Orange Kitchens

Orange qualifies as a lurker in terms of kitchen style.

Let’s face it. Unless you have a major designer tackling hot color like the Salsa Dancing Kitchen, you don’t see orange kitchens very often.  And here’s what’s odd: while it’s a friendly hue and a favorite fruit, many people will say it’s too bold and energetic for a room that’s actually one of the most conservative in the house.  Still, anything ranging from adobe to apricot looks so fresh and transformational in kitchens it’s always great when someone goes bold.

A kitchen in Mexico [top] features a strong red-orange wall behind the stainless steel cooking island. Vibrant colors like orange work best in hot sunny climates since the sun tends to bleach colors slightly, even indoors. With pale wood base cabinets and open stainless-edged shelving beyond, the single wall of color sets up a desert sunset mood. Upholstered stools, and a Mexican textile runner on the dining table reinforce the casual, spirited agua fresca for the eyes.

Take this “juicy” modern kitchen done by a Dutch architectural firm. As expected, it’s a minimalist look with slick surfaces and square edges. It also takes advantage of colored faucets from Vola — those designed in the 1950s by the great architect Arne Jacobsen. And, there’s a matching Kitchen Aid. Whoever put together this combination in a living space surely was a fan of 1960s French designer Andre Courrèges, the undisputed champion of shiny vinyl orange though it’s much tempered by dark gray..

This contemporary-plus-color showroom kitchen has mid-century modern overtones with its birch flooring and Japanese shoji screen partition (think Cooper’s office in Mad Men). What cranks up an ordinary contemporary galley cooking space to something only a hipster would love is, without doubt, persimmon-color cabinets topped by a muted, variegated Euro-style backsplash. The amber-tone quadruple pendant fixture over the table dots the “i” and crosses the  “t” in “it’s so cool.”

(Source:  met home, vmx architects, gardenweb)

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