Not So Traditional
From butcher block to cabinets to floors and even backsplashes, wood fits right in the kitchen. The well lit space is a great place to showcase the patterns in the material’s grain. And, when its surface is polished, even the darkest cherry or mahogany will still reflect light. But if wood brings to mind more traditional interiors, think again: Simply designed cabinetry with minimalist hardware often makes the best backdrop for wood’s features, while the inherent warmth of the material will cozy up just about any ultra-modern cookspace.
Great Grain
Gorgeous bourbon-hued wood is the feature in this space, from the island to the window frames. Warm white paint adds to the cheerful effect.
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Into the Woods
A classic Craftsman-style kitchen clad in oak still gets plenty of light from the window bank painted bright white.
Cherry, Oh Baby
Cherry cabinets, golden brown granite, and red oak floors emanate warmth and cheer in this well-appointed chef’s galley kitchen.
This kitchen belongs to Manhattan chef Michael Lomonaco, who drew on two decades of restaurant experience when redoing his New York apartment kitchen. As TOH reported, an open restaurant kitchen has to look good — and so does a home cook center that’s visible from main living spaces. Lomonaco chose cherry cabinets from Wood-Mode fitted with long stainless steel pulls for the kind of grab-and-go access found in a restaurant kitchen, with mocha granite covering countertops, backsplashes, and the windowsill for easy-to-clean surfaces.
Pro Tip: Chef and homeowner Michael Lomonaco explains his approach to kitchen organization: “In a commercial kitchen, you learn to keep things tidy with cooking tools stored out of sight.” To achieve that, his cherry cabinets conceal pots-and-pans drawers that hold up to 150 pounds of cookware apiece, plus slotted cutlery drawers that organize tools just as he would at work.
Deep Doesn’t Have to Mean Dark
Even wood has colors in it. Here, muted red walls and blue beams bring out the rosy glow of the wood cabinetry and window frames.
Pro Tip: Sue Wadden, director of color marketing at Sherwin-Williams, explains the strategy behind this kind of pairing: “One option is to balance warm wood tones with cool colors like blue or slate gray.” The cool blue beams here do exactly that, creating contrast that lets the rosy warmth of the cabinetry take center stage.
Timeless Yet Modern
Beautiful, amber toned-wood cabinets really shine in this airy, paired down space.
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Smooth Transition
Muted mustard-colored paint unifies the cabinetry and island.
Provide a place to shelve cookbooks and sip coffee when you build a window seat.
Broad in the Beam
Bare, horizontal boards make for a bigger looking kitchen.
Let this kitchen backsplash style guide lead the way for the rest of your cookspace’s decor.
Pro Tip: Georgia-based designer Katie DeRario suggests sticking with 10-inch-wide planks for shiplap and V-groove so they look more like paneling and less like siding, which is typically narrower. For beadboard, she prefers 3 to 4 inches between beads for a more modern feel.
Steal This Idea: Architect Erica Bröberg Smith repurposed leftover wide-plank pine flooring as horizontal wainscoting in her eat-in kitchen. Her contractor routed a bead between the two horizontal boards and added a simple baseboard and cap for a more finished look. The natural wood tone goes with just about any decorative scheme—and the material cost was essentially zero.
A Rich Palette
A red beadboard backsplash and black granite countertop add to the wood cabinetry’s richness. Wood knobs add vintage flavor.
What’s Old Is New
A salvaged wood island sits atop warm maple floor boards.
This modern vintage kitchen has major design chops with an open plan and the right dose of charm.
Clever Contrast
A black-tile backsplash and oil-rubbed bronze pulls and latches light up red birch cabinetry in this Craftsman-style kitchen.
A wood kitchen is the perfect way to pull off classic Craftsman style.
This new kitchen in a 1921 home features red birch cabinetry with a furniture look for to-the-ceiling storage that also conceals most of the appliances. While the island cooktop and granite counters may not be historically accurate, they suit the homeowners’ needs—proving that Craftsman style can flex to fit modern life.
Orange Aid
Juicy orange warms up the walls and heightens the warmth of heirloom oak cabinetry.
Spanish Colonial Revival
Golden alder cabinets and chestnut flooring glow against jade-green subway tiles.
Distressed cabinet pulls and distressed alder cabinets pull together an old world look in a 1940s Spanish Revival home.
Go With the Grain
Vertical striations in bamboo cabinetry add graphic punch, giving this space modern appeal.
A designer-contractor duo transformed a dated kitchen into an expanded, green-hued haven.
In the original project, designer and homeowner Dana Jones paired Plyboo bamboo base cabinets with apple-green upper cabinets. As Jones put it: “The most remarkable thing about the kitchen is the color—the apple-green cabinets give the room personality and tie it to the rest of the house.” A bamboo telephone cabinet around the living room corner echoed the kitchen’s Plyboo base cabinets, creating a cohesive flow between spaces.
Dynamic Duo
Unexpected yet harmonious hues—muted green and purple—make exposed beams and wood flooring pop.
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Colors in Concert
A honey-colored island topped with sturdy vintage butcher block ties in with cherry cabinets.
Fall-hued kitchen elements bring vibrant touches to indoor spaces all year long.
Gorgeously Grounded
A cherry-stained island adds depth to a kitchen done primarily in paler muted hues.
The best of the best brought a small kitchen to peak performance in the same footprint.
Paint it Black (and Blue)
An island painted in licorice and cobalt adds a jolt of color to a kitchen dominated by wood flooring and cabinetry.
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Pro Tip: Brian Yahn of Plain & Fancy Custom Cabinetry in Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania, notes: “Paint allows you to put your personal stamp on cabinetry.” His clients often request a custom hue—or two—with upper cabinets in one shade and base cabinets in another for maximum impact.
A Modern Take
These minimalist slab cabinets show that wood isn’t just for traditional kitchens. A yellow glass mosaic tile blacksplash and butcher-block counters in the same color family add heft to the streamlined style.
Recreate at least part of this look in your own home with glass mosaic tile backsplash step-by-step instructions.
Happy Medium
Cabinetry painted a medium gray-brown, along with a cherry-stained island, add coziness to a brightly lit space.
Good design rules in sensational space-saving kitchens.
Burnished and Bright
Butter-cream walls bolster and brighten cherry-colored cabinetry and woodwork.
