Bold & brave

Being brave isn’t about having a whole kitchen in strong, bold colours, says Lou Barker. Her own kitchen, above, has bright colour only on the bottom cabinets so as not to be overwhelming. She advises starting small and in a controlled way: “Try to stick to three colours to start and choose colours opposite each other on the colour spectrum. Then you can add colourful accessories as well. You don’t have to paint your entire kitchen in bright colours, just choose certain areas.” She feels that strong colour complements other materials like timber, concrete and stone. “A kitchen is the hub of the home, so you want it to be inviting.”