10 Ways to Dress Up Your Kitchen Island (11 photos)
The kitchen island or peninsula is often the home’s hub, where family and friends gather to help with the cooking (or just the eating). This central position makes it an important design feature and a great place to add personality to your kitchen. Re-dressing the island can provide a dramatic face-lift on any budget. Here are 10 of my favorite ideas you can use to give the heart of the house a little love.
Looking to expand your palette but hesitant to make a big splash? Repainting just the island (or even only one side) adds a dash of drama without the effect of visually shrinking the space that can come from dark or vivid cabinetry. Pair the island with contrasting bar stools for even more life.
Another way to lighten an island visually is to simply match its faces to the flooring material so the two blend together. Letting wood or laminate wrap around the island is unexpected but warm and inviting without being heavy.
If you have leftover flooring after a renovation (most often there would be enough for at least one face of the island), consider using it to wrap an island.
To soften a chunky island, consider classic wainscoting. It suits cottage-inspired traditional kitchens well, but as you can see here, it also works beautifully in transitional or contemporary kitchens by adding texture with a simple geometric sensibility.
Giving an island furniture-like details makes it feel even more like its own little hub of activity separate from the functional cabinets around it. Even an existing island can get an upgrade by putting legs or feet on the exterior.
You’ll want to add leg detailing before painting (that is, during construction) to have the finish match perfectly.
Another way to achieve a furniture-like appearance is to embellish the island’s faces and corners with molding. This provides a sense of elegance that’s essential to transitional kitchens (one of the most sought-after styles). It’s a good long-term investment since the stately look will likely stay in demand.
This one is a bit of a cheat since you’ll have to replace your fixed island altogether, but if it’s beyond salvaging (or if you don’t have one to start with), subbing a free-standing cart lends a real chef’s-kitchen vibe and a more open look.
Look to vintage or salvage stores for materials such as old tin ceiling tiles, distressed lumber or metal sheets from actual restaurant kitchens and upcycle them into a custom front treatment.
Install LED lighting strips to the underside of the island counter, the base or both to bring a fun modern element and extra brightness to the whole space.
If you’d prefer to have your island float away rather than stand out, mirrored fronts help lighten the look of the whole room by making the bulky cabinets appear to vanish and the floor to run on forever. For antique charm, use glass with a vintage finish (or re-create one yourself with glass paint and a splatter brush).
One last idea: Upgrade the hardware. A little gold-toned hardware will give your kitchen a new feel with no need for a hammer or paintbrush. To re-create this look, also consider using a few dummy drawer or door fronts to dress the back of your island.
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