Have you considered using blue for your kitchen cabinetry?

For those of you who love classic style decorating, you should really consider incorporating blue kitchen cabinetry into your next kitchen scheme.  Whether you like a farmhouse look, an upmarket Hamptons style or a classic English scheme, using just white on its own, although lovely, can sometimes leave you wanting.  Smart dark grey works well with white and is a great neutral however introducing some blue kitchen cabinetry really injects personality into your kitchen design.  Think fashionable Ralph Lauren and beautiful East Coast American style and you are well on your way to coveting a dark blue kitchen.

Ralph Lauren Home

I treat dark navy blue as an alternative neutral to black or grey.  It happens to be my favourite colour so I am possibly, well almost definitely, biased, but there is something about dark blue cabinetry that I absolutely love and if you love classic style decorating, I am sure you will love it too.  Below I have my 6 key points to help you to introduce this gorgeous colour into your next kitchen renovation.

Devol Kitchens

Here are my top 6 tips for choosing blue kitchen cabinetry

1) The right Blue

Ensure that the blue that you select contains enough grey to make it work.  A navy blue that is too bright will not be successful – remember that you are using this blue as an alternative neutral, not as a feature wall colour.

I like Dulux Presidential which is a sophisticated blue/grey or you could try Dulux Grid for a slightly greyer, darker look.  Depending upon where you are in the world, Little Greene Hicks Blue, Farrow & Ball Stiffkey Blue or Porters Nova Scotia for a warmer blue/grey are all contenders.  If you would like to introduce more of this colour into your space then ensure that you use exactly the same paint on the walls as on the kitchen cabinetry so that the match is perfect.

Little Greene Paint Company

2) Two tone kitchen

If you are planning a two tone kitchen using blue and white, then always use the darker colour for the base cabinetry.  This grounds the scheme and prevents it from looking top heavy.

Of course you don't have to partner the blue with white as it is also very effective with a soft neutral grey.  I really like to use my accent colour on the island bench as this is a great focal point for the room.  If you keep the white or grey for the kitchen cabinetry on the outside walls, this becomes the work zone for the kitchen and then your island bench becomes the convivial meeting point for dining/drinks and chatting with friends and family.

3) Kickboards

For a classic look ensure that the kickboards are painted in the same blue as the lower cabinetry so that the joinery looks more like a piece of furniture – a white or silver kickboard would really destroy the look here.  Kitchen manufacturers are getting into the navy blue trend and are producing laminates in this colour so that you don't have to have a painted finish on your kickboards.  If the style of your kitchen is to have set back kickboards then the shadow created here ensures that this can work and provides you with a hardier finish than paint.

 

4) Cabinet door handles

Carefully consider the handles that you will use.  Dark blue kitchen cabinetry is complemented well with either silver or gold but will give you quite a different feel as you can see in the images here.  Gold is great with dark blue but will give you a more traditional feel while silver will bring a contemporary touch.  Handles really do change the personality of a kitchen so ensure that you like the effect by placing the handle against a large sample of the paint colour.

Related: How to choose kitchen door handles

 

5) The benchtop and splashback

Don't forget to consider the effect of a benchtop and splashback.  I do love a contrast with the dark blue so really like a white benchtop, either something plain or a beautiful marble that can also be used for the splash back.  Or for a more affordable style, a simple white subway tile looks good too.  A natural timber benchtop will look great but provides less of a contrast.  There is no right or wrong. It will just give you a different feel so you need to consider the outcome that you prefer.  Remember that using dark blue kitchen cabinetry is making a statement, so keep the splash back simple as there is nothing worse than too many statement pieces in a decorating scheme.

6) The cabinetry finish

Finally, consider the finish of your kitchen cabinetry.  Either a matt or at the most satin finish is the way to go here.  A gloss finish will bounce the light around and will completely ruin the look as you need the beautiful depth that you get when the finish is more matt.