Rustic kitchens typically bring to mind the weight of natural wood, an abundance of equipment and textiles, and the atmosphere of a warm home with everyone gathered inside. We are rolling up our sleeves to lighten this look and lift the space, setting out with a palette of bright colours.
The word rustic first evokes a house among mountains, forests and fields, with warm, welcoming kitchens combining stone, wood and linen, Shaker-style cabinets, small New England-style windows, plenty of pots and a marble worktop. Even if this is a dream for those of us living in today’s metropolitan homes, we can draw inspiration from rustic kitchen style to introduce little touches of the purity of life in nature.
Yet there are aspects of rustic style that could benefit from a lighter touch. First among them is softening its characteristic colour palette, itself inspired by nature and the earth. To lift the energy of rustic kitchens, where a dramatic and relatively dark spectrum of bark colours, terracotta tones, every shade of green and earthy hues prevails, we are taking a radical step into rustic kitchens dressed in white. But how?
The first step towards a balanced interpretation of rustic style that combines classic and contemporary elements is to work with the room’s overall colour envelope: the walls and floor. Light-coloured brick-effect tiles or metro tiles can provide the first solution for the walls. One of the best examples is Miniatile-Avenue from Çanakkale Seramik. A defining feature of this collection, which has made its mark on the metro tile trend, is its two options: cream and white. For the floor, you can use distressed white wood-effect tiles. For example, Renova Wood, one of Kalebodur’s new collections, brings the texture of distressed white wood to glazed porcelain tiles in a 20 x 120 format, echoing natural floorboards.
Wooden cabinets in light tones such as white, pearl and vanilla can reinforce this uplifting atmosphere, but we recommend balancing them with black worktops to keep the room from feeling overly clinical. Brass or copper naturally mediate this contrast. If you want to enjoy the vintage elegance that metallic finishes bring to the space, carry brass or copper through the kitchen taps, handles and lighting.
Greenery can create a connection between indoors and outdoors by referencing nature, while also breaking up monotony with a splash of colour. Group plants of different sizes on part of your worktop and, if possible, complete the corner with plants suspended from the ceiling in macramé hangers. To carry the colour through the room, however, you need to repeat green elsewhere. Be sure to include another striking plant on the table or on top of shelves or cabinets.
A rustic kitchen is a busy kitchen. A minimal, empty space with everything tucked away in drawers would almost betray the style, so you need to hang things on the walls. But what? Chopping boards, small ceramic pieces and handmade engravings are a good place to start. Here too, you need a colour scheme: choose objects in shades of white with black outlines, then group them on a wall with other pieces in brass or copper tones.
Since we are bringing brightness into our rustic kitchen, lighting deserves attention too. Classically shaped clear-glass globe pendants with brass or copper fittings are ideal for this update. The transparent glass reflects incoming daylight, with the metal fittings defining its presence and bringing elegance to the upper part of the kitchen.
The finishing touch to your white rustic kitchen is a display cabinet for vintage tableware. Naturally, choose this piece in shades of white too, but make sure as much of its front as possible has glass doors, since displaying objects is almost a rule in a rustic kitchen. Plates, glasses, enamelware and pots can all be shown in the cabinet, even when stacked.
Low lighting can make a dark kitchen feel much smaller than it is. You can therefore supplement your existing lighting with natural light: let in as much daylight as possible and avoid placing furniture in front of windows or doors. Cabinets with clear or antiqued mirrored doors on the wall directly opposite the windows will reflect and distribute light around the room.
