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Michael Kilpatrick Design That is a very bold color. Good for you for starting there.
Do you have any photos of the space? What kind of natural light does it receive?

twilightblue Thanks for the reply, no photos of the space... it will have at least three large windows (kitchen is being gutted) more if the final design will allow, I love natural light, so much that I am planning to do the cabinets as all drawers with NO uppers. I love the idea of red in the kitchen, but am afraid of it being overwhelming and want to be able to tone it down a bit, would like the cabinets to be painted, but maybe just sticking to a natural wood color would be better? The problem is I just don't know how to build up from the floor with transitioning color and textures so it all ties in.

soberg Try putting together large samples of the flooring, paint and counter and look at it together. It will either sing or scream in anguish. You can then respond accordingly.

Studio NOO Design Go for it, it is very nice ! If you have white or dark brown kitchen cabinets, this will be amazing ! Plus, Marmoleum is so easy care.

Michael Kilpatrick Design Painted lowers would be nice, but the color will need to be absolutely perfect.

Try looking at woods - perhaps a light colored maple cabinet or other blond woods in a flat panel slab. You might even consider a reconstituted wood veneer product. Something like Evolution HD "Arctic Maple FLQP1110" or perhaps a little bolder with the Evolutioon HD TEAK ING-17JF. In both cases set the grain horizontally.

Pair this with a crisp white countertop like Caesarstone Blizzard and then put a lot of effort into finding a great backsplash tile. If you can afford it take the tile from countertop to ceiling. Something like this tile, shown attached, would be stunning. You might want to consider floating a wood shelf across some of the tile as a place to put your favorite object. Keep the painted walls warm and light. Benjamin Moore OC-130 Cloud White is always a safe white to use.

Carolyn Albert-Kincl Design I think you'll love it for at least a few years, and then you can change it if you grow tired of it. With your yellow cabinets, I would choose either white or black countertops and I'd paint the walls either white or pale gray.
Carolyn Albert-Kincl, ASID

Chameleon Power I think what you have chosen is beautiful. Believe it or not orange and terra cotta can be a highly neutral color. Go for it!

victorianbungalowranch Countertops that color were very popular from about 1940-1960. They were made with either linoleum sheeting edged with metal or with early laminimates. If you want to go retro, either reto-modern or retro cottage, it could look great with very pale yellow or white cabinets. Linoleum "rugs" with thick boarders and center patterned or plain lino were popular too, sometimes with custom patterns carved in. Here are some images:

Retrorenovation is a great source of historic style laminates and metal edging etc...It is a lot less costly than granite and such too, and not nearly as heavy. Sotne countertops can require additional support in the basement. Then if you tire of all that color, you won't feel bade about replacing it.

Twisted Minds Custom Designs Stone countertops i.e. granite, soapstone, concrete, etc., do not require additional support in the basement. Although perceived as being massive in weight, they typically run about 18 lbs. per s.f., sometimes older or cheaper made cabinets do require some additional reniforcement to the frames, but if you are doing a new remodel, your new cabinets should be able to handle this with no problem. As a concrete artisan I know from experience that they can be installed in most any home without problem, and I'm sure the granite, stone, etc. experts on here would agree the same with there products. While on the subject of concrete for countertops, have you considered this material as an option? Your bold choice on flooring and cabinet colors suggest to me that you are open to different building and design options. One of the beautiful aspects with concrete, is they can be shaped, colored, and designed in an almost endless variety of combinations. Feel free to visit my profile page for some examples and don't hesitate to ask questions, I'd be glad to answer, or use the find local pros toolbar to talk to a local artisan about the many benefits concrete has to offer.

twilightblue Michael Kilpatric Design - could I get the info on that tile.. I love it! Thanks for your input on the cabinetry too, I will definitely look into it.

twilightblue Carolyn Albert-Kincl, ASID - Thanks for the wall color suggestions, and the pic! I have not seen a kitchen with red floors as of yet.

twilightblue Twisted Minds Custom Design - I originally thought of concrete flooring, half of my kitchen is over a basement and the rest of the room runs out onto concrete slab, I was told that the weight on top of the basement joists would not hold with concrete flooring... any thoughts on this?

twilightblue victorianbungalowranch - Retro is not quite my taste but I do see how your design pics would help incorporate this choice of flooring, maybe one of the other great members of this community will be inspired! Thanks!

