ACo: Designing a Gray Kitchen

Recent trends suggest gray is the new beige when it comes to designing interior spaces – It’s everywhere! It’s neutral, it’s complementary, and with an endless number of color options available, it can look beautiful in any space.

Once considered to be only applicable in modern or farmhouse style homes, designers are now reimagining the color to make it work with everything from classical and traditional décor to transitional designs too.

In recent years, gray has seen a large presence in kitchen design – the paint on the walls, the backsplash tile, the countertops and now the cabinetry too. Because of its neutral characteristics and versatility, it can provide a clean backdrop in a room or it can be the star of the show.

HERE ARE 3 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN DESIGNING A GRAY KITCHEN:

• Tone. Do you prefer a light & bright space, or something a bit darker and more intimate? Light gray cabinets pair well with the ever-popular marble-looking countertops and white subway tile, like many kitchens that are designed today. The light gray color allows for subtle interest in an otherwise white kitchen and keeps the space feeling large and airy. Dark gray cabinets are typically designed to create a bit of contrast in a room often making a space feel a little cozier.

• Hue. Do you prefer a cool gray or the new warmer “greige”? Grays can range from icy frost to a warm almost-taupe color, so when it comes to redesigning your gray kitchen, think about what type of gray you want. Cool grays typically pair well with whites and blues and tend to complement contemporary and minimalist spaces, whereas warm grays and taupes are more common in traditional and transitional design and complement earth tones, like greens and browns. That said, warm grays can also be designed with blues and whites, too. It is for this reason that trends suggest the warm grays are slightly more popular and here to stay longer than the cool grays.
• Opacity. Do you prefer a solid paint on your cabinetry, or do you want to see the beauty of the wood with a transparent stain? Grays aren’t only available in paints, nowadays gray stains are becoming extremely popular too. Painted gray cabinets give a crisp and clean look to a space and pair nicely with shaker style doors and simplistic transitional kitchens. While stains also work in a transitional space, they can be perfect for traditional homes as well. The gray stain preserves the beauty of natural hardwood by allowing the grains to be seen, while the gray color of the stain keeps the cabinetry feeling current.

Not sure what style is right for you? Stop by ACo in Carmel and check out the latest grays that just arrived in our showroom. Then schedule a complimentary design consultation to begin designing your own gray kitchen.