A contemporary kitchen needs a few human touches to keep it from appearing sterile.
A modern kitchen with style is not an isolated high tech laboratory of white Corian and brushed steel. It should reveal something of the personality of the chef who works there. Spare is a good modifier but so is functional. And a few eclectic touches can shift a kitchen from showroom impersonal to welcoming home.
The Update
When the kitchen is less than au courant and a renovation isn't in the budget, there are a few tricks to make an old space look modern and new. Don't go ultra-modern and risk clashing with what's there. Instead, clear out all the clutter, paint cabinets white and replace the upper cabinet doors with open shelves and glass doors. Make sure everything on display is color-coordinated and has room to breathe. Fill open shelves with a collection of turquoise Fiestaware mixing bowls or rows of identical mineral water bottles with their labels aligned. Replace cabinet and drawer hardware with matching pewter hardware and fill the wall over the sink with a white subway tile backsplash. An oversized butcher block or marble cutting slab can hide an outdated countertop.
The Fusion Kitchen
Simple white-framed glass cabinets, a professional stove and oversized hood and large white floor tiles say modern. A crystal chandelier, mismatched white-painted chairs and antique dining table with turned wood legs and a white marble top say "look again." A modern kitchen merged with a vintage dining room into a big fusion space can work with a lot of white on the walls, floors and ceiling. White crockery, dishes, old-time scales and classic tea kettle link old and new. The only color in the room comes from cooking ingredients and a bunch of hydrangeas in a milk glass vase on the table.
Industrial Chic
Nothing says modern like polished concrete, and a kitchen with a polished concrete floor and island top looks contemporary without even trying. Floor-to-ceiling cabinets in white laminate hide almost everything so the lines stay clean. But hot pink molded chairs and a matching painted glass backsplash provide a jolt of color to keep the space far from boring. A chrome cappuccino machine and chrome teakettle attest to the kitchen's use, at least as a coffee bar. This kitchen needs plenty of light, so LED lighting under the cabinets would prevent it from appearing stark and gloomy when the natural light fades.
Cool and Classic
A modern upgrade replaces old cabinets and appliances with white laminate, black-tinted glass and brushed aluminum. It's colorless and neutral, even with the original hardwood floor, stripped down to bare wood and refinished. A cool look risks coming off as chilly until one discordant note sounds in the middle of the room. A rustic butcher block stand sits like an island center stage. The wood is worn to soft hills and valleys with use. It can be a work station, a serving stand or a pastry table. It will never be a modern kitchen island. The butcher block anchors the room like a sculpture in a gallery and makes the whole space more interesting.
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