1. CHOOSE A LOW MAINTENANCE STYLE
One of the things that will have the biggest impact on the maintenance level of your kitchen is the style. 'Two of the easiest cabinetry styles to maintain during day-to-day life is shaker or slab,' says Richard Davonport, Managing Director at luxury kitchen brand Davonport.
2. PICK A COLOR THAT DOESN'T SHOW DIRT
The color and finish of your cabinets will determine the level of routine maintenance and how forgiving it is at hiding issues. 'When it comes to what colors that are low maintenance, dark colors such as greens or blues are a great choice as both are forgiving of marks and grime which helps to reduce cleaning time,' advises Richard. Dark shades are also some of the luxurious-looking kitchen color ideas, so not only will your kitchen look cleaner it will also look more expensive.
3. SELECT A FINISH THAT HAS EASY UPKEEP
Paint is typically easier to maintain than stained cabinetry, particularly when it is in a semi-gloss finish. 'With stained cabinetry, all wood grain is exposed,' says kitchen designer Thomas Borcherding, 'making imperfections more obvious and harder to fix.' Paint, on the other hand, is easily wiped down and touched up.
4. THINK TWICE ABOUT GLASS
Glass fronted cabinets are a popular choice, especially to help make a small kitchen look bigger. However, it might not be the wisest choice if you want to keep it really low maintenance. 'I would think carefully about glass cabinets,' says Richard, as they show fingerprints very easily and require constant cleaning. If you are dead set on glass but can't commit to the cleaning, there is an alternative. 'The kitchen trend for fluted glass is a positive change as its ribbed effect helps to hide any fingerprints and smudges,' says Richard, keeping you on trend and looking pristine.
3 OF OUR FAVORITE LOW-MAINTENANCE KITCHEN COLORS
Irish Green by Backdrop
Liquorice by Farrow & Ball
Courtyard Green by Benjamin Moore