Painted Kitchens: Experimenting With Colour In Your Modern Kitchen

A kitchen colour update can completely transform your interior. A bold feature wall brings fresh energy and a new focus into the room. Repainted fittings breathe new life into older installations. Reimagining your space’s entire colour scheme can reinvent a property’s entire aesthetic. Get inspired to pick up the paint roller with these beautiful kitchen colour ideas, perfect for an easy upgrade.

Kitchen Colour Ideas to Make a Splash 

Neutrals have always been a popular option when choosing colour for a kitchen. However, we are seeing a growing number of clients who are looking to step away from an all neutral kitchen and opt for a splash of colour. You can make a real statement with bold colours, whether you paint your kitchen cupboards or furniture. Contrast light and dark, blend different shades, or add a splash of vibrancy.

If you want to bring some energy and personality to your bespoke kitchen, we’ve listed some simple yet effective ways to help add colour to your kitchen.

Kitchen Feature Walls

If you need some colourful kitchen ideas, and are ready to inject some fun into minimalist kitchen colour schemes, a feature wall is a fast way to do exactly that. A pared back, minimal aesthetic can look beautifully sleek, but if you’re ready to add some warmth and personality to your kitchen, a statement feature wall is a great option. This design feature could even be a stepping stone to embracing more colour in your home.

As the one wall which will stand out in your kitchen, care needs to be taken in choosing the perfect shade and choosing which wall you will accentuate. 

Here are a few feature wall do’s and don’ts…

• Do choose a shade which complements your existing interior
• Don’t choose a bold shade for impact alone (make sure the colour complements your furnishings and fabrics)
• Do choose a wall which is already a focal point (like behind the oven or kitchen island)
• Don’t choose ‘just any’ wall (this can draw the eye to unexpected areas of your kitchen)

Grey walls make the perfect backdrop to sleek white kitchen cabinetry. Blending these two colours creates an understated elegance.  Choosing a wall with open shelves displaying decorative plates or a wall with architectural features is a great choice to transform into the perfect accent wall. Painting a warmer colour on your kitchen rather than on the cabinets will create a more inviting feel. When you invest in a John Lewis of Hungerford kitchen you get the fabulous option of choosing from our range of 89 eggshell paint colours from our own developed paint formula or using our bespoke colour-matching service.

Bright Splashbacks

If a single feature wall doesn’t feel right for your space, but you still want to add a burst of colour, your kitchen splashback could be the perfect place to experiment with your colour ideas. 

Wipeable, grease-resistant paint is readily available, which means you can upgrade your splashbacks with a lick of paint, without worrying about their longevity. Already set above key focal areas of your kitchen, painted splashbacks are great for adding warmth to food preparation areas and for zoning different parts of an open plan kitchen space.

Painted Kitchen Cabinet Ideas

To extend your new splashback colour scheme further, consider applying the same shade (or a complementary hue) to painted kitchen cabinets. Choose timeless neutral cabinetry and bring your kitchen to life with eye-catching pops of striking colour. Understated kitchen cupboards are the perfect canvas to experiment with colour accents, whether you have a contemporary kitchen or a traditional kitchen.

A vibrant colour painted inside kitchen cabinets will give an instant brightening effect, and teamed with some spotlights or LED’s can be turned into a focal point of your new luxury kitchen. Choose striking colours such as bright greens, blues and yellows to really grab attention. If you want to show off your favourite dishware, then paint the inside of glass-fronted cabinets to create a dramatic background. 

Painted kitchen cabinets are a brilliantly easy way to add colour to your kitchen, without making a huge commitment. You can even try stick-on decals to experiment with colour without picking up a paintbrush. Choosing an adjacent colour can add depth and gentle variety to your interior, while choosing the same shade creates a more uniform look. For more inspiration, take a look at the colours and finishes in the John Lewis of Hungerford collection or discover these aesthetic accent colours for grey cabinets.

Pops Of Colour

Colourful Painted Furniture

Updating your furniture with a whole new shade is one of our favourite kitchen colour hacks. Your furniture — particularly kitchen tables and chairs — is often the focal point in the room. Adding a splash of colour can completely transform these key ingredients, creating cohesion or contrast with your new kitchen colour scheme. For those who love quirky design features, why not paint the legs of your table and chairs in varying shade?

Impactful Islands

Kitchen islands can easily be reimagined as part of upgraded kitchen colour schemes with a fresh coat of paint. As the heart of the kitchen, an island is a great place to add more colour for those keen to experiment with contrast and colour pops. If you’re looking to tie together new colour ideas, kitchen islands simply can’t be overlooked, and a fresh coat of paint will tie the entire scheme together.

Painted Shelves

Give kitchen colour schemes a quick update by painting your kitchen shelving. A quick lick of paint can take kitchen shelving from functional to beautiful. If you have open or glass-fronted cabinets, consider painting the shelving inside to add subtle variation, depth and visual interest to your space.

Colourful Kitchen Accessories

Adding colourful accessories to your kitchen is a simple and effective way to enhance aesthetics and bring some colour to the room. Well-chosen accessories make a great kitchen addition and can be functional too.

If you have open shelving consider displaying a mix of coloured crockery or useful storage jars to create a vibrant focal point. Perfect for keeping dry goods stored neatly and in easy reach. Something as simple as freshly cut flowers or greenery can add vibrancy and personality to your kitchen. Or if you love cooking why not add some fresh herbs. They look great and taste incredible too

Add colour with appliances. Large kitchen appliances such as a coloured range cooker can work perfectly as a statement piece. Or a funky retro fridge can really brighten up a kitchen.

Smaller appliances such as a kettle and toaster, look amazing too, especially when you buy a matching set. Even small additions of colour will change the whole look and feel of the kitchen.

Discover Colour with John Lewis of Hungerford

Our experienced designers and craftspeople are on hand to help you discover fresh new colourways for your kitchen. Share your palette and vision, and we can recommend bright ideas for new cabinetry, kitchen surfaces and furniture. Committed to quality, beauty and functionality, we design perfect fit fixtures, built to look beautiful long term.