Making a dark kitchen bright is good for your mood, the aesthetics, your safety too. Who wants to use the knife under an ill lamp? And although this is hardly the situation in most homes, there may still be some dark spots. But do you know what? This can change. There are all sorts of things you can do to make the kitchen brighter – hence, happier and more functional. Should we tell you how to make your kitchen facelift work to your benefit?
Time for new kitchen lighting
Obviously, the first thing you need to consider is the kitchen lighting. Are there only some parts of the room which are dark? Or the entire kitchen is dark? You need lights over all task areas – the countertop and kitchen island. For the latter, you can use pendants while you can place under the cabinet strip lights for the former. Use recessed lights for the ceiling and also, inside the cabinets. Small or big, with or without a window, the kitchen should be filled with lighting fixtures (most of which could be hidden, like recessed) even if they are not used at all times. You need all the light you can get in this room and so, invest in task lights but don’t say no to ambient lighting either.
When it comes to kitchen lightings, it’s not only about having enough fixtures at strategic places but also about having the right bulbs and light colors. You need bright bulbs, pretty cold colors, LEDs.
Remove a wall, create an open plan kitchen
If this is a closed kitchen, why not open it? Assuming you can do that without compromising the structure’s integrity, it’s one of the best ideas to bring more light to the kitchen area. It surely is not the easiest or cheapest kitchen renovation, but it will make a huge difference.
Put a pop of color
An accent color may work wonders. You need something bright that will make the kitchen happier. This may be a colored refrigerator. Or a separate kitchen cabinet in an accent color, like turquoise, yellow, orange, or pink.
Embrace metallic colors
Metallic surfaces are reflective and this gives the impression of additional brightness. You could achieve that by getting stainless steel kitchen countertops or going metallic with the sink, or some small kitchen appliances. You could use a metallic surface for the backsplash or just get a stainless-steel fridge.
Paint the kitchen white
Going all white in the kitchen is the easy way to renovate without spending much and make the room bright. Nothing beats white. With a white kitchen, the colorful accessories will stand out, making a statement and even adding extra brightness to the room.
Now, if you don’t like white kitchens, you could use contrast colors. Avoid too dark hues. Prefer happy colors, bright tones – at least at some parts of the kitchen.
Change upholstery
Sometimes, kitchens look dark due to the dull colors of the upholstery. Although the tone of brightness is given by the main elements in the room – walls, kitchen cabinets, floor, countertop, the level of brightness is also affected by the items in the kitchen. These would include the upholstery too. Pay attention to the curtains of the kitchen window. It’s better to choose white or neutral colors and also, remember to pull up the blinds.
Paint wood kitchen cabinets
While nothing compares to the beauty of wood, kitchen cabinets become too traditional and the room loses some of its brightness. Even if the tone of wood is light, it will not brighten up the kitchen. So, if you intend to renovate the kitchen and want to make it brighter, paint the cabinets white. Change the hardware too, preferring nickel to bronze – it’s brighter. If you rather opt for another color, choose something bright, not dull. Turquoise, for example. It will certainly make your days brighter!
