1. Opt for high-shine finishes
When choosing the colours for your kitchen, you should consider the finish at the same time, as this will make a huge difference to the impact the colour has on the space. Swapping a matt finish for a high-shine version is one of the oldest tricks in the book for making your kitchen feel bigger.
2. Keep to a tonal colour palette
Choosing a kitchen colour scheme that’s limited to shades of a single colour is a key colour trick for making a small kitchen look bigger. ‘Colour drenching can visually expand a small kitchen by eliminating any colour transitions that break up the space. The technique will make your kitchen feel less fragmented, therefore giving the impression of increased square footage,’ says Ben Thomson, manager at Promain.
3. Use colour to heighten your ceiling
All rooms feel bigger and more pleasant if the ceiling is higher, including kitchens. Luckily for us, there are ways to create the illusion of a higher ceiling, that don’t require a single builder (or sledge hammer!) ‘You can visually increase the ceiling area by painting a band around the top of the room (of around 20-30cm) in the same colour as the ceiling. This tricks your mind’s eye into pushing the walls away, therefore making the room feel bigger,’ says Clare Pascoe, interior designer at Pascoe Interiors.
4. Create a coloured focal point
An alternative colour trick to make your small kitchen look bigger is to use contrast to form a focal point. This kitchen idea works to draw the eye to a particular feature of your kitchen. If you have a pale neutral kitchen, for example, adding a bright yellow oven or a green splashback will create a statement and allow the rest of the room to somewhat fall into the background.
5. Be strategic with how you use dark shades
Pale colours reflect light, making them the obvious choice for a small kitchen colour scheme. But, this doesn’t mean you need to strike ‘dark blue cabinets’ off your kitchen wishlist completely – used the right way, dark colours can make a space feel bigger too.
6. Draw attention to your window
Your kitchen window is the eye into extra space and the giver of natural light, making it a key tool for making your room look bigger. Transform your window into a focal point by painting your frame in a bright or contrasting colour.
7. Paint on a decorative stripe
It’s true what they say, stripes make a room look bigger, and painted stripes are a perfect modern kitchen idea. If you’re wanting to broaden your room, a horizontal stripe, like this design by Little Greene, can work to visually elongate your kitchen. Here, the lightest shade is used at the top, which also helps to make the ceiling feel higher.