To shake things up, try adding a curtain to just one cabinet. "Cabinet after cabinet, door after door gets boring," says Shannon Bower, who added Carleton V's Wallace ticking in Green and Natural to this pair.
Paint the Floor
To add a little energy in this Dallas kitchen, designer Shannon Bower had the floor hand-painted on the diagonal. A vintage tole chandelier from Mexico hangs over the chunky breakfast table.
Paint a Focus Wall
If you're color shy, try painting just one wall. In this Long Island kitchen in a former camp cottage, designer Amanda Kyser chose Benjamin Moore's Merlot Red. It sets off the white dishware, which was salvaged from a French seaside hotel that was being torn down.
Try Tile in a Bold Way
You want a blue kitchen, but you don't want blue cabinets? Instead of paint or a backsplash, try tile that reaches up to the ceiling as designer Marshall Watson did in this Fire Island home.
Choose Bright, Modern Cushions
Update traditional seats with cushions in a modern print. In the breakfast area of this kitchen, designer Ashley Whittaker transformed a pair of Windsor chairs with citrus-green cushions.
Go Dark
It may seem counterintuitive, but black doesn't mean a space will look dark and dated. It can actually transform old cabinetry to a look that's more modern and sleek. In this kitchen, designer Eldon Wong wanted his cabinets — made of maple veneer — to disappear, so he stained them almost black to look like wenge wood.
Makeover an Old Chair
With modern amenities and vintage touches, this farmhouse-style kitchen has rustic pendant light fixtures, no-fuss zinc countertops, and chairs rescued from a friend's basement and painted a sunshiny yellow. Designed by Ruthie Sommers.
