20 Creative Kitchen Cabinet Ideas
Countless stylish storage solutions.
Sky-High Cabinets
Sneak extra storage into your kitchen by not only installing cabinets above the counters but also snaking the cupboards around the room, like over the fridge. (Just don’t forget the step stool.) Take a cue from this tiny kitchen designed by Anthony Dunning.
Metal Grate Cabinets
Display cabinets with metal grate fronts instead of traditional glass enclosures are a happy medium between closed and open storage. “With glass, everything lining the cabinet shelves needs to be just so because you can see straight through. But with metal grates, you don’t have to worry about packaging your essentials in a pretty way since you can only get a peek inside,” explains House Beautiful’s market director, Carisha Swanson.
Build Into the Island
Get more usable space out of your kitchen island by customizing it with extra cabinets and drawers. This can help keep walls clear and elongate high ceilings, as exemplified in this kitchen designed by Darryl Carter.
Double-Duty Cabinets
Want to hide your dishwasher? Add a cabinet front, so it doesn’t break up the line of cabinetry under the counter. Even better, hide it with something as gorgeous as hardware-free cabinets in a blush pink paint.
Use Furniture
Instead of spending on built-ins, invest in the furniture you can move around and take with you as Romanek Design Studio did here. A shelving unit or china display cabinet will do the trick.
Skirted Cabinets
If you have exposed cabinets and don’t love the way they look, a simple hack is to DIY a curtain to cover them. Opt for cafe curtains or measure and cut your chosen fabric accordingly and then hang it from the bottom of the counter with a rod.
Alternate Hardware
Karen Swanson of New England Design Works chose alternating hardware to accentuate certain shapes and play with details. The upper cabinets and drawers feature smaller, understated brass knobs while the larger ones feature handle pulls. If you look closely, you can see she flipped the same handles vertically for the cabinets in the corner to play up their height and complement the proportions.
Pastel Cabinets
For a neutral hue that still has some personality, try a pistachio green. It’s light and fresh but injects a little more character than other neutrals.
Create Flow With Consistent Cabinets
If your kitchen bleeds into your living, dining room, mudroom, and/or home office, create consistency by using the same paint color and hardware on the cabinets throughout. This black paint and gold hardware combination in a kitchen designed by Fitz Pullins strike the right balance between approachable and glam.
Metal
Designed by Emil Dervish, this eclectic kitchen is both highly functional and style-forward. The stainless steel cabinets are resilient and durable as are the wooden worktops (that’s why they’re so popular in professional kitchens) but they also add an industrial edge while the modern lighting and pop of red paint feel fresh.
Display Cabinets
Display cabinets are another clever way to lighten up a black kitchen. Not only will you be able to display your pretty tableware and decorative objects, but the glass also makes it feel more open and spacious, as seen in this kitchen designed by Nicole Hollis Studio.
Floating Cubbies
For a fresh kitchen storage idea, try a floating cubby that blends into the wall instead of floating shelves. Here, Dries Otten mixes whimsical style with industrial features in this unique kitchen. The stainless steel hood and exposed piping pop against the navy walls, while the striped blue fabric lightens the mood.
Fancy Cabinet Hardware
“The whole room has a sexy, smokey vibe,” interior designer Michelle Nussbaumer says of this kitchen. Every last detail contributes to the luxe look of the space. And while swapping out hardware can be the easiest upgrade to make in a kitchen, it can also be transformative, as evidenced here with the hardware from Nussbaumer’s own line for Addison Weeks.
Chicken Wire Cabinets
A classic white kitchen is timeless, but it can be a bit dull. To make it a little more interesting, add hidden details, like these diamond-patterned mesh cabinet inserts.
Lower Cabinets
With such a statement hood, interior designer Emil Dervish decided to forgo upper cabinets — this prevents visual clutter on the wall space and allows us to focus on the hood alone. Black lower cabinets take care of the storage needs while also grounding the kitchen.
Glossy Floating Cabinets
Lacquer, marble, tiles, oh my! This fabulously over-the-top kitchen designed by Michelle Nussbaumer is the definition of maximalist. For a similar look, choose a backsplash that corresponds with the kitchen island, uses tile on the floors, and make your floating cabinets pop with a glossy paint finish.
Dedicate One Corner to Cabinets
Dedicate one corner wall to super-high cabinets to free up adjacent vertical space for warming lamps. Breegan Jane outfitted this kitchen with three right above the counter to keep food warm until it’s ready to be served.
Whitewashed Cabinets
Grays can soften the contrast between black and white. It’s also a complement to stainless steel in a kitchen. Opt for an ash wood or whitewash existing brown wood cabinets.
Interior Painted Cabinets
We love the idea of painting the interior cabinets a color that corresponds with an accent piece in the room, like this orange cabinet designed by Arent & Pyke to match the carpet — what a fun surprise! It’s also a great way to experiment with vibrant colors if you’re nervous to paint the whole room.
Metallic Cabinets
There’s nothing quite like metallic to make your interiors pop. Opt for a brushed gold finish on the kitchen cabinets and introduce more down to earth materials like jute to make sure it isn’t too flashy.
