5 Tips to Incorporate the Shaker Design into a Luxury Kitchen

By on December 15, 2019
luxury kitchen

Shaker kitchens have been a mainstay of American homes for more than 150 years. With a focus on functionality but while ensuring a pleasing form, shaker kitchens have a timelessness that exudes the sophisticated simplicity you’d expect in a luxury home. While the Shakers’ created furniture with an eye on austerity, they inadvertently developed a theme that would be as at home in the projects as it would in an opulent mansion. (Image Credit: AddiGibson/Pixabay)

It’s about allowing the beauty and quality of the wood to speak for itself as opposed to depending on ornamentation to make furniture more attractive. Even if you don’t want to convert your entire kitchen to the shaker theme, there are various ways you can tastefully introduce elements of the style into your kitchen space. Here are some practical tips on how to do that.

1.    Cabinetry

Your cabinets’ appearance is a central pillar of the shaker look. Built from wood and stained with an earthy color, shaker cabinetry is classy. Revamp your kitchen by replacing the doors or giving your cabinets a fresh coat of paint. Whereas shaker cabinets traditionally had wooden pulls or handles, you can use vintage or rustic metal handles or brushed steel ones on your to add that elegant and modern touch.

Your kitchen island can also embody the shaker kitchen thanks to complementary wood décor for the storage cabinets. Nicely carved doors, acres of storage space and the simple high chairs all work together to embody the required look.

2.    Wood

At the center of the shaker kitchen furniture, style is wood. Shaker kitchens seek to recognize the invigorating power of nature while adhering to the principle that less is more.

But not just any wood will do. You’ll get the best outcomes if you go with simple but durable wood such as walnut, chestnut, birch and maple that also have that earthy undertone that adds the color or stain denoting shaker style. You can also use wood for your worktops by adding a color that contrasts with that of your kitchen cabinetry but is still within the shaker theme.

3.    Color and Light

Nature is the central inspiration of the shaker kitchen’s color scheme. Therefore, clay colors, beiges and earthy tones can be a great way to bring the shaker style’s tradition to your kitchen. If you want to add a touch of richer color, you could get more adventurous with duck-egg teals, aubergine purples, mellow blues or ice white shaker hues. All these reflect natural sunlight breathtakingly and create an exciting atmosphere of being in the countryside.

Emphasizing natural light is ideal for a shaker kitchen so lighting fixtures should seek to complement the décor as opposed to overshadowing it. Think gentle spotlights, hanging fixtures over kitchen islands or simple rustic lights.

4.    Floors

The shaker philosophy comes from a place that recognizes the kitchen as being the space that not only sees the most visitor traffic in the home but is also subjected to a wide range of elements that can accelerate wear and tear (water, heat, vinegar, soap, grease, oils, spices and more).

Shaker kitchens, therefore, tend to be hardy, long-lasting and easy to clean. You could go with textured earthy tiles or a hardwood floor. Giving the floor a good sheen can make the kitchen overall appear cooler, more calming and more spacious.

5.    Beams

Retain your existing wooden kitchen beams or add new ones to play to the shaker theme. That means you don’t have to necessarily remove any element of your current kitchen. Instead, it’s all about bringing out the best of it. Again, the shaker aesthetic is all about functionality and perhaps nothing represents that more than wooden beams in your kitchen.

If the last 150 are anything to go by, the shaker look isn’t about to go out of style. So whether you want to completely transform your kitchen or simply add shaker elements to it, these 5 tips provide a great starting point.

About Hannah Jaehnig

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  1. Pingback: Details That Make Your Kitchen Luxurious - Rancho Santa Fe Magazine - Rancho Santa Fe Magazine

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