Painting Your Kitchen Cabinets This Color Is A Design Disaster

About to paint your kitchen cabinets? If you're overwhelmed by all the choices, take our advice and steer clear of one color that's a designated design disaster: Dark blue.

Kitchens with dark blue cabinetry have been in vogue for many years due to their traditional feel and luxe vibe. Often employed to give a kitchen a timeless appearance, shades of dark blue, such as midnight, navy, and Oxford, come with their perks. For example, they can hide dust and dirt, and give off an expensive character when paired with quality hardware. However, these dark hues also absorb the light and can make compact kitchens look even smaller and darker. This is why painting your cabinets dark blue, or indeed any other dark color, is a disaster in galley kitchens or spaces with low ceilings and few windows.

While you might be pulled towards vintage kitchen design trends, like using dark colors, selecting bold patterns, and installing colorful appliances, they aren't ideal when looking to sell your home, either. Buyers tend to prefer kitchens that look open, spacious, and airy. This is why real estate agents often advise homeowners to stick to a neutral palette that draws the eye upwards and creates the illusion of space. The natural light from windows and skylights also bounces off paler colored cabinets, creating a brighter environment that looks welcoming and inviting. Finally, a blank canvas provides buyers with a clean slate to implement their own design ideas and visualize their space prior to purchase.

Now, this isn't to say you have to live with an entirely bland kitchen devoid of all personality. For instance, there are several paint colors to pair with white kitchen cabinets, which can add character to your space in smaller doses. Then, when the time comes to sell up, you can simply paint over the walls with an inexpensive neutral color and keep the paler cabinets as they are. Alternatively, if your heart is truly invested in having dark blue cabinets, consider creating contrast with lighter walls or tiling. 

The best kitchen design tips we've learnt from celebrities are to use light fixtures to add drama, and include raw materials for a grounding aesthetic that creates the illusion of space. However, fitting clear cabinetry is another celebrity trick that gives a kitchen a sense of airiness and height. Seeing as only the border of these clear upper cabinets is colored, and the rest of the doors are transparent, you can get away with using richer hues, such as grey or sage, in smaller measures. Another idea is to keep your cabinetry, walls, and light fixtures neutral, but paint your woodwork and doorways in a striking color.