The mid-century kitchen is where the era let itself go. Living rooms stayed disciplined, but kitchens got turquoise cabinets, harvest gold appliances and laminate in colors no one would dare put on a sofa. The surfaces were wipeable, so color felt low-risk, and it still does.
That is good news, because a kitchen is also the room where you are least likely to repaint on a whim. Nearly everything here can be done with objects rather than contractors. This article supports our main guide to mid-century modern colors.
Three ways to bring color into a kitchen
Cabinets, if you are renovating
Cream, warm white, putty, or a genuine period color such as turquoise, soft mint or olive on lower cabinets with light uppers. Two-tone cabinetry is period-correct and keeps a small kitchen from closing in.
Open shelving and wood, if you are refreshing
A run of walnut or teak open shelving against a neutral wall does more mid-century work than any paint color. It also gives you somewhere to display the colored objects that carry the palette.
Objects, if you are changing nothing structural
Ceramics, canisters, glassware, bar tools, a patterned runner, one piece of art. This is the cheapest route and genuinely effective, because a kitchen has so many small surfaces that a repeated accent color reads instantly.
Seven kitchen color schemes
1. Classic fifties: cream, turquoise and chrome
Cream or white cabinets, warm wood open shelving, turquoise ceramics and small appliances, chrome hardware, a black and white patterned floor. The most recognizable mid-century kitchen there is.
2. Late sixties: harvest gold and walnut
Wood-fronted cabinets, harvest gold ceramics and textiles, terracotta accents, brass hardware. Warm and enveloping, and much easier to live with than its reputation suggests.
3. Avocado and cream
Cream cabinets, olive or avocado accents in canisters, tea towels and a runner, wood shelving, black hardware. Olive is the most livable of the bold mid-century colors.
4. Charcoal, wood and coral
Charcoal lower cabinets, cream uppers, walnut shelving, coral in the small objects. Graphic and current while still reading period.
5. Soft mint and brass
Mint cabinets or mint accents against warm white, brass hardware and light fixtures, teak shelving. Gentle, a little glamorous, excellent in a bright kitchen.
6. Putty, walnut and one bold color
Putty cabinets, walnut open shelving, and a single saturated color repeated in the canisters, the bar stools and one artwork. The most restrained option.
7. Black, white and terracotta
Black and white tile floor, white cabinets, terracotta pottery and a warm wood cutting board collection. Timeless and very easy to shop.
Where the color lives
Open shelving is a display case
Whatever you put on it becomes your palette. A row of ceramics in one or two accent colors is more effective than any amount of painted trim. See kitchen essentials and tabletop and dining.
The bar is the most fun surface in the house
Mid-century entertaining culture lives here. Colored glassware, a walnut tray and a good ice bucket carry the era instantly. See drinkware and bar.
Textiles soften a hard room
A runner, tea towels and a seat pad on a stool are the fastest way to repeat an accent three times at different heights.
Hardware is the metal line
Brass for warmth, black or chrome for a sharper fifties look. Pick one and carry it through to the ceiling lights.
Common kitchen color mistakes
Colored appliances plus colored cabinets. One or the other. Both at once is a diner.
Cool grey cabinets with wood shelving. The same clash as everywhere else in the house. Warm the grey.
Accent color in a single spot. A lone turquoise kettle is not a scheme. Three turquoise notes are.
Ignoring the floor. In kitchens the floor is a huge share of the visual field. A patterned or warm-toned floor does more than a backsplash.
Frequently asked questions
What colors were mid-century modern kitchens?
Cream and white as the base, with turquoise, mint, buttery yellow, coral and chalky pink in the fifties, shifting to avocado, harvest gold, burnt orange and brown by the late sixties.
How do I make my kitchen look mid-century without renovating?
Add warm wood open shelving or a wood cutting board collection, swap hardware for brass or black, display ceramics in one or two accent colors, and add a patterned runner and a period-style light fixture.
What cabinet color is most authentic?
Cream or warm white is the safest and most common. For a period color, turquoise, soft mint and olive are all documented and still look current.
Do mid-century kitchens use open shelving?
Yes, and it is one of the most efficient ways to signal the style, because it puts warm wood and colored objects at eye level.
What flooring suits a mid-century kitchen?
Black and white checkerboard or geometric vinyl for the fifties look, warm cork or wood for the late sixties. Either is better than cool grey tile.
Keep reading
This article supports A Complete Guide to Mid-Century Modern Colors. You may also like Mid-Century Modern Living Room Color Ideas and Mid-Century Modern Bedroom Color Ideas.
Shop this look
Start with cream or warm white and add turquoise in three measured places. The starburst mug linked at the top is the first note; set the same palette on the table and carry it overhead without changing cabinetry.
Explore Mid-Century Modern Kitchen & Dining for practical additions that suit your space.
