[dcc733]

Hi,
We’re remodelling the kitchen with medium cherry cabinets, red black brown bordeaux granite on the U shaped countertop & tumbled stone backsplash. The off side of the counter is pictured framed and painted almond to pick up a color in the tumbled stone.
The question is what to do with the formerly wallpapered 2 by 10 foot soffit over one section of cabinets. Suggestions, please? Perhaps an accent color?
Thanks,
DCC

[RubyPitbull]

Hi dcc, sorry no one has answered your question yet. Not too many interior decorators on this web site I guess. Kitchens are a passion of mine so let's see if I can help you with your problem.

Sounds like you have chosen a lovely upgrade for you kitchen.

It is hard to make suggestions without knowing how bright or dark your kitchen is and the layout. Natural lighting can make a big difference in the effect you are trying to achieve. In any event, you are doing a smart thing getting rid of the wallpaper on the soffit. Wallpaper tends to take your eye away from the focus of the room, which should be your new fixtures.

Keep in mind that if you have a lot of sunlight, you may want to test a few different sample colors on the soffit. Live with them for a week or more, so that you can see what it may look like at any given time of the day. You can buy small quart size cans and paint test strips until you are satisfied with the color choice. Then whitewash over, and paint fully, when you make your final choice.

If your kitchen does not have a lot of natural sunlight, you need to stick to light colors. If you have a lot of sunlight, you can go a bit bolder by choosing one of the color tones from the granite counter, such as the brown or red. If you can pull out a sandy or soft maple brown tone from the granite (something a touch darker or lighter than the almond color you have picked up from the tumbled stone backsplash), that would be a good complementary color. Since you have picked up the almond color from the tumbled stone for the side of the counter, I would hazard a guess that using the almond color would be too overused in the room, even if it is a neutral tone. I would concentrate on trying to pick up one of the colors from your granite counter if you can. It will make it pop beautifully. That counter is the crowning glory of your kitchen and it should stand out.

If the tones in the counter are too dark for the room, I would look at the floor. What have you done with that? I would take one of the neutral tones from the floor and paint the soffit to match. It would tie the room in.

The other possibility if these don't work is to find a theme for the picture frame area. Will you be hanging artwork, family photos, rooster/chicken nick nacks, food nick nacks,. When you have chosen what you would like to place there, I would find the most common of the neutral colors from that grouping and tie the soffit into that.

If you are still not sure, post some more details of the layout and colors of the room. Is there an island? What are the room dimensions? Explain the layout of the cabinetry and countertop in relationship to the soffit. Let's see if I can help you think this through more.