Refresh Your Old Cabinets With This Dark And Unique Joanna Gaines Twist

HGTV and the Magnolia Network's Joanna Gaines is known for her impeccable style and rustic sensibilities, often creating cozy and multi-textured spaces that have enormous amounts of character. In a photo on Instagram, Gaines showed off her own office space, where much of the design magic happens. She had expertly executed a creative spin on the all-black cabinets trend, adapting it to be more textured and rustic by leaving the drawers and bins unpainted to showcase the rich natural wood. The combo not only looks like a modern and chic take on her rustic aesthetic, but also creates a beautiful contrast that lightens up the room.

The juxtaposition of rich wood grain and sleek black is a popular one among designers. This approach offers the drama and impact of black cabinetry, but makes it feel less gothic and gloomy, with the wood adding a natural and earthy vibe. It also avoids making the room too uniformly dark, adding another layer of lightness and texture. You can get a similar look by mixing and matching black with wood tones in your own home, particularly on cabinets in the kitchen or elsewhere, where this technique can help alleviate some of the anxieties of painting all your cabinets such a dark color.

Wood can give black kitchen cabinets an elegant look. Joanna Gaines chose a soft semi-gloss black for the bulk of the cabinets and added shiny brass hardware, a look that really set the stage for the rustic wood of the drawers and bins to stand out and shine. In a kitchen, you can give cabinets a similar two-toned trendy look with natural wood on the top or bottom and black painted cabinets or drawers above or below. Or use one or the other in different parts of the kitchen, like black built-ins combined with a wood-stained center island or free-standing pantry. Another option is to go with all-black cabinetry and add a solid wood counter, one of the countertops to use with black cabinets for a gorgeous rustic effect. You can also add elements like wooden hardware to black cabinets.

This contrasting look can also work stunningly for built-ins in other rooms like offices and wardrobes. While Gaines chooses a semi-gloss black and a deeper wood tone to achieve her rustic aesthetic, you can adapt this to a more modern and contemporary style by using a matte black finish and lighter wood tones.