The Most Brilliant Way to Make Your Kitchen Look Bigger and Brighter: Add a Mirror
Life’s busy. Budgets are tight. We’re always on the lookout for tiny details to add to a home that will make a disproportionately big impact — so you can get to enjoying your home to its fullest more. What’s one way you can improve a kitchen’s look and feel quickly today with a simple, slightly unexpected addition? Add a mirror.
That’s right, a mirror has the almost magical capacity to add both light and depth to any room, and that includes your kitchen. But do mirrors even belong there? Won’t that look … weird? With a little thought and a lot of imagination it totally works, trust us. We think it’s worth the style risk. Want proof? We’ve got the photographic evidence that a mirror makes a kitchen better — no matter its style.
Take this Toronto designer’s pink kitchen, for example. Sure, she’s already made some super non-traditional choices, starting with all that pink. But the mirror almost feels like a second window and really opens up the space. One key detail that makes it work is the frame painted in the same white as the trim, molding, radiator, and cabinets.
On a side wall as an accent, a mirror in this kitchen keeps this boldly painted wall from making the room feel too dark overall. It helps that the frame is painted a slightly darker version of the wall color. This helps it harmonize well. Note, too, that the radiator below is painted silver so the mirror isn’t the only shining object in the room. And the mirror’s size fits the space perfectly.
This big mirror hanging over the stove in designer Marjorie Skouras’ kitchen is in perfect harmony with the overall Frenchy antique look. The ornate, bronze frame works well with the hanging copper cookery and the brass details on the range. It also helps this tiny space feel larger.
A narrow kitchen gets a little extra breathing space thanks to the round mirror in this Brooklyn artist’s studio apartment. The guilted frame adds some playful fancy-ness and curves to an otherwise relatively plain space. And the reflective surface beams in light from the big windows in the adjoining living room.
Despite its diminutive size, this hexagonal mirror makes a big statement in this food blogger’s kitchen. It grabs light from the corner window and bounces that light into the whole kitchen. The chic brass frame adds sophistication and a subtle contrast to the silver/grey colors.