I'm just wondering if anyone has any ideas on painting my kitchen cabinets? I wanted some colors that would make my kitchen seem bigger. But the colors in here also wrap around my tiny dining area, which is open to the living room. Please Help!
Could you match the maple-colored trim? It would be lighter, but before committing to it, see if you can find some paper (think art supply or wallpaper store) that would have that color range so you could see how it would look
Paint everything semi-glossy white or off white for the biggest looking kitchen! If you want color, stay with pastels with just a little bit of dark colors. Stay in one family, say for example, white, sage with a tiny bit of hunter.
Hot colors (orange, yellow & red) tend to make rooms look smaller.
Another thing that makes something look bigger is anything SHINY. It's the because light bounces around on shiny surfaces. You could wrap the cabinets in a stainless or aluminum skin (you can buy a thin stick-on stainless veneer), You can also paint your walls with aluminum paint or light silver "Hammerite" brand paint (it's oil based) or put real stainless on the backsplash. Another thing that "bounces light" is to use shiny glass tiles in the backslash or counter top (glass tiles have depth).
Also, another surprising thing is that a VERY dark color in the right places will recess a space (& make it look larger)... If you use a very dark color like black, dark blue, very dark burgundy or dark brown or very dark gray in a small area (like just a back splash, (with white cabinets) it will make the room actually appear larger, because of the recessed effect.
A new, trendy, but old-fashioned french look is to do black and white.
paint the top cabinets white paint the bottom cabinets black
It looks like you have beige, or taupe countertops...this is fine, and the black/white will look modern, updated, and will really brighten up your kitchen!
Also it will look nice viewed from any room. Your small dining room, try putting accents that are red and green, or blue and white. Put a black and white picture of the Eiffel tower on the wall. Get a ceramic rooster. This look is very much in style, and will look great for a long time!
I would go with an antique off white or a cream to brighten it up. Just make sure you sand first and use a good primer so the paint adheres well. Here's more on that:
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