When it comes to figuring out your paint palette start with Pinterest. Grab images that resonate with the heart. Many of us are afraid of using colour in kitchens hence white everywhere, but the minute you take the plunge it will quite literally change your life and your kitchen. You can get all techy and look to the Colour Wheel for inspiration (a colour circle showing you the relationship between primary, secondary, and tertiary colours) but I would ignore all that and instead encourage you to follow your heart and choose and select colours from a more emotional perspective. Look at Pinterest, grab images from magazines and take a look at my favourite go-to colour website, design-seeds.com (an excellent American site) with the most intoxicating images of colours you will ever see and a good starting off point.
With kitchens being the heart of the home and the gathering place for all daily activities, from a snatched cup of coffee to a leisurely supper, it’s super important to make the room as drop dead gorgeous as you possibly can. Colour is one of the simplest most transformative things you can ever do to turn them around.
Change the colour, change the game
There is a real shift afoot at the moment in making kitchens feels less clinical and more collected and curated. Changing up the colour palette is the simplest, most intoxicating, cheapest way of transforming the epicentre of our homes.
I happen to think that the kitchen colour scheme sets the tone for the rest of the home and should certainly influence your colour choices elsewhere. Colour quite simply is the biggest, most game changing, thing you can do to up the style ratings. No construction, no renovation just a brush and a can of paint.
The wheel of colour vs the emotional perspective
Matching the wall to the cabinets
Kitchens can present a paint colour challenge with a sea of cabinets everywhere so what I like to do to make things super sophisticated, cohesive and classy by matching the wall colour to the cabinets. I might throw in an accent wall colour but the trick here is to make sure the feature colour has the same intensity as the colour on the walls and the cabinets. That way everything feels harmonious rather than disparate.
Feature walls
If you are afraid to commit to a total colour overhaul then plump for a feature wall. It’s the best place to start. I love statement-making colours in kitchens, dark inky bottom of the lake type hues that have the ability to add a mysterious magical touch to these spaces. Colour, however, is personal so the best advice I can offer is not to follow trends and instead follow your heart.
Nature's inspiration
You can’t go wrong with looking to nature for colour inspiration. I do it all the time – the colours tones and hues found in forests, the sky or even deserts – earthy soft hues that play well with so many other colours. They add depth and excitement to the blandest of spaces and of course drama.
Making a personal statement
For me the kitchen should be an expression of the rest of your home with things in them that inspire and tell your story. One of the biggest ways to breathe new life into this space is to pepper in some accessories. Accessories lift areas making an instant impression. Well-chosen pieces in beautiful colours like artwork, rugs, some pendants a shelf of ceramics create beautiful strong focal points and instantly elevate. A pop of colour in a painting, a pattern on a rug will take the space to a whole other level. I use baskets a lot with woven geometric patterns - they make just the right statement without overpowering - or vintage Moroccan rugs with their subtle tribal patterns. I should mention that all kitchens need a dash of pattern. Think of pattern as being like a herb or spice - it literally will elevate the space and add instant pizazz, because if everything is a solid hue it can feel super flat.
Add some oomph!
I’ll leave you with one last thought; as tempting as it may be to go pale on everything, light hues everywhere deliver little in the way of oomph or intrigue. Whereas hues with deeper saturation levels (whether that’s an accessory or a wall colour) have far more personality. One of the most effective ways of adding individuality to your kitchen is through colour; it’s the most game-changing thing you can ever do!
Happy Decorating!
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