Many contemporary kitchens are busy and multifunctional sites where metal adorns surfaces, furniture, and lighting in all its beautiful form. For example, most typical households use stainless steel, a durable material, for its ability to fight bacteria. Even experts recommend its use for various purposes, such as cooking. Then, copper looks stylish in kitchen design while invoking a traditional charm. It is also a healthy choice, but you have to take care of it well to prevent the formation of patina or green-color coating on its surface due to chemical reactions. Another choice can be brass fittings. It complements light wood finishes while imparting a sense of glamour.
Do you think the list is over? No, how can you omit bronze? The shiny bronze looks every bit elegant even though it is an affordable metal. Window ledges or dining table legs can find its strategic use in the metal-themed décor. Other than these, you also get brightly-colored aluminum used as pot racks in the ceiling. It can also be a part of select sink fixtures for a striking statement. After seeing this, you may wonder how to include metal in your modern kitchen for both creative and functional satisfaction. Well, here are some ideas.
Mix the metal palettes with different finishes
The first place to start with your kitchen's color palette is the finish of your metals. You might not realize that the colors matte and polished metals create together can be beautiful. And when combined with neutral shades of paint, stone, and wood, your kitchen can feel warm and elegant without losing any of its charm. But to pull it all off successfully, you have to decide what will go where. For this, understanding the nature of the metal finish is crucial. More precisely, yellow metals like copper and gold lend warmth, while chrome, silver, and even black matte surfaces appear calm.
You can feel more attracted to one metal type over the other. However, if you want to indulge in some ingenious décor fun, mixing many metals in the kitchen interiors can be excellent. For instance, you can get a thick metal kitchen sink and a black-colored faucet for the sink area. But that's just a starting. There are various possibilities.
Still, consider choosing a dominant hue that you will use as your kitchen's foundation. Then incorporate other metals and materials for aesthetics that will blend well with the main finish, so together, they create a cohesive space. Imagine a kitchen crafted entirely from copper, for example. Or, you might be envisioning shiny silver as an accent metal product in the beautiful room. Or you can imagine starting with a primarily stainless-steel design and then applying copper trim to complete the look. Once you know your theme (copper or something else), you can easily create the rest of the color or any mixed-metal design.
Buy stainless steel appliances
When you're choosing a finish to use in your kitchen (obviously, this will vary depending on the size of your space), most of the time, stainless steel is a popular choice. Due to this, you come across this sort of color or finish, most often typically through appliances and other commonly used items around the house. If you already have appliances like fridges and ranges made of this kind of metal, there's no reason you can't go with something like stainless steel in your design.
Also, you can still embrace some other metals such as copper to take this metal game a notch higher. Make sure it matches the color/finish of whatever type of steel you are using, though. For example, you can buy a bronze-colored oven hood with stainless steel wires. It can be the most effortless and efficient way to mix metals. Or, if you get bored with this, you can always replace your stainless-steel utensils with some other exciting tones to breathe a new life into your kitchen's metallic soul.
Choose metal lighting fixtures
Light fixtures are a must-have for every home. They bring sparkle and aesthetic value to any room. Still, they can also be the center of recognition, for they get attention to a design's focal point, whether intentionally or not. It is essential as a homeowner you combine your love of interior design with things like kitchen decorating. Pendants and geometric light fixtures complement mixed-metal designs, acting as a centerpiece for the look. Geometric-shaped pendants are also a great way to balance your entire kitchen's appearance, with cabinet hardware working on the ground level. If you wish to do more, the addition of dimmable LED lightbulbs can never feel overbearing.
Anyway, the thing is, adding metal lights amidst the metallic kitchen environment can be thoughtful. It can subtly enhance your metal palette without coming across as loud or out of place.
Play up with metal through hardware fittings
Cabinets and their door hardware help complete a kitchen. Upgrade your cabinets by repainting them and replacing their handles and pulls to complement the new paint color. If you don't feel like repainting but would instead try something else, why not see if you can resurface doors and drawers instead? Newer doors, hinges, and doorknobs manufactured from metals such as bronze or nickel can work wonders. Still, make sure those colors complement your current cabinet color and the overall metal theme.
Choosing a dominant metal color or mixing various metal shades is not as laborious as you think. You get plenty of options in the market. Once you research your choices, you will realize the scope of design and decoration. If you are thinking of mainly minor upgrades, you can keep building on the metallic looks as per your choices. However, it will be better to consult a designer if you plan a full-scale or expensive upgrade. In that case, you may not afford to leave any sign that makes your kitchen look unprofessional. Your money and efforts will seem wasted. Hence, play safe and wise. And don't worry about creating metal magic in your busy space like the kitchen.
