Are you tired of your white kitchen looking too boring? Get inspired by these 30 innovative methods to revitalize your area and add flair.
1. Textural Touches
Different textures that recall a range of stylistic references make the kitchen in this Peter Dunham-designed home in Newport, California, more subtle than it might first seem. For instance, the sage-hued clay tiles (from Mission Tile West) and the rush-backed counter stools (from Hollywood at Home) veer more toward the elegant rustic end of the spectrum, whilst the brass trimmed hood leans slightly toward the industrial.
2. Sublime Sophistication
Celerie Kemble created this tranquil white kitchen in a Naples, Florida getaway, and wood touches like the dark-stained rafters and the interlocking white oak tile by Jamie Beckwith give it a touch of rustic warmth.
3. The Midas Touch
Golden elements, such as a brass leaf Tommaso Barbi chandelier and a polished brass-trimmed yacht table by Soane Britain, provide opulent glitter to the otherwise bland kitchen of this Alex Papachristidis-designed Long Island beach house.
4. Global Influence
Scandinavian bent birch plywood stools (Alvar Aalto) serve as contemporary counterpoints to a set of copper cookware and 19th-century Portuguese tile work (Solar Tiles) in this kitchen designed by David Netto in Connecticut. Wolf, dual-fuel range.
5. Tropical Warmth
Designer Matthew Carter’s Bahamas retreat features a kitchen that is grounded in organic island simplicity with mahogany counters, Abaco pine rafters, and vintage wicker pendant shades. Rohl, sink fixtures.
6. Tile for Days
The kitchen of this Ken Fulk-designed wine country property in California is anchored in gorgeous rusticity by reclaimed brick floors, wood counters, and ceiling-height wall tiles in alternate dimensions (Waterworks).
7. California Dreaminess
This Mark D. Sikes-designed home’s kitchen has a warm, vintage look thanks to oil-rubbed bronze hardware (Rejuvenation) and creamy white cabinetry (White Tie, Farrow & Ball). Rohl, sink, and fittings.
8. Tucked In
This Angie Hranowsky-designed home in Austin, Texas, features a gray-white kitchen with black pendant lights hanging over a black island beneath an arched opening.
9. Southern Comfort
A textured, raffia-style woven fabric (Opuzen) is used to cover Louis XIII reproduction stools (Dennis & Leen) in the white kitchen of this Nashville home designed by Richard Hallberg. Sherwin-Williams’ Egret is the color used for cabinetry paint.
10. Mid-Century Chic
MoMA alum Alison Berger’s blown-glass pendants transform above-island lighting into modern art in this Dallas kitchen designed by Meredith McBrearty. The mid-century room is warmed by a parade of intriguing textures, including leathered quartzite worktops, glazed Moroccan tile work (Clé Tile), and quilted leather stools (Studio Piet Boon).
11. Game-changing Backsplash
The kitchen of this Bronxville, New York, home, which was designed by Carrier and Company, is made more lively by a stylish checkerboard backsplash made of glazed terra-cotta tile (Ann Sacks). The sink fixtures are from Waterworks.
12. Minimalist Magic
Marble-wrapped cabinetry divides the cream and soft gray kitchen from the room in architect Ken Pursley’s midcentury home in Charlotte, North Carolina. Off the sink is a slender prep counter made of plated steel.
13. Bistro Beauty
In the kitchen of this Melanie Turner-designed home in Atlanta, Georgia, a stylish set of tiled arcs echoes the contours of the arched window and barrel-back barstools while twisting the classic barrel-vaulted ceiling.
14. Straight from Eden
In the kitchen of this Summer Thornton-designed property in Naples, a glass pane shields hand-painted tropical wallpaper behind a custom blue-tinted hood and Lacanche range. The leather stool upholstery is from Moore & Giles.
15. European Flair
Benjamin Moore’s Pale Oak paint is used on the cabinetry and bespoke metal hood in the kitchen of this Gil Schafer-designed harborfront Maine house. This is probably our favorite from this list.
