No, we aren't talking waiters' uniforms here. Rather, an idea in kitchen cabinetry to paint the base cabinets black (or a dark color) and the uppers white (or light). It creates a foundation while allowing the upper cabinets to be light and blend in with what is often white walls. There are some executions of this that we like:
In fact, it's what I'm in the process of doing in my own home. Benjamin Moore's Moonlight White on top and Iron Mountain on bottom. It's a pairing of a creamy white with creamy dark gray. The bottoms are painted but the uppers are still in progress (and probably will be for some time). When I'm done, though, you can bet you'll be the first ones I share it with.
Do you have dark base cabinets with light uppers? What do you think of going this route?
Related: Look! Dark Kitchen Cabinets at Houzz
(Images: John Lum Architecture, Houzz, Attic Mag, Tommy Smythe, original source unknown but we spotted this at Weddingbee)





Monterey Pitcher fr...

This is looking so cool
I just had this done as part of my mini kitchen remodel! The charcoal-colored lower cabinets make the black appliances (which work fine and so I didn't want to spend the $$$ to replace) less noticeable, and the whole effect is very cool. Mine are BM Glacier White for the uppers, and BM Kendall Charcoal for the lowers.
I love all of these but particularly #2. It looks like the standard honey oak cabs that have been painted and it's SO refreshing to see something painted that isn't an all white kitchen.
I like it! ...and may offer it as a suggestion to a friend who just bought a house with black appliances that she doesn't like.
love it, just did it in our kitchen, since we don't have a ton of natural light
http://www.flickr.com/photos/juniperberry/5663136582/in/set-72157604950469933/
i love the convenience of having an apartment, but this pictures make me want my own house pronto!
Don't like #1, but LIKE #2 and 3 (a three-fer with wood on the island too!), and LOVE #4 and 5, and LOVE JuniperBerry's kitchen! AT, feature Juniper's kitchen!
Still in love w/ #5 but just noticed the weird floor.
BTdubs, I'm so in <3 with #5, I found the original source for that picture, too: http://www.diyideas.com/roombyroom/Kitchens/kitchen-makeover_ss2.html
A different title might have been more appropriate.
"Black Bottoms and White Tops" has a bit of a sexually suggestive note to it. I can't help but wonder how many porn searches may present this post as a result!
In my future apartment, my kitchen will have black façades but I'm not sure of the countertop color. I hesitate between white (marble, plain, glossy), grey (steel, marble) or beige (marble, wood)...
I love this look and if I were re-doing a kitchen right now, this is what I would pick.
I can't help but wonder if this will scream 2011 and need to be redone in a few years?