7 Best Ways To Brighten A Dark Kitchen

The kitchen is the heart of the home, so it's important to feel like it's an inviting, comfortable space to be in. Due to a variety of factors, there may not be an abundance of natural light shining into the room, or worse, it's obscured by dark features or accent pieces. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to brighten up a dark kitchen, ranging from easy touch-ups to DIY renovations.

Darkness can affect our perception of size and depth, so if your kitchen is feeling cramped, lightening things up may actually open up the space overall. From floor to ceiling, there are ample opportunities to brighten the room. Whether you like modern, minimalist design or are excited to bring back vintage decor, every generation has recognized the need for brightness in the kitchen. Not to mention, it's considerably safer to chop, fry, and boil in a well-lit environment. Your kitchen redo may be a practical matter as much as an aesthetic one.

A new lick of paint can transform your space while keeping it interesting to the eye. Pastel shades are calming, bright, and have the added benefit of opening up a smaller kitchen. White or cream achieves the same vibe, and they are timeless, allowing you to express individuality in other aspects of the room.

A rug in a kitchen doesn't sound intuitive, but this tip isn't talking about shaggy carpets lining the floors. With light colors or fun patterns, a non-slip rug can brighten up your kitchen while simultaneously making it feel cozier and more homey. The material is up to you, but aim for something easy to clean or machine washable.

Yellow, warm lights can be helpful for calm late-night cooking, but they darken your space throughout the day. Warm white lights are the perfect middle ground for amplifying the brightness of your kitchen — without being overpowering or hurting your eyes.

Ceramic tiles are the go-to material for backsplashes, and for good reason. Gray or white tiles will open up your space and reflect any light in the kitchen. Given that backsplashes tend to line large parts of the wall, the entire room will appear brighter, not to mention stylish.

Shiny countertops are in style for many good reasons. Chief among them is that they instantly brighten up a kitchen thanks to their reflective coating. Whether you're team quartz or team granite, both of these materials offer a variety of light colors, one of which is sure to suit your tastes.

The color of your lighting is obviously important, but don't discount the placement. A row of small, bright LED lights lining the ceiling, or even at the back of your counters, nestled between it and the wall, can transform a dark kitchen. Small lights dotted around the kitchen provide small bursts of light that together enhance the whole space.

For kitchens with decent exposure to natural light, open shelving can maximize this brightness. Aside from making the space appear larger, there will also just be more space for sunlight to shine. White or light colored crockery and metallic cutlery all reflect light well, and their presence alone, as opposed to a closed cupboard, will brighten your space.