When I attend any industry event, I am always particularly interested in the COLORS!!! I’m sure that’s not surprising to you. At the 2018 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) I attended with Modenus’ DesignHounds, I took note of the predominant color trends to share with you to help you make good decisions when renovating, building, or just updating your home.
Cabinet Colors
Everyone’s been asking me about cabinet colors for 2018. What are the popular trends? This year it’s primarily gray, black, and dark blue. The darker colors are big for lower cabinetry or for a statement island, while uppers are being installed more selectively or removed altogether and replaced with a few open shelves.
design by Elizabeth Lawson, photography by Jennifer Hughes
White cabinetry is still popular, but most people are ready for some more color in the kitchen. There are other ways to get that color in your kitchen, as you will see in our next color trend!
Not all cabinets are painted, though. I’ll talk more about wood-stained cabinets in a minute.
Forget Stainless Steel – Embrace Colorful Appliances
While there is still plenty of the stainless steel appliances in the market, you’ll notice an uptick in popularity of black stainless steel options, like in this kitchen I helped a client design last year:
The Decorologist, Melanie G Photography
KBIS featured some bolder color options in appliances this year. I’m betting this was one of the most photographed appliances in the show!
BlueStar featured stoves in 5 colors:
I showed these changeable sink fronts in a previous post, which is less of a long-term commitment to a bit of color.
Ok, so a bathtub isn’t actually an appliance, but I had to include this fabulous dark green model complemented by Ann Sacks tile designed by celebrity designer Kelly Wearstler. Dark green is definitely a hot color for 2018.
Metallic Color
What about the metals? The hottest metals are matte black, copper, and brushed gold. In one of the many “what’s hot and what’s out” articles that came out at the end of 2017, it was reported that copper is “out,” and let me announce that IT IS NOT. Fake design news. It’s hot, and it was all over KBIS this year.
If you haven’t noticed, statement range hoods are all the rage in today’s kitchens.
I adore this gold hammered sink from Thompson Traders:
When your designer suggests you mix metals in the same room, please don’t look at her like she’s got two heads. She just may know what she’s talking about . . .
This is a brand new prototype introduced by American Standard – black faucets with handles in your choice of accent metallic. My favorite is the brushed gold!
The Color of Wood
Yes, there were wood-stained kitchen cabinets at KBIS. The trending woods are in lighter stains, and are exotic or highly-grained varieties.
No cherry or oak at KBIS . . .
Cabico stove hood
I love it when the designer of a product is present to explain their vision and process. Daniel Germani partnered with Cosentino and Riva 1920 to design something really special: a bathroom vanity that closes up to conceal all the mess of life! While there’s nothing messy about the open vanity cabinet below on the right, you can see how beautiful this looks opened or closed:
Dekton by Cosentino
Not only can you mix your metals – even wood can be mixed to beautiful effect!
What is your favorite color for 2018 kitchens and baths?
FYI, my trip to KBIS was paid for by sponsors of the KBIS Design Bloggers Tour, some of which are included in this post. However, all of the opinions expressed are my own!
That countertop in the first photo! Too late for me, but ?!
Yeah, it’s so pretty, right? What countertop do you have, Karla?
Yes! I thought the same thing! What is that countertop name in the first photo, do you know Kristie? I’d love to use it in a spec home we are currently building.
Great post!! and YES! “copper is out” #fakedesignnews LOL!!
😉
Kristie, Great Post! I do love everything about the first photo. Can you give me any info on the products? counters on island, cabinets etc. I am working on a re-design right now… It is so perfect.
Mitzi,
That photo was from a booth that wasn’t one of the tour’s sponsors, and I unfortunately didn’t pay attention to the names of the products as I clicked the photo in a rush! I’ll see if I can find out the vendor!
So glad copper is not really out…. We have a hammered copper sink to install in our bathroom. Of course, it was going in regardless of whether copper was in or out… 🙂
Good for you! I bet it’s gorgeous!
Kristie,
These are more versatile trends than the “All grey all the time” that we little people have patiently endured every year since Martha Stewart repainted her kitchen! ? Good to see some tasteful color creeping in by degrees, and some useful European space-saving ideas that are newer to us in the US. (Love the bathroom vanity cabinet!) I have been very interested to see how these yearly trends get “folded in” to your aesthetic as we become accustomed to what’s new. I have a kitchen question, though: pro photos never show any kitchen curtains. This conveys the sleek uncluttered look, to be sure, but a newly-built home beside us necessitates some privacy. All I’m seeing in our southern magazines right now is burlap and buffalo check – cute and country, but that’s a strong choice when I’m preparing no to list our house! Any ideas from your own experience or fabrics trending at the shows? I’d love to hear you weigh in on window treatments again in 2018!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and questions, Sunny! Ok, if you are concerned about window coverings in your kitchen for the sake of staging, don’t. You are better off without them for staging to sell. What kind of windows do you have in your kitchen? Over the sink? French doors? I try to avoid window treatments if it’s a small window over a sink. They block natural light and can be a distraction from the overall design. Oversized floral fabrics were trending bigtime at market, but patterns like trellis, lattice, quatrefoil, arabesque, flamestitch, herringbone, and chinoiserie are big, too.
Thanks, Kristie. It’s a 3-panel sliding window over a long countertop, no sink. Window is 7ft long by 35” tall. If it were not that the neighbors’ attempts to shade their own windows were necessitating it, I’d leave them bare whilst staging, however, I feel like I need to “show” potential buyers how we have achieved privacy. Most of my window treatments are very spare. Kitchen is just a delicate situation – bold wallpaper. If I were staying, I’d find a few salvaged leaded glass panels to hang there…maybe that’s the ticket.
Sunny,
I would likely do simple white wood (or faux wood) blinds – if you have bold wallpaper, best not to add more pattern there!
Thanks for the update Kristy! Good to know metals can still be mixed. I still love the navy cabinets, but those black ones are beautiful with the white countertops!
Hi Kelly! Actually, I’m not sure I saw any vignette at the show that used all the same metals. It’s like you are doing something wrong if you don’t mix them, haha!
Love the kitchen that you helped with last year! I’ll soon be painting my cherry stained, maple cabinets as soon as the right painter is found. Thanks for sharing the latest trends.
Thanks, Janice! It will feel like a whole new kitchen 🙂