Some decisions are easier than others. And, depending upon your personality, choosing the right color for your kitchen cabinets might feel like a breeze or you may feel an impending weight at the very thought of it. No matter what camp you fall into, the bottom line is this: there is a right and wrong way to approach this decision. Here are some guiding principles to help you choose rightly!
1. Consider Your Kitchen’s Style
With a myriad of design styles to evaluate, this may seem like an overwhelming consideration. But whatever you do, please avoid the temptation to feel like requires a comprehensive dig or need to identify (for the rest of all time) what style best represents you! The fact is, for most of us, we adopt whatever style is present within a home when we move in. For this exercise, take a quick assessment of the elements of your kitchen to determine style. Here are some basics to guide you:
#1 Cabinets. Do they have simple or minimal details, like simple Shaker styles, or do they have more ornate details and molding that might be present with a raised panel.
#2 Counters. Account for the material of your counters. More traditional styles might include marble or granite or laminate made to look like either of these while more modern styles might include higher gloss quartz with a streamlined color and minimal pattern.
Common Kitchen Styles
- Traditional – will include cabinets with detail and crown molding and will incorporate granite or marble with pattern and movement that coordinates with backsplash that has a shared pattern scheme.
- Farmhouse – will include cabinets with simple details and simple backsplash (often clean subway tile with dark grout); it might have butcher block or beadboard used around the space.
- Modern – cabinets will be sleek with minimal detail and ; stainless steel or high shine
- Transitional – usually has a blend of traditional and modern elements; the lines are typically clean and simplified
Great Colors for Kitchens – Based on Style
Traditional
Farmhouse
Modern
Transitional
2. Account for Other Colors in the Room
Pay attention to the colors around the room. Quickly inventory what hues exist already. Here are some areas to assess:
- Walls – what is the undertone of the wall color, more warm or cool? Remember, painting walls is also easily changed, so if you decide you just don’t like this color, you can always change this! Try. not to have your walls and cabinets be the same color unless you are going for a color drenching in the space (unless it’s white on white).
- Backsplash – is there one color or is there a pattern?
- Counters – are they dark or light?
- Fixtures – even if you are planning to change out the hardware, you should still consider other fixtures in the room. This would be lighting, and finishes present on doors and windows to name a few.
Generally speaking, having a contrast between your cabinets and counters makes for good design, and in many cases, this is the best recommendation – keep a contrast. However, more important than whether counters are lighter or darker is what undertone is present. Your design will look the most cohesive when you ensure the undertone of both cabinet and counter are the same – if your counters have a warm undertone, your cabinet color should also have a warm undertone.
For this kitchen, we skipped the contrast of counters and cabinets but rather focused on keeping the same undertone and then added a high contrast with our fixtures. To read all of the details of this kitchen makeover, click HERE. 
Pro-tip: Ensuring the same undertone matters just as much as what other colors are present in the room!
3. Lighting Matters
Lighting can make a big difference when selecting paint color. Determining the amount of natural light and evaluating the amount of cool and warm lighting can be helpful in making the right selection.
Lighting with a higher Kelvin (over 4000) is cooler. Warmer lighting will have a Kelvin value below 3000. I recommend daylight/soft white to keep the color as close to what you see on the swatch as possible (3,000-4,000). I hope this chart will help guide you. 
Pro Tip: Keep your space well balanced when it comes to lighting. The best way to do this, is to make sure you can account for both cool and warm lighting in your space so it will help create a soft balance for the whole room.
4. Room Size and Layout
When it comes to the size of a room and selecting paint colors, there are some general principles to draw from. However, when designing a room, I encourage clients to keep an open mind.
Room Size & Selecting Color
To illustrate the need to keep an open mind, let’s bust the go-to (and over simplified) idea that lighter makes things bigger and darker makes things look smaller. Here’s my assessment by way of an example:
You may have heard that darker colors of paint will make a room look smaller. While this can be a truism, I am hesitant to make this a hard and fast rule. It may be true in some spaces, but the conversation doesn’t stop there. A darker color can work to elevate a space and can also create a focal point and statement. The right combination and use of dark colors in some situations can actually draw your eye out, making things look bigger.
If you love darker colors or want to employ a statement moment in your kitchen, follow these helpful tips. 1) Paint the lower cabinets in a darker color while keeping the top lighter. 2) Paint an island or pantry section of your kitchen in a dark color and keep the other cabinets lighter. 3) Create a monochromatic look by painting the cabinets and walls the same color and keeping the accents brighter. Below is an example of a kitchen painted in Benjamin Moore Tarrytown Green with the wall painted the same color, and I think it’s a great example of this last tip – using a monochromatic technique. To read the whole blog post on this kitchen before and after, click HERE. 
Cabinet Color & Kitchen Layout
The layout of your kitchen truthfully is not as directly related to your cabinet color, but it is worth mentioning a few key things to evaluate.
Although there are several layouts with specifics, here is a list of the most common layouts: L-shaped kitchens, galley kitchens, u-shaped or horseshoe, 1 wall, and island centered.
There are not hard and fast rules about selecting specific colors based on the room layout, but there are some things to consider. For example, galley kitchens often have a lot of cabinets floor to ceiling which can make your space feel cramped. To combat this, you may want to consider a lighter neutral color to open things up.
5. Determine Your Desired Goal or Outcome
As with much we do, it is important to know what your end goal is. From there, you can find out the best way to get there. For this, I would like to offer a few thoughts on knowing the mood you want and helping create that with color.
CALMING: To create calm, select soft whites and subtle greens and blues.
ENERGIZING: For more energizing feel, mid tone greens are a great option. I like this example of a project we completed, where we used Cedar Mountains, a mid-tone green by Benjamin Moore. To see the full makeover, click HERE.
TIMELESS: To keep things timeless, deep navy and rich greens will work well as will creamy whites and staple neutrals. Some of my favorite colors are below:
Final Thoughts
I hope you have found these tips to be helpful as you consider the selection of your kitchen cabinets. REMEMBER, don’t get bogged down with following all of the right rules. Allow your decision to be guided with them while keeping perspective of the whole project.
If you are struggling to know where to begin, please reach out to us! Our 1 Hour Design Consultation is a great way to assess the needs for your kitchen or any other project you may have. Appointments can be in-person or virtual.
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Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)
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