16. Elegance Untamed
In the kitchen of this Ashley Whittaker-designed neo-Georgian home in Connecticut, two surprising patterns, checkerboard flooring, and a geo-floral seating fabric by Raoul, brighten warm white subway tile, cabinetry, and counters. Palecek counter stools. Viking, Range. Charles Edwards pendant lighting.
17. A Splash of Color
A breakfast banquette with channel upholstery backs up to an ingeniously curved kitchen island at the Birmingham house of half of the design team Hundley Hilton. Kravet, leather banquette, and mohair stool fabric.
18. Showstopping Centerpiece
A large white wood and calacatta marble island are paired with custom chairs covered in linen slipcovers in this kitchen of a French-American home created by Brooke and Steve Giannetti of Giannetti Home. South of Market: Reproduction lanterns. The sink fixtures are from Waterworks.
19. Let the Light In
According to architect Gil Schafer, the kitchen’s design was built on “a lot of light and views.” The range is made by Wolf, and the island countertop is made of pippy oak. Miles Redd created the historic house, which is situated on Rhode Island’s Block Island.
20. White Meets Vivid Turquoise
The kitchen in this Baker’s Bay, Bahamas, home is surrounded by a vibrant turquoise jungle created by decorator Amanda Lindroth using de Gournay’s Amazonia wallpaper.
21. Natural Contrasts
In Veronica Swanson Beard’s Nantucket home, pearly Moroccan wall tiles contrast with a slate backsplash and rustic wood counters, and they go well with white cabinets. The lighting pendants are from Hector Finch.
22. Brass Accents
Liz Lange’s restored Grey Gardens estate in East Hampton features brass accents on the vent hood, stove, sinks, and white cabinetry in handles. Charles Edwards kitchen flush mounts. The island pendant is from Visual Comfort & Co.
23. Bold Color Wrap
You can add a striking splash of color to the walls of a white kitchen. Local designer, Jim Dove, was inspired by American decorating guru Dorothy Draper’s bold use of color in this Kips Bay Decorator Showhouse in Palm Beach. He wrapped the entertaining-minded space in an ultramarine tropical mural and used new blush pairings. Silestone (Cosentino) with gold veins sits atop the elegant L-shaped island.
24. Stone Showcase
This Upper East Side townhouse in New York has a stone-clad kitchen (Christopher Peacock) with a combination of sivec, arabescato, and dolomite surfaces. Carrier and Company designed the interior of the house.
25. Floors with Character
Together with its neutral Pegasus marble counters, linen white cabinetry paint, and black accessories, this white Hartford, Connecticut kitchen is given a feeling of age and character by the design of its painted wood floors. Kristen McCory designed the kitchen, which also has a sepia English garden mural and a deep burgundy Lacanche range and hood.
26. Opulent Walls
Statuario marble adorns the kitchen walls in this Huff-Dewberry, Inc.-designed estate in Atlanta, adding an air of earthy grandeur. The bar at Le Sirenuse in Positano, Italy, served as the model for the handpainted floor tiles.
27. Streamlined Function
Making the kitchen more useful by streamlining it was one of the first things architect James F. Carter did to update this Birmingham house. The kitchen’s heart pine-topped island and lacquered brass lights (The Urban Electric Co.) contrast with the white tile walls and cabinetry.
28. Original Details
The kitchen serves as a calming meeting spot at the center of the house, even though the majority of this Greek Revival house is bursting with color and design. To add to the cook space’s patina and charm, designer Caroline Rafferty combined a butcher block island and an oversized apron-front sink with the original wood floorboards.
29. Rustic Refresh
In their almost century-old Canadian home, Rhiannon and Travis Hageman preserved the original architectural characteristics, but to suit the needs of their small family, the kitchen needed a dash of contemporary utility. The new appliances and layout are balanced by the old brass hardware and lighting, as well as the creamy white cabinetry, which lends charm and character.
30. Rustic Simplicity
Open shelves in the kitchen of landscape architect Marco Bay’s home in Portofino, Italy, showcase a variety of Ligurian and heritage items. The sconces came from a flea market in Paris. The next terrace, which offers views of the sea, is paved with brick.
