Brighten up your kitchen with these colour scheme ideas

Kitchens can be quite dull places.  There is a tendency towards neutral colors, with the scheme dominated by the white goods or the cupboard fronts.  If you want to brighten up your kitchen, you might worry that any adaptations of the color scheme will require a complete redesign – which could be expensive.  Yet, with only a few tweaks here and there, you could change the mood of your kitchen and highlight the most appealing areas that are worthy of your visitors’ attention.

Before you worry that everything is going to be too garish, and bold in the style of the 60s and 70s, you can feel reassured – we are proposing a restrained color palette including pale blues and more inky shades.  We then suggest you look to color theory to choose from a bank of colors to create small moments of sharp contrasts that will add some vibrancy.

A coastal scheme

Your starting point for your color choices could be the features already in place.  You may have wooden floors, for instance, and white cupboards.  These two major features are a hint at a potential theme.  If you add some hints of blues and greys, you can create a coastal look.

The trick to this scheme is layering.  A single shade of blue throughout will not give you the desired mood. It is better to later the colors, using a few shades of blue to get the desired coastal effect.  Therefore, when choosing your paint, tiles and cupboard fronts, choose two or three different tones of blue to help the kitchen look brighter.

The great thing about this scheme is that is will look clean and fresh – perfect for a kitchen!

A moment of surprise

Brightening your kitchen shouldn’t require a significant overall of your décor.  You may have previously opted for an industrial theme to your home and enjoy the dark greys.  However, you may feel that it lacks depth.  Sometimes a dark palette can look like a monochromatic slab.

You can add a moment of surprise with a single splash of color.  You could add a brightly colored tile here and there.  These moments of red amongst the grey, for instance, will create a guide for the visitor’s eye.  Therefore, strategically placing these tiles near features will offer a shorthand tour around the best parts of your kitchen.

If you like the idea of this industrial theme and all you have is bland white cupboards throughout, try using dark grey paint to bring your room into the current design trends.

Super bright white

Get rid of the white? Really? Some people are going in the opposite direction.  They have decided that white is the perfect way to add vibrancy.  Indeed, using a bright, white, minimalist look can look robust.  It is especially useful in a kitchen where there is limited natural light, as the surfaces will reflect and scatter whatever light comes in.

There are problems with an all-white kitchen – primarily keeping it clean.  The level of upkeep can be a significant downside.  You will also need all-white major appliances; otherwise, your fridge or your washing machine could become a feature piece.

Although a highly stylized and powerful look, an all-white kitchen is an option for those willing to fully commit.

Contrast for the latest trend

A modern look plays with the color wheel.  Where you have a dominant color, you will look for your signature shade on the other side of the color wheel.

This approach to interior design is most effective if you select primary colors – your reds, blues, and yellows – then looking to the opposite color for the highlights.  Equally, you could focus on one area of the room – the floor, for instance.  If you lay tiles in lines across the floor, you can lengthen your kitchen and give it a much more modern look.

If you want the white surfaces to scatter the light, but you don’t want a completely sterile environment, this approach allows you to have a compromise.

Flowers rule!

Vintage is the new cutting edge – interior design is all about ironies.  If you want to add a proper dash of color, you can put up some floral wallpaper.  It is a look that will look wonderful with a welsh dresser and will help you make the most of a feature piece of furniture you already own.

Floral is useful if you desire that cottage look in your kitchen.

And finally

To brighten your kitchen requires courage.  There is no need to accept utility – you can be bold.

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