Updating a Honey Oak Kitchen

Welcome to another edition of Furnishing Friday! Today, I’m sharing three design boards for modernizing a honey oak kitchen. Honey oak cabinets were all the rage in the 1990’s….but now, not so much! Many kitchens that are approaching 30 years old are finding themselves in need of a serious update! If you’re looking to update your kitchen without changing out your cabinets, this post is for you!

All of the design boards you’ll see below are part of my 2D small space design package. You can read all about this package and my other packages here! For this client and space, I focused on finishing up the decor and finding a buffet/sideboard for the eat-in kitchen, but I also provided some ideas for updating the kitchen as a whole!

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Option 1: Black Accents

The first easy update you can do with your honey oak kitchen is to freshen up the color palette. This can be achieved through three things: 1. Paint; 2. Backsplash; 3. Countertops. The easiest way to change the feel of a space is through paint! For this design board, I’ve chosen the following color palette [all Benjamin Moore colors]:

• Simply White [proposed wall color]
• Revere Pewter [wall color of other spaces already in client’s home]
• Amherst Gray
• Sea Haze

I chose a simple white subway tile with light gray grout for the backsplash and my client was already planning to do a simple white countertop. These three items will immediately lighten and refresh the space!

I also chose a farmhouse sink to add interest in the kitchen. I included black accents for the hardware and lighting, which I then tied in with a black buffet in the eat-in kitchen area. Lastly, I wanted to add warmth to the space. I achieved this through rugs: a runner in the kitchen and oriental style rug under the table, woven blinds and curtains, and woven decor.

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Option 2: Coastal Feel

Another option I put together trended a little bit more coastal. I achieved this by adding more jute/woven aspects, adding brushed nickel finishes, and adding a light blue/gray color to my color palette. In this design, my accent colors are: BM Kendall Charcoal and BM Smoke. This overall has a little bit of a lighter feel than the other options!

Note I did keep some black accents as my client already had modern black hardware on the oak cabinets. I tied these in by included art above the buffet with black frames and the black curtain rod. I believe mixing metals works great when it’s done purposefully and intentionally. Stick with only two metals [here matte black and brushed nickel]. You can see another example of how I mixed metals in the bathroom design I shared in this blog post!

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Option 3: Most Modern

The eat-in kitchen area is also a homeschool area for my clients, so I thought a world map print above the buffet was perfect for this design option! For the buffet, I picked a cabinet where you could put two or three side by side to almost “make your own” cabinet. This is actually what I did to create a storage console table in my entryway. You can see how it worked in my home here! I also added a modern clock and lighting options.

The biggest change I made in this design was adding black chairs to the dining table. I’m a big fan of mixing furniture pieces rather than buying sets. You can see how I did this in my own dining room here! The black chairs are a simple solution to immediately modernize the space while still working with the honey oak cabinets and kitchen table.

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Interested in a design service?

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PS. I’m sharing one more honey oak kitchen design board over on LikeToKnow.it! Make sure to follow me there so you don’t miss it!