Twisted Minds Custom Designs For flooring over the basement area you could still do a concrete overlay on the exisitng subfloor, or backer board. You will probably want to consult with a local expert of course, but generally if your joists and subfloor are strong enough and in well enough shape to tile on, you can do a concrete overlay. It is no heavier than applying tile or stone, and you can achieve many different finishes, from textured to glass smooth, acid etched, colored, stenciled or even stamped with an overlay ranging from credit card thin up to 3/8" deep. It is not a procedure I would recommend a DIYer try. Again, check with a local, reputable professional on the possibilities you have available. Hope this helps, and as always, feel free to ask any more questions, I'll gladly try to answer.

Michael Kilpatrick Design TWI,
Here is the link to the tile. It's an incredibly beautiful color and it is as vibrant as the pictures suggest. Just make sure your installer uses a white mastic to get the full effect of the color.

http://www.trend-group.com/en_US/product/liberty-red.

The concrete floor will have a much higher weight per square foot than would normally be expected for most flooring (even tile) which may be higher than the existing floor joists are capable of handling. And even if it "seems OK" the floor may need to be stiffened so that the floor doesn't bounce thus causing the concrete to crack and then begin to spall.

This is something that a structural engineer should check for you.

The other thing to consider with concrete is the point where you make the transition from old flooring in other areas of the house to the new concrete floor in the kitchen. If you were to use regular weight concrete it will be somewhere around 1.5" in thickness. This is a sizable rise in floor level and is definitely a toe stubber. So consider this change carefully.

I look forward, as I'm sure you do as well, to seeing your final choices.

MODE CONCRETE @twilightblue

You can definitely install concrete floors on a wooden subfloor or wooden substrate. Concrete floors (or overlays) are of similar thickness and weight to tile, so you should be fine structurally to install concrete on any surface (provided your floor is adequately prepared and you hire an experienced concrete artisan).

There have been lots of recent product developments that challenge traditional thinking of what 'concrete' is. With traditional concrete, you would definitely need to reinforce and check the structure before any application or overlay is applied. If the concrete contractors use the latest high performance products, the concrete floor or overlay could actually be lighter than tile and usually only 3/8" thick. The transition between the 2 substrates would be minimal, since the product is self leveling and would create a cohesive floor.

Depending on the flex in your wooden subfloor, hairline cracks are natural and expected to appear on the surface. This comes from the concrete slab being a single, solid piece of rock and the wood underneath is flexible and changes and shifts consistently. When the foundation of the house shifts, the concrete is subjected to various flex points and pressures which take the form of tiny hairline fractures in the material. Seams, contraction joints and schluter strip help curb this, but if doing concrete on any flexible surface you can expect movement.

Make sure you use a reputable concrete contractor to ensure the proper preparation and techniques are being used on your project. Good luck!

carbary I love Red!!!! I have it in my home everywhere. I know a lot of people don't love color so when I remodeled my bathrooms and kitchen I thought about resale and ease of selling if I wanted to. Having said that I used hardwoods on my floor and and added my red in the upholstered chairs. I can always paint the walls red then repaint easier than redoing floors or counters or backslashes.

Michael Kilpatrick Design I think we are talking about two different materials. Are you guys referring to cement polymer overlays? Typically about 1/8" thick? What brands are you using?

mpoulsom I love the idea of the bright red floor, but i think i would stick with white, black, gray or natural light wood cabinetry. I think I would use white as the wall color and add great art pieces, vases, sculpture in the reds and more bright colors. And you can always throw down a cool rug on the floor as well to break it up a bit! something fun and modern!

Twisted Minds Custom Designs MKDesign, I'm sure there are different overlay systems and brands, depending on the area you live or the installers preferences. That's why I said it is imperative to find a local reputable artisan to go over the choices available. Depending on the clients wants and the surfaces on which to install. you need to choose the proper material for the job. There is no one perfect all encompassing product, but many great situational products available..

MarbleWarehouse.com what about these? They're marble tile and granite slab, Both has warm color.
Hope this helps you and gives you some ideas!


victorianbungalowranch Well yes, these are period rendering and look quite dated to our eyes. But I think it can be done so it looks quite contemporary, but with a bit of a retro vibe. One thing, retro kitchens tended to be bright and cheerful, and the color is a dead ringer for what my mother had in her Tudor Revival (the kitchen dated to around 1960). I don't know why red in particular was popular for countertops, but it was.

I hope you plan on living in your home a long time. Being so personal with color is a risk, but beige on beige, or greige or gray is just so boring. Seen it done beautifully though. If you aren't sure, consider the red as a accent color or confined to someplace it would be easy to change, like on top of the island. Haven't researched the Marmo floors, but if it is a floating floor, you might be able to do a red border and change it out at a later date or something.

Rather than yellow, I would consider a taupe or greige to balance the color. Too much yellow and orange can make a room feet really hot in the summertime or can look kind of 70s. Depends on the tones and nuetrals.

These are some nice retro-modern kitchens.