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Ever since PPG declared Night Watch, a deep, luxurious aqua that reminds us of malachite, 2019’s color of the year, we’ve been seeing soothing shades of green everywhere. It’s easy to understand why. A symbol of growth, energy, harmony, and nature, green is chock-full of calming properties. It’s especially impactful in a room as busy as, say, the kitchen, where a warm sage or restful moss can help incite a zenlike state amid the cooking chaos.
There’s a whole world of cleverly named green paints out there (November Rain, Snip of Parsley, and Mown Grass are just a few). But which ones are the absolute best for kitchen cabinets? We worked our way backward, pinpointing our favorite green kitchens and figuring out the essential swatches from there. After a deep dive, these 14 options stood out as the clear winners.
The Go-Getter Green
Try: Cactus Shadow by Valspar
After removing the dark blue paint from her cabinets with Citrus Strip, sanding, and priming, Dear Saturdays blogger Christine Han covered everything in Cactus Shadow by Valspar using a spray gun she picked up at Lowe’s to make the process go a lot smoother. Like all the other colors she incorporated into the space (peep her mosaic backsplash), this hue was inspired by the 1988 Seoul Olympics flag.
The Beige-Green
Try: Berkshire Beige by Benjamin Moore
On Benjamin Moore’s website, you’ll find Berkshire Beige in the “brown” family, but as we learned from this Los Angeles space, designed by Natalie Myers, the earthy hue reads as a pale green-gray in a room that gets a lot of natural light.
The Pea Green
Try: Clary Sage by Sherwin-Williams
Even if you aren’t a big vegetable person, you can agree there’s something to this shade that Jessica Mikesell used all over her San Francisco Craftsman kitchen. The best part? It goes great with soapstone countertops. “I was worried the black and green combo would be too dark, but it actually makes it feel cozier,” she told us.
The Calming Olive
Try: Rosemary by Sherwin-Williams
Portland, Oregon–based designer Stephanie Dyer loves this subdued shade of green so much that nearly everyone in her family has a room painted in the color. She’s also keen on incorporating it into her clients’ projects, as in this Craftsman space, where she paired it with pops of red, orange, and teal for a modern twist.
The Sought-After Sage
Try: Cooking Apple Green by Farrow & Ball
Teri Lyn Fisher of Spoon Fork Bacon mixed not two or three but 17 samples to find the right balance of mint and sage for her breezy space. She had a big-box paint supplier color-match her experiment, but you could cut corners by going with a similar hue, like Farrow & Ball’s Cooking Apple Green, which looks even brighter when it’s contrasted with white walls and countertops.
The ’60s Green
Try: Fig Tree by Behr
Nostalgia is the theme for this Lancaster, Pennsylvania, kitchen, designed by the Chris and Claude Co. Old wallpaper left over from the 1960s can still be spotted peeking out behind the painted walls in one part of the room. To keep the groovy vibes going with the cabinets, the designers opted for a muddy green color with hints of brown undertones.
The Chameleon Green
Try: Forest Green by Benjamin Moore
A dark forest green can sway contemporary or traditional depending on the sheen. In an old renovated row home designed by Chris and Claude Beiler, Benjamin Moore’s tried-and-true color reads as green-blue with its matte finish and clean black pulls. But in a classic Denver Tudor kitchen by Shea McGee, the hue takes a brighter turn, revealing notes of emerald.
The Gray-Green
Try: Pewter Green by Sherwin-Williams
Emily Henderson went with a smoky shade for this kitchen. The silvery green pairs perfectly with the cool gray veining of the marble countertops. While the designer contemplated painting either the lower or upper cabinets white, she decided to make a more dramatic statement by using the same color everywhere (including the island).
The Bright Green
Try: Hunter Dunn by Paint and Paper Library
On hardware-less cabinetry, a classic hunter green can feel surprisingly fresh. The buttery yellow barstools, plywood cutout pulls, and fluted glass cabinets in this modern space by Naked Kitchens take the shade into unconventional territory.
The Seaside Green
Try: Caldwell Green by Benjamin Moore
For this modern cabin on a lake, Shea McGee pulled from Benjamin Moore’s historic color collection. The sage-y olive green serves as a cool counterpoint to matte black hardware, sandy-colored hardwood floors, and the white shiplap in the adjacent room.
The Herbaceous Green
Try: Chimichurri by Benjamin Moore
Katie Hackworth chose a green hue in a satin finish—charmingly named after the tangy sauce—for this small office kitchen. To ensure full coverage, the designer applied it by back-brushing (a technique in which you spray the paint and then smooth out the wet stain with a regular brush).
The Moss Green
Try: Great Barrington Green by Benjamin Moore
Babba C. Rivera’s Brooklyn kitchen exudes warmth. When the sunlight is streaming in, the earthy shade that covers her Shaker-style fronts takes on an almost limelike glow.
The Countryside Green
Try: Racing Green and Emerald Green by DeVol Kitchens
This bespoke space by British brand DeVol is painted with a custom mix of the company’s Racing and Emerald greens. Its rich profile elevates the rustic wood details in the space, plus it makes the vintage oil paintings that lean against the wall pop.
The Mint Green
Try: Moth’s Wing by Behr
A whimsical pastel hue is the star of Lourdes Hernández’s funky Los Angeles kitchen. A pale yellow Smeg refrigerator and mix-and-match ceramic pendant lights take the carefree vibe one step further.
This story was originally published on August 5, 2020. It has since been updated.