The Pros and Cons of White Kitchen Cabinets
There's no lack of inspiration online when it comes to airy, white kitchens, but do they really live up to the hype?
If you're about to embark on a kitchen design or renovation, you may be considering the all-white kitchen—an elegant, timeless look. However, maintaining a spotless kitchen can be a challenge.
Below, we consider the upsides and downsides of using white cabinets that may not be immediately obvious, clear some misconceptions, and highlight some of the ways to get around common issues.
The Pros
The thrill of a home renovation can quickly be diminished by unforeseen circumstances, stretched budgets, and other unexpected issues. The good news is that most of the time these problems can be mitigated, if not avoided entirely, by keeping an eye out for warning signals. Read on as we go through essential home renovation tips to consider before kicking off your own revamp.
Photo: Adrien Williams
White is frequently used for its neutrality and simplicity. These characteristics make white a great base for large areas—like kitchen cabinetry—that are expensive or time-consuming to replace or update.
The kitchen, which sits at the center of the house, features recycled glass countertops, Ikea cabinets, and carbonized bamboo floors. "We had Thanksgiving dinner there," says the daughter. "There’s no sense of the house as small. It feels like a house."
Photo: Joe Fletcher
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The simplicity of white cabinets also allow them to rise above short-lived trends, so you never enter your kitchen feeling like it was designed five or 10 years ago, when a particular shade of pink or blue was all the rage. At the same time, white cabinetry also works in just about any style kitchen—from country to vintage-inspired, and from modern to traditional.
Conserve water and energy by swapping your regular kitchen and bathroom taps for more efficient faucets.
Photo: Christopher Sturman
Because of its versatility, white is also easy to update, accessorize, and add to. A kitchen can be given an entirely new personality just by keeping plain white cabinets and changing knobs and other hardware. What’s more, pops of color can be even more impactful next to white cabinetry because of the sharp contrast, so a color palette can be easily understood.
Photo: SF Design Build
Finally, white in general reflects light, so white cabinetry will help to brighten a darker space or a kitchen that doesn’t have any natural light. White cabinets with a glossy finish will further help bounce light around, and can give the illusion of a larger space.
Black-rimmed steel clerestory windows add illumination in this diminutive white kitchen where black accents abound. A black Aggregato Saliscendi Suspension light, designed by Enzo Mari and Giancarlo Fassina for Artemide, accents against the white Calacatta marble countertops and MAP's oak Milky Stools.
Photo: Shannon McGrath
The Cons
However, there are potentially negative aspects about white cabinets that should be kept in mind as well. Too much white can mean that a space feels clinical and cold, rather than clean and crisp.
A blue-tiled backsplash helps set the visual theme of the future hotel.
Photo: Nieve
To avoid this type of situation, consider adding a splash of color or texture, mixing white cabinets with contrasting countertops or backsplashes. You may even choose a darker color for upper or lower cabinets, leaving the rest white.
To complement the white-washed custom cabinetry in her kitchen, architect Julie Salles Schaffer has designed a tile backsplash to resemble "melting butter in a white pan." Daltile arranged her two-color AutoCAD design—white and off-white—onto a mesh backing for a small fee. To soften the edges of the cabinets’ drawers and doors, Schaffer requested radial edging.
Photo: Daniel Shea
Another negative aspect of white cabinets is the constant maintenance and cleaning they require. While white cabinetry doesn’t inherently get dirtier than, say, wood cabinets, it is certainly easier to see smudges, spills, and splashes, which tend to blend in more with darker or patterned cabinets.
The new kitchen borrowed space and light from the original courtyard. The spirit of the courtyard remains with the buffer between the kitchen and the exterior wall. The cabinets are from Ikea, the countertops are quartzite, and the grill top is from Bertazzoni.
Photo: Grant Harder
This also means that white kitchen cabinets need more maintenance beyond just cleaning, since it’s not just food-related dirt that is easily visible. It’s easier to see scratches, worn corners, and delaminating cabinet doors when the cabinets are white, making cabinets show their age more than other cabinet options.
The space is just off the kitchen, which was moved and updated. Bradley paired cabinetry of his own design with tiles from Heath Ceramics.
Photo: Grant Harder
What’s more, white can discolor over time when exposed to a lot of direct sunlight. But even these negative aspects of white cabinetry can be addressed: spills should be cleaned up quickly to avoid permanent discoloration, and selecting off-white cabinets can be a way to offset potential fading or discoloration from sun exposure.
"Shane enjoys both cooking and entertaining so we maximized the counter space to make meal prep and hosting easy," Priftaj says. "It was also very important that the kitchen include a gas grill so he could quickly and conveniently grill without having to climb up five flights of stairs to use the bbq on the patio." Priftaj selected high-gloss acrylic white cabinets from bulthaup's b3 line with an aluminum backsplash and b3 prism drawer system to keep things tidy. A Wolf hood and gas cooktop with chargrill give Carslake the flexibility he desired for indoor grilling. The counters are polished white quartz.
Photo: Bob Gundu
In terms of wear and tear, it’s important to consider quality when purchasing white kitchen cabinets. Cheaper white cabinetry will certainly age less gracefully than higher-quality products. If manufactured and installed correctly, white kitchen cabinets can have just as long a life as other finishes and colors.
Photo: Eric Laignel
Ready to take the plunge? Check out 7 Stress-Free Ways to Keep Your White Kitchen Spotless. And if you need even more design inspiration, read These 30 White Kitchens Are Anything But Ordinary.
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