you and for your own home.
If there is already an established color scheme in the rest of your home (apart from your kitchen), then you might look towards melding the two together. Otherwise choose a similar color that will blend well and won’t clash. It really isn’t difficult to do.
Remember that popular kitchen colors come and go, and you don’t need to be a slave to fashion. Rather choose a color that you enjoy and can live with.
Be aware that, paint companies, for example, often launch “new” colors which they claim are the colors of the year or season. But you don’t have to tow this line. You will find that every so-called “new” color, either in a paint can or in the form of tiles, or as wallpaper, has been around for years, in fact for decades. By all means read everything paint and fashion companies publish, but don’t make this a reason to completely overhaul your kitchen – unless this is what you want to do.
Ultimately the choice of color is a very personal thing, so be sure to make your own decisions, and take the opinions of those who will share the kitchen with you, into account.
Don’t ever forget that it’s pretty difficult to change the color spectrum! All you have to do is make colors work for you and your kitchen. The rainbow hasn’t changed ever – it’s just the way we interpret it!
But color can affect the visual appeal and the ambience of a kitchen. For example blues tend to be cold, so if you have a dark room that doesn’t get much sunshine, it’s not likely to be a good choice. Bright yellow is sunny and cheerful, but some people find it overpowering. If there’s lots of natural light, then quiet, paler colors usually work best.
Also, light colors do tend to make walls recede, because they reflect more light. Darker colors have the effect of bringing surfaces nearer. This is useful to remember, for example if you need to visually lower the ceiling or make a long, thin room look shorter and less skinny.
There are other tricks to. For instance kitchens that have awkward corners and nooks can be made to look more uniform and balanced by using the same color for all the walls and ceilings.
Essentially, the question is whether you are starting from scratch or starting with a kitchen that has already been installed. If you are starting from scratch, you will need to work out a color scheme that works for the entire room, from the ceiling and the walls, and also includes the floors – and you can choose with any color you choose. Otherwise you will need to work with what you already have in terms of color.
Traditionally, popular kitchen colors are those that are attractive and work in a kitchen environment. They aren’t normally loud or vulgar, although sometimes bright colors do work amazingly well, like bold red or green. But it really is a personal choice.
Where to start
It’s all very well to have a favorite color for your kitchen, but unless you are starting from scratch, you do have to take existing fixtures and fittings into account. Even if you are starting from scratch you will need to consider what is available, within your price range, in terms of fixtures and fittings. Then consider how this will affect your color scheme.
Generally the easiest colors to work with in a kitchen are those that are reasonably neutral. After all, cabinets and cupboards are either made from wood or from a man-made material or board like melamine or some other laminate. These are usually quite neutral (or natural) in color.
Even if you want to introduce a bold color into your kitchen, for example by painting walls or by hanging brightly colored curtains or blinds, it is a good idea to choose units that are neutral in color. That way you can update the look of your kitchen with popular kitchen colors as often as you want to without spending a whole lot of money.
A really good starting point is to have a natural-looking base that you can build on and change whenever you want to.
Get bold and add color
Choosing neutral colors for your kitchen doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be boring. For example, you can have beautifully natural wooden kitchen units, or even white melamine, and then you can add super-bold or just interesting color onto your walls. The secret is to design a basic kitchen plan that works for you, and then add the color afterwards.
For example, you can quickly add color by:
- painting walls,
- spraying cabinets,
- adding colorful accessories, or
- using bright soft furnishings like curtains or blinds.
Tiles can also add color, but they are a lot more permanent, so it’s usually best to opt for neutral colors here too. If you’re improving a tired, old kitchen and you can’t afford to change the tiles but want to change the color, today’s modern paint products will let you do just that. Just be sure to prime the old tiled surface with a proprietary product that will cut down the ceramic sheen and enable you to paint over the tiles without facing the danger of the paint peeling off within weeks or months.
Consider the color of appliances
We often stuck with appliances we don’t particularly like, especially the large ones like refrigerators, dish washers and stoves. Ideally these should be the same color as one another, although cost is invariably a factor, white normally being the cheapest option. And if you leave your kettle, toaster and possibly a food processor out of the cupboard, then you’ll want them to be the same as one another too. This isn’t essential, but it does usually improve the look.
So view everything together and work towards a harmonious whole that you will enjoy and get pleasure from.
