Brighten up Your Kitchen Quickly and Easily
Turns out it is easy being green—or yellow, or any other bold hue. It just takes the right paint and a few key colorful pieces.
The color is Herb Garden by Benjamin Moore. Flat Glass Pendant Lamp by CB2 ($159). Photo by Colin Price Photography.
Interior designer Noz Nozawa did a complete overhaul of this kitchen in San Francisco. On determining the cabinetry color: “The client had been dreaming of a green kitchen, but wasn’t sure how safe to play it—whether she should only paint the island green, or if she should tone it down to a dusty sage. I felt we needed to fully commit to all-green cabinetry, in a true Kelly green, and as soon as the first coat went on, we both knew it was going to be amazing….I’m pretty much all for color going all over a kitchen. Colorful cabinetry is such a high-impact visual treat because cabinetry takes up the most surface area in the kitchen.”
Courtesy of Rebecca Long Pyper
Rebecca Long Pyper on the design for her Idaho Falls, ID home: “My design philosophy is simple: I want a happy cottage. Yellow is the perfectly happy color, and I wanted my kids to start each morning with a healthy dose of it. The (custom) yellow patterned tile was inspired by my grandma’s yellow linoleum floors. I loved them as a child and still do.”
Steal the Look
Kitchen Chef Satchel Apron
This apron packs a bright visual punch with its basil color, and it’s got three large pockets—perfect for those with limited counter space.
Picardie Tumbler
What better way to style open shelving and glass front cabinetry than with these fabulously colorful versions of utterly timeless water glasses?
More Videos From Sunset
Caraway Perracotta Pot
From sage to perracotta (pink + terracotta), Caraway’s colorful cookware pops. Its popular sets include a frying pan, sauce pan, sauté pan, and a Dutch oven.
Mini Rice Cooker by Dash
A great option for those tight on space—this small but mighty appliance can cook up to two cups of grains.
Smeg Refrigerator
Embrace the forever popular mid-century modern aesthetic with one of Smeg’s colorful fridges, ranging from pastel pink to canary yellow.
Paint Tips from the Pros
John Granen
Nicole Gibbons, Founder and CEO of Clare Paint and Erika Woelfel, Vice President of Color & Creative Services at Behr both weigh in on picking paint colors for your kitchen.
If you want to add a little color to your kitchen, opting for a vibrant color on your island is a great idea,” says Gibbons. She recommends trying a light blue-green with marble countertops. “It’s a great way to add color to your kitchen without feeling overwhelming.”
From a paint standpoint, white, grays, and blues are classic. But bold colors like navy blue, forest green, and burgundy are really popular.
“Upper and lower cabinets don’t need to match. For a lighter feeling, go white or neutral on your uppers and opt for a bolder choice on the bottom. The contrast always feels very fresh,” says Gibbons.
“Remember that your ceilings are a canvas too,” says Woelfel. “Painted ceilingsare an unexpected surprise—ceilings are the fifth wall. I love to flood a room a pop of unexpected color like yellow by painting the ceiling. It helps define the mood.”
This story originally appeared in our summer 2020 Outdoor Living issue.
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