Ask the Kitchen Guy – Coloring Next Years Renovations – December 2025

Soon the holiday decorations will be packed away for another year. Then comes the dreaded realization. This house needs some work. Whether it’s paint, a kitchen refresh or full gut-remodel something needs to be done.

Over the years I have observed that with many people putting together the project color palette can be daunting. More to the point, the further you get into your plan the colors can become very difficult to choose.

In a kitchen remodel I like to start with the largest surfaces first. Sometimes the decision is made for you. For instance, when the kitchen floor is going to be medium-toned wood to match the rest of the home you will find yourself leaning towards a painted cabinet. Usually, soft white or gray. If your budget doesn’t have room for custom cabinets and all the color options that come with it, your color options will be limited to what the semi-custom cabinet manufacturer is offering,

Note: Soft whites have been predominant for 15 years or more.

Each time you pick a color, the options for the next surface become a little more limited. Recognizing that, the good people of Cambria developed a Color Match Tool available on their website that matches four (4) Benjamin Moore colors to each of their designs. The Cambria Color Match Tool has become a standard starting point for me when working with clients.

In fact, the Cambria Color Match Tool has become so important that we developed book of full-size color samples organized by Cambria Design. We take the book to the showroom with the clients to view the full slabs for final selection. Upon making the final choice we immediately order large samples of the matching colors overnighted to the client. Which ultimately influences the rest of our choices.

This book has become so popular we have started developing a similar book for LX Hausys’ Viatera Quartz. Viatera is another “First Tier” quartz product in our opinion with some of their offerings.

Special Thanks to Stephanie Sarris of Stephanie Sarris Interiors for the assist.