Kitchen Colour Inspiration
STORY BY: Sharon Grech, Benjamin Moore Colour & Design Expert and Regular Guest on CityTV’s Cityline ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF BENJAMIN MOORE
The kitchen is the heart of the home for good reason – it’s where we gather, work, prepare quick family meals and host elaborate dinner party feasts. Since it’s such a multi-functional and well-loved space, take the time to make your design statement here since the finishes, materials and colours can act as the anchor for inspiring the palette for the rest of your home.
KITCHEN ISLAND: Black HC-190, TRIM & CEILING: Classic Gray OC-23, FLOATING SHELVES: Classic Gray OC-23, WALL: Classic Gray OC-23
Whether you are looking for a bold contrast to liven up a white kitchen or subtle neutrals to harmonize with natural materials, when it comes to paint colours, the options to add your personality are limitless. While the trend in wood tones is moving to a safe mid-range, when it comes to paint, we are seeing everything from rich bold hues to soft, fresh pales and neutrals.
CABINETS: Gloucester Sage HC-100, WALLS, TRIM, CEILING & SHELVES: Steam AF-15
Painting the walls will certainly bring new life to the space but painting your cabinets and updating the hardware will be the most impressive change you can make without the expense of a full remodel.
Following are some inspiring, popular hues for today’s kitchens seen on cabinets, walls and unexpected accents.
WALLS, DOORS, TRIM, CEILING & UPPER CABINETS: Distant Gray OC-68, LOWER CABINETS: Kensington Blue 840
The colour of sea and sky, blue is timeless and diverse, popping up in traditional, modern and even rustic styled kitchens as painted cabinets or walls.
CABINETS: Blue Macaw 784, TRIM & CEILING: Baby's Breath 873
Mother nature’s favourite neutral, green is the perfect colour to add a retro vibe to cabinets or bring the outside-in with a darker, forest inspired shade!
CABINETS: St. John's Bay 584, CEILING: Dove Wing 960
WALLS, CABINETS, SHELVES, CEILING, TRIM & DOOR: White Heron OC-57, ACCENT WALL: Sunflower 2019-30, CHAIRS: Rumba Orange 2014-20
No doubt about it - yellow is the colour of sunshine and even in a kitchen lacking windows, you can bring it inside with yellow paint. On all the cabinets, just a few or on the walls, a little sunshine goes a long way to boosting your mood and brightening up even the darkest of mornings.
Accent walls are popular features in any room but in the kitchen are an especially easy way to make a bold statement. Use a warm red, pink or yellow to bring high energy to the space or venture to the cooler side of the colour wheel for a tropical or coastal vibe with a fresh blue-green on walls or on the ceiling.
WALLS & CEILING: Steam AF-15, KITCHEN WALLS: Lucerne AF-530, KITCHEN CEILING: Seedling AF-450
Another way to bring a small but impactful touch of colour to the kitchen is to simply paint the island in a contrasting colour. This is a favourite designer trick to add a bespoke style and focal point to the kitchen.
ACCENT WALL: Head Over Heels AF-250, WALLS, CEILING & TRIM: Frostine AF-5, CABINETS: Flint AF-560
The kitchen is the most high-traffic space in any home making durability essential. For cabinets and trim, opt for the hard, furniture-like finish of Advance interior paint, available in three popular sheens, to suit any kitchen style from farmhouse to ultra-modern.
There are many painting companies that will custom paint or spray kitchen cabinet doors, so there is help out there if you don’t want to take this on alone. However, if you want to “do-it-yourself”, follow these tips for best results:
After cleaning, sand the cabinets with 100 grit sand-paper to cut the sheen of any previous products and then wipe clean with a tack cloth
Prime with Benjamin Moore’s Fresh Start Primer or STIX Primer for greater adhesion
Allow to dry, then paint at least 2 coats of finishing paint in the colour of your choice
Benjamin Moore’s ADVANCE Paint in a high gloss provides a slick, modern look or try the Pearl finish for a soft sheen.