Why a pink kitchen is the new must-have for a stylish house
When it comes to kitchen colour inspiration, our archives are brimming with ideas from chalky whites to deep blues. And in the full swing of winter, we like to think about decoration ideas that bring a little warmth, making it the perfect opportunity to consider pink kitchens.
Once considered a mere ‘half-colour’ or just a diluted cousin of red, over centuries pink has come into its own as a hue of great significance. It was beloved of the Madames du Pompadour and du Barry, and a young Marie Antoinette, associated with affairs of the heart, and simultaneously derided as frivolous and celebrated in fashion and interiors, where designers have cleverly demonstrated pink’s versatility.
In fact, interior design icon Nicky Haslam said the most flattering colour of all is the pinky-brown shade of an Elastoplast and it seems quite a few people were on his wavelength. Softer pinks that lean towards beige have been particularly popular of late, and shades like the classic ‘Setting Plaster’ by Farrow & Ball, with its ability to adapt to all kinds of light, are demonstrating pink's potential as an alternative neutral. ‘Calamine’, another Farrow & Ball favourite with a grey-ish tint and the warmer, yellowy ‘Jonquil’ by Edward Bulmer are also popular variations on pink that infuse a kitchen with a sense of calm and comfort. On the hotter end of the spectrum, those wanting something a little more adventurous have opted for sugary pinks, fuchsias and bubble-gum hues that bring a playful vibrancy into the kitchen.
Here we dig into the House & Garden archive to show just how adaptable pink can be, how it co-exists with other colours more effortlessly than it perhaps is given credit for, and how the colour–whether light and gentle or bright and bold–can transform the heart of the home.
Design ideas for pink kitchens
Owen Gale1/13The walls in the kitchen of interior designer Angelica Squire's Victorian terrace house in London are painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Setting Plaster’. This dusty plaster pink is a perennial favourite and Angelica has painted the cabinets in ‘Preference Red’ to provide a bold contrast to the softness of ‘Setting Plaster’.
Dean Hearne2/13In the kitchen of this lovely coastal holiday home in Deal transformed by interior designer Nicola Mardas, the walls have been painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Middleton Pink’ while the cabinets are in Little Greene's ‘Woodland’ to provide a vibrant kitchen with softened, delicate edges in the popular pink-and-green colour scheme.
Rupert Peace3/13Interior designer Alice Crawley also chose a pink and green scheme for the kitchen of her Notting Hill house. A bold custom green was chosen for the kitchen island, while the walls and cabinets have been painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Pink Ground’, a dusty, blush variation on the colour and the backsplash is a pink carrera marble.
Andrew Montgomery4/13Our former style director Ruth Sleightholme once created this fictional modern take on a country kitchen of dreams with another take on the pink-and-green colour scheme. The main wall has been painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Calamine’, a delicate, subtle pink with just the hint of grey and is complemented by emerald green ceramic tiles.
Michael Sinclair5/13The delicate pink of the walls and cabinetry in the kitchen of decoration consultant Catherine Chichester's Cotswold barn conversion is a combination of four pale shades by Oxfordshire-based paint specialists Relics of Witney. The custom colour lends a feminine air to the space which serves as the entrance into the home.
Simon Brown6/13While we had long become used to seeing ‘Setting Plaster’ on kitchen walls, this kitchen in interior designer Samantha Todhunter's Queen Anne home in Oxfordshire was the first time we had seen the Farrow & Ball favourite used on kitchen cabinets when we featured it in 2023. The subtle pink provides a balance to the chequerboard floor.
Christopher Horwood7/13The kitchen walls and cabinets in interior designer Virginia White's Hampstead Heath townhouse have been painted in Edward Bulmer's 'Jonquil', a warm yellowy-beige pink that grounds this kitchen inspired by classic Dutch design and provides a great contrast to the Fired Earth chequerboard floor tiles.
Mark Anthony Fox8/13Down in the cosy kitchen of Charlotte Boundy's London house, the interior designer has swapped out plain Ikea units for classic British Standard cabinets, which were then painted in a combination of ‘Brunswick Green’ and ‘Lilac Pink’ by Edward Bulmer. The latter is one of Charlotte's favourite pinks.
Owen Gale9/13In designer and creative consultant Violet Dent's colourful London flat, it is not the paint that provides the pink tone of the kitchen. Instead it is the tiles in a delicate, airy shade that lend the space a lightness and gentle whimsy accentuated by accessories like the Matilda Goad lamp.
Rachael Smith10/13In interior designer Lucinda Griffith's house, every room is a bold colour but in the heart of the home, the kitchen, the she turned to a classic neutral palate using Farrow & Ball's 'Setting Plaster'. The warm, pinkish tone beautifully sets off the charming copper fish above the Esse range too.
Simon Upton11/13When it came to designing her East London house it was all about bold, playful colours for interior designer Rachel Chudley and the kitchen as no exception. The hot pink Lacanche range and bespoke deep purple cabinetry stand out against the soft base the light pink kitchen walls provide.
Maree Homer12/13The open-plan kitchen of this quirky 19th-century former whaler’s cottage in North Sydney has been transformed by Australian interior designer Lisa Burdus into a vibrant space thanks to a dusty, muddy pink from Dulux. The colour has a slight heat behind it that transports you to the climes of Morocco, after which the paint has been named.
Paul Massey13/13Interior designer Carlos Garcia used the palest pink as a neutral in the kitchen of his Queen Anne house in Norfolk. All the Plain English cabinets, built to Carlos' specifications, were painted in the same colour as the walls so that they would ‘disappear’, which has the effect of making this comfortable family kitchen appear a little larger.
