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    9 Colorful Ways to Cheer Up Your Kitchen

    By | Work + Money – Fri, Jul 8, 2011 4:23 PM EDT

    From a bright and bold ceiling to a fabric-covered lampshade, these little changes bring a lot of cheer to your kitchen.


    1. Paint the Floor

    To add a little energy in this Dallas kitchen, designer Shannon Bower had the floor hand-painted on the diagonal. A vintage tole chandelier from Mexico hangs over the chunky breakfast table.


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    2. Curtain Just One Cabinet

    To shake things up, try adding a curtain to just one cabinet. "Cabinet after cabinet, door after door gets boring," says Shannon Bower, who added Carleton V's Wallace ticking in Green and Natural to this pair.


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    3. Cover a Lampshade with Fabric

    For a quick update, cover a lampshade with fabric, like Jonathan Adler did in fashion designer Liz Lange's Westchester home. He chose Alan Campbell's Potalla in Jungle Green for the Trans.Luxe pendant light, and also created cushions for the Norman Cherner counter stools.






    4. Paint a Focus Wall

    If you're color shy, try painting just one wall. In this Long Island kitchen in a former camp cottage, designer Amanda Kyser chose Benjamin Moore's Merlot Red. It sets off the white dishware, which was salvaged from a French seaside hotel that was being torn down.


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    5. Try Tile in a Bold Way

    You want a blue kitchen, but you don't want blue cabinets? Instead of paint or a backsplash, try tile that reaches up to the ceiling as designer Marshall Watson did in this Fire Island home.












    6. Paint the Insides of Cabinets

    Painting the interior of kitchen cabinets a contrasting color - in this case apple green - is something both architect Gil Schafer and his color consultant, Eve Ashcraft, love to do. Aside from supplying a shot of color, it sets off the china.



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    7. Choose Bright, Modern Cushions

    Update traditional seats with cushions in a modern print. In the breakfast area of this kitchen, designer Ashley Whittaker transformed a pair of Windsor chairs with citrus-green cushions.


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    8. Go Dark

    It may seem counterintuitive, but black doesn't mean a space will look dark and dated. It can actually transform old cabinetry to a look that's more modern and sleek. In this kitchen, designer Eldon Wong wanted his cabinets - made of maple veneer - to disappear, so he stained them almost black to look like wenge wood.








    9. Makeover an Old Chair

    With modern amenities and vintage touches, this farmhouse-style kitchen has rustic pendant light fixtures, no-fuss zinc countertops, and chairs rescued from a friend's basement and painted a sunshiny yellow. Designed by Ruthie Sommers.



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    How do you add cheer and happiness to your kitchen?

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    Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc.