27 Kitchens with Colorful Accents

From classic white spaces to dramatic black rooms, every kitchen looks livelier and more welcoming with a pop of color. Adding bright and cheery hues is any easy way to update your kitchen without resorting to a full-scale renovation. While you can certainly go for a fully saturated space, we’ve found that even the smallest additions can energize a kitchen. David Netto sheathed one wall of a Southampton, New York, kitchen with vibrant tiles that harmonize with the space’s white cabinetry and island, while Miles Redd used bright cherry-red barstools to energize a black-and-white kitchen in Houston, Texas.

If you want to go bold, consider painting the kitchen’s cabinetry. Designer Muriel Brandolini went for yellow cabinets in her sunny New York kitchen; in Charlotte Ronson and Nate Ruess’s Manhattan apartment, which was designed by Paul Fortune and Gachot Studios, sage kitchen cabinetry sets a calming mood.

In a contemporary interior, try bright red seating or a canary-yellow pendant light to add pizzazz to the eating area. Designer India Mahdavi used a cheery yellow table in a modern kitchen at a Connecticut estate and Annabelle Selldorf used colorful pendant lights and a red banquette to break up the sleek lines in a Manhattan townhouse’s kitchen. In a more traditional space, consider dining chairs upholstered in a bright fabric, a coat of bold paint on the base of an island, or perhaps a jewel-tone banquette in the breakfast nook. Color is also a great way to highlight architectural elements such as shutters and wood paneling—or take a cue from Miles Redd and give the floor a vibrant coat of paint.

If you’re ready to give your kitchen a colorful new style, take a look at these 27 kitchens from the Architectural Digest archives that inject color in all the right places. You’re sure to find just the right accent to cheer up your space.