Cabinet colors that make a small kitchen feel bigger, and when dark still works

Start with how much light a color reflects

Small kitchens usually have less window and less wall, so the light they do get has to work harder. That's where light reflectance value comes in. LRV measures how much light a surface bounces back, from none of it to all of it, and it's often printed on paint chips. A high number means a color that sends more light back into the room, and a low number means a color that soaks it up.

You don't need to memorize numbers. Just compare chips from the same maker side by side, and notice that the colors you'd call pale sit higher than the ones you'd call deep. In a small kitchen, the higher end is the safer place to start.

Colors that open up a small kitchen

• Soft white. The classic, because it reflects plenty of light and goes with nearly any counter and floor.
• Warm white or cream. Gentler than a bright white, and friendlier in a kitchen that doesn't get much sun.
• Pale gray or greige. A little more depth than white while staying light.
• Light sage or soft blue-green. A way to add color without making the room feel smaller.

White is the classic choice, and our post on painting kitchen cabinets white goes into the shades and what to watch for. If you'd like a color, our post on green kitchen cabinets explains why the lighter end of the range is the right place to look for a small room.

Can a small kitchen go dark?

Yes, with conditions. A deep color works in a small kitchen when it gets good daylight, the counters and backsplash are light, and the bulbs are bright enough. Without those, dark cabinets can make a tight room feel tighter.

Some people find that a deep color makes a small kitchen feel deeper rather than smaller, because the cabinets recede into the walls, especially when the wall color is close. Others don't. A safer way to try it is to go dark on the lower cabinets only, with something lighter above. Our post on navy blue kitchen cabinets covers what navy needs from a room, and the same rules apply to any deep color.

One color or two

One color is the calmest choice. With every cabinet the same, the eye sees fewer edges and the kitchen reads as one piece, and that's a real advantage when there isn't much room. Cabinets and walls in close colors fade into each other, which makes the room feel larger.

Two colors can work if you keep to two. A lighter color on the uppers and a deeper one below keeps the visual weight low and adds depth.

A third color starts to chop a small room into pieces. If you have glass-front uppers or open shelves, the inside color counts as a color too, so keep it close to the outside or to the wall. Our post on two tone kitchen cabinets covers the options, and if your kitchen has an island, our ideas for kitchen island paint colors cover that piece on its own.

Walls, counters and everything else

Cabinets are only part of what you see. A small kitchen looks bigger when the surfaces around the cabinets don't break the room up:

• Keep the contrast between cabinets and walls low, so the edges fade instead of stopping the eye.
• Choose light counters and a plain backsplash, since busy tile adds visual noise to a tight space.
• Use simple, small hardware in a metal close to the cabinet color, so the pulls don't add a row of dots.
• Carry the same floor through the kitchen and into the next room if you can.

Sheen plays a small part too. A slightly glossier finish bounces a little more light, but it also shows more flaws, and Dunn-Edwards says higher gloss coatings take longer to fully cure. Our post on the best paint finish for kitchen cabinets covers the trade-offs, and our ideas for cabinet hardware cover the pulls.

Lighting a small kitchen

Your bulbs change the color of your cabinets, and in a small kitchen they matter even more. ENERGY STAR's bulb guide explains that light color matches a temperature on the Kelvin scale, with lower numbers giving warmer, yellowish light and higher numbers cooler, bluer light. It pairs soft and warm white with most indoor spaces, and neutral and cool white with kitchens and work spaces.

So choose the bulbs first, and the paint second. Winter days are short in Wisconsin, so your kitchen spends more of its time under the lights, and the same sample looks different under warm and neutral bulbs. If you have under-cabinet lights, check your color under those too, since that's the light that falls on your counters.

A quick guide by kitchen type

Small kitchens come in different shapes, and the shape changes the advice. Use this as a starting point and check it against your own samples:

None of these is a rule. They're the places where we'd start, and then we'd look at the samples in your kitchen.

Test before you commit

1. Paint a large board, or use a big sample, and lean it against the cabinets next to the counter.
2. Look at it in morning light, in afternoon light and at night under your own bulbs.
3. Check it beside your counter and floor, not on a white card.
4. Look at it from the doorway, where you'll see the whole kitchen at once.
5. Narrow it to one or two colors before you ask for an estimate.

Our post on how to test paint colors has more ways to check before you decide.

What a small kitchen means for the job

A small kitchen has fewer cabinets, doors and drawers, and the number of pieces is what sets a cabinet refinishing quote, because jobs are priced per cabinet with paint included. Most kitchens take one to two weeks, and you get a start date with the written quote.

Our guide to how cabinet painting is priced explains what goes into a quote. When you're ready, ask for a free estimate, and George will talk through your kitchen and the color you have in mind.