White kitchens still reign, but darker shades are gaining popularity.
By Rieva Lesonksky
Based on the scene last week at the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) in Las Vegas, Houzz reports kitchens are going dark. If you’re a contractor, remodeler or interior designer or sell home accessories, it’s important to keep up with the changing trends.
While Houzz data shows white Shaker cabinets remain the most popular choice for kitchen renovations, with wood and gray in second and third place, “dark tones for cabinets and counters were seen throughout the show.”
Houzz reports vendors were having success showing cabinets in matte black and a brown/gray called “Cinder” that the reporter said looked like a “blend of charcoal and brown.”
Consumers still want navy blue cabinets (these are particularly popular for kitchen islands)—so much so that Houzz says “some countertop makers are…injecting navy and other blues into their countertop materials.”
Even the demand for white cabinets is shifting to “warmer whites,” and, according to one vendor, “wood cabinetry with a bleached-out, rustic look is gaining steam.”
I watch a lot of HGTV and have noticed more and more home buyers are asking for quartz countertops instead of granite. “This year, engineered quartz became more popular than natural stone for upgraded kitchen countertops in kitchen remodels,” Houzz reports. As with cabinets, white remains the most popular color for upgraded countertops—but multicolored counters rank second, and gray comes in third.
You can see the specific vendors offering these darker options at the Houzz blog. But also note the few comments there are negative opinions from readers who think kitchens should be bright and cheery.
Kitchen stock photo by Chesky/Shutterstock
