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How to change kitchen with black cabinets and pendant lighting

last year

Hi! I want to change the look of my kitchen that has black cabinets while also changing the pendant lighting. This is a kitchen in a 1350 sq ft condo. The look is currently all black with silver/chrome handles and lights. But I want to change this - I want to lighten the area as it has no windows. So I am thinking about painting the upper kitchen cabinets white (or light gray) plus putting glass in a couple of the cabinet doors. I also thought leaving the chrome handles on the black bottom cabinets and putting black handles on the painted white (gray?) cabinets. After this I feel I need to change the pendant lights to something in different materials to coordinate better AND also I’ve included the light above the dining table that needs to be coordinated with, too! So - (1) paint the upper cabinets? What color? (2) Handles on upper and lower cabinets (3) Pendant lights? So many to choose from - what materials? Thank you for any ideas or opinions you have!!

Comments (5)

Kimberly Skinner
last year
I think your kitchen is pretty! I sometimes like to up the cozy factor and keep things dark when there isnt a lot of natural light. you could keeping the cabinets black, replacing some with glass doors, or even consider going with a color more saturated backsplash.

Is it that the chrome gray black and white scheme feels a little cold to you? I wouldnt do different hardware on the different colors, I’d stick to the same and think about brass perhaps?

I have unlaquered in my kitchen and it deepens to a dull darker color that is warm and not overpowering.

For the pendants it depends if you want modern or more traditional? You could do brass for those as well! do you want them to be glass because you need the extra light in there or are you ok with solid options with just a downlight?

helps to find inspiration pictures
pricklypearcactus
last year
I really like your kitchen, but I can understand how it might feel a bit dark, especially without a window in the kitchen itself. If I were going to paint the upper cabinets, I would go with white (not gray). I think doing seamless white counter -> backsplash -> cabinets will give the most airy and cohesive look. I would not do gray. Personally I would use the same metal for cabinet pulls/knobs. You could go handles to knobs up top, but I wouldn't use different finishes.
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Thank you SO much flashpolkadot, megs1030, and hu1967910! To answer your question, flashpolkadot, we tried all of the light colors including Sutton and Lato! If my memory serves, Sutton was more rustic and had a beige/gray undertone. It also had white coming through all of the grain. Lato was more modern and had more of a consistent color throughout, which is what we were looking for, but it was too light (Almost a white-ish, and we have 4 dogs which include a black lab and feared her black hair would stand out terribly). Soho was perfect for us! I agree that Flooret is hands down the best LVF on the market, but so many people don’t even know about it because it’s not sold in stores! It’s so hard to choose, so I don’t envy you! But if it helps at all, you CAN NOT go wrong with soho! I don’t know the style you’re going for, but I think soho would be best for mid-century, beachy, or clean and modern. However, I must say I own a lot of antiques and I love how they look with the soho. Be sure to share photos of whatever you have chosen after your floors are done!
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The type of lighting that is typically on its own switch includes pendant lights and over sink lights. This allows for more control over the lighting in specific areas of the kitchen. In terms of combining lights, you can consider combining the under cabinet lighting with the pot lights to provide overall ambient lighting in the kitchen. The pendant lights over the seated counter can be combined with the over sink light to create a focused task lighting area for food preparation or other activities at the counter. For the room size of 10'x16', having 6 pot lights should provide adequate lighting coverage. For outlet locations, it is recommended to have outlets installed along the countertops for convenient use of small appliances. Additionally, consider adding outlets near the seated counter for charging devices or using small appliances while seated. Be sure to follow local electrical codes and regulations when determining outlet locations.
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llenox
Original Author
last year
YES to the white cabinets - not the gray. YES to the brass pulls and not mixing the metals. YES to the glass doors on top cabinets. These pictures are what I was thinking about and love the idea of brass - had also entertained the idea of using brass in the pendants but just wasn’t sure! Thank you, Kimberly Skinner and pricklypearcactus! The pictures were an immense help!
herbflavor
last year
last modified: last year
should be pretty easy to coordinate the lighting . I'd do that search first. Maybe skip the glass door as the kitchen is recessed / with white paint the wall cabs will blend in . no one has to see contents inside. Find a small cart to help you ....replace the little pedestal table. Painting the uppers is a good solution. If you get light fixtures with metal detail you can figure out some new hardware. I like the looks of your condo. here are some coordinated lights and a small cart in 3rd pic? maybe nice for you?
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llenox
Original Author
last year
Yes, herbflavor, I love the light fixtures you choose as examples. The glass in the cabinets will be low priority so I’ll do the painting and the light fixtures first and probably then decide whether to do glass in a few of the doors or not. The little round table is not as practical as a cart or even shelving ideas, but it came with the condo and it was so cute I just couldn’t help but keep it. At some point, it will most likely be replaced with something more functional! Thank you!

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