Bath & Kitchen Design Process

Your Pallet should include the floor material oak perhaps or several possible tiles, the counter top material maybe quartz or granite. A door selection along with the stain chip, maybe several stain or Paint chips. Several back splash tiles, the decorative plumbing finish either the actual piece or a finish ring. The pallet should include the cabinet hardware as well as several paint swatches. In the first design iterations the material pallets are mixed with a few possibilities and there may be several pallets. The goal of course is one final selection material pallet. This process can be extended to the accent pieces and even the cutlery especially if it is exposed. When creating the color path begin with one of the largest surfaces usually the floor or cabinet species & finish, and then select the next largest surface, then the counter top or paint. Work your way all the way through to the smallest of items. Of course there is rarely only one right way. It could be that there is a favorite color or a color in a favorite piece of art that is meaningful to you. Then you can start there and build around that color.

Paint Colors in Bath & Kitchen Design

You will usually need three paint colors one each for the walls, ceiling and the casement around doors, windows and the base molding. this may be three shades of a color on a color wheel the lightest version at the end of the selection in flat on the ceiling, come up the selection to the next darker version in semi gloss for the casement and then the next darker iteration in a flat finish for the walls. These last two iterations could be switched. Unless you have a very tall ceiling the lightest version should always go on the ceiling.

Here is an example of a background neutral color which is light gray, beige, taupe or white in a layered look. More contemporary or transitional designs are usually neutral or sleek and it is very important to be consistent with all the other colors in the pallet. Here a gray wood tone with white gray paint, stainless steel with black glass blend for a clean neutral but sleek look. Call it soft contemporary. The Kitchen cabinetry is Dura Supreme, Alectra with a Chroma door. This style is not a species door but an mdf door made for paint. Utilizing mdf allows for a very consistent paint surface and less expansion and contraction over the seasons. This is exactly what you want for a painted door. The paint in this case is Pearl and the island end caps and upper open cabinets are Weathered Oak.

Once the material pallet was selected all of the other surfaces, accent pieces, cutlery and fabrics were selected to coordinate.