Close your eyes and remember the beautiful kitchens that you have cooked or eaten in. Is there a recurring theme? Yes, color! When selecting kitchen paint colors, note that bright colors give you energy, whereas dark tones are intimate and cozy. Neutral earthy tones are calming and soothing and will make your décor and appliances the central focus. Paint color can enhance the size of your kitchen or make it appear smaller.

Here’s our list of the top ten kitchen paint colors, along with a few design pointers:

10. Hot pink

Go retro and a bit hog wild, break all the rules and apply a splash of hot pink on your kitchen walls or cabinets or both. This is not a safe choice. You are sure to get comments, some of which won’t be positive. Hot pink is bold and in your face. You are making a statement. Can you live with all of this color? Try it and find out.

9. Orange

The color orange is a great color but there isn’t anything subtle about it although you can tone it down and make it more subdued if you really want to use it in your kitchen but are afraid that bright orange will blind you. Orange is known to stimulate appetites so if you’re trying to lose weight you probably shouldn’t paint your kitchen orange. This color does make people feel comfortable and at ease. The color orange is frequently associated with food. This color would be a good choice for a restaurant owner.

8. Red

Want to encourage your family and friends to stick around? Paint your kitchen walls red. Restaurant owners frequently decorate using red because the proprietor wants you to stay and spend more money and red has that effect. Red is energizing so people may talk more and eat more and have a more energetic time than they would in a kitchen that is dull and dreary. Red is considered a fire color and the color of confidence and passion. Reds come in all kinds of shades and tones and intensities, including Indian reds, spicy reds, terra cotta, burgundy, pure reds, russets and pinkish or bluish reds. Buy a small can of red paint and experiment—paint a poster board in the chosen color—and see if you like it and can live with it before you buy gallons of red.

7. Black and white

A black and white kitchen can be very sleek and contemporary looking. Throw in some stainless steel appliances and you’ve got a handsome look going on. For some, black and white might be too stark but for others that love the minimal style this may be the route to go in your kitchen.

6. Tuscan color pallette

If you are going for a Tuscan inspired kitchen incorporate colors such as various oranges, yellows, greens, browns and blues. Use warm neutrals such as burnt umber, raw umber, burnt or raw sienna, milky white, sandstone, golden honey, straw, dark brown and add shades of rich yellows and muted reds, terra cotta, peach, vivid blues, bright poppy and apricot. Display your copper pots and pans and use pewter or antique brass hardware. The Tuscan kitchen is so inviting and cozy you’ll never want to leave.

5. Blue and white

Blue and white kitchens evoke old-world charm. Use decorative tiles in cobalt blue or the blue of your choice to complement white or off-white walls. Blue is a wonderful color to use as an accent to white. Throw in some yellow and you’ve got one beautiful look going on. Displaying porcelain dishwares, such as Wedgewood blue and willow pattern china, which is also blue, is a nice touch. If you combine blue with red, this will make the blue look warmer. If you put blue with green the blue will look cooler.

When your kitchen doesn’t get much natural light the blue color that you use should be very warm because otherwise, it can look cold. Selecting which blue to use is going to be the hard part. There is the deep sapphire, duck egg blue, cobalt, cornflower, delphinium, ice blue, baby blue, smoke blue, and forget-me-not blue as well as blues that are almost purple or almost green. Deep, rich blues goes ideally with warm mahogany cabinets.

4. Yellow

Yellow is always a great color for a kitchen because it is sunny and certainly not drab. This color is cheerful and lends itself to a kitchen that is the hub for a family. The yellow walls will make a small kitchen look bigger and will up the warmth factor. However, if the yellow is too bright it can be distracting so pick your shade carefully and consider how much natural light is in the kitchen and how this will impact the yellow color on your walls, which is something you need to consider regardless of the color paint you are using.

Yellow, unless it is a school bus yellow, isn’t so bold that it’s distracting or abrupt, yet it is a distinctive color that melds well with wood or white cabinets. It will also enhance space. The color yellow runs the gamut from gold, butter yellow, yellow ocher to lemon yellow. Combine lemon yellow walls with lime green and white accents or toss in some warm blue or hot pink and pistachio. Butter yellow goes well with accent colors such as deep burgundy red, clear blues, and mid-toned greens. White and butter yellow look quite crisp when combined. Ocher is an earthly, dull yellow but is quite effective when it comes to decorating. Paint your walls ocher and add touches of Indian red, turquoise, and cobalt blue. Strong yellow brings to mind a classic, traditional kitchen.

3. Gray

Stainless steel appliances are de rigueur and lend themselves to a modern or contemporary look in the kitchen, although stainless steel refrigerators, dishwashers and sinks can be incorporated successfully into any style of kitchen. A good color to use with stainless is gray. If you are a disciplined, intelligent type, you are probably drawn to the color gray, which can look elegant and chic, particularly when paired with shiny metals, copper and stainless steel. Gray also looks inviting when combined with warm colors. You might want to go all out and paint your walls, or one of them, black and this will really promote the industrial feel that some homeowners love in their kitchen.

2. Neutrals

Using neutral or monochromatic colors throughout your kitchen can be very appealing. When you use neutral colors on your walls this puts the focus on other objects such as your countertops, cabinets, and backsplashes. You can insert color in your tablecloth, chair cushions, and other accessories if you feel the need to apply some color. Neutral colors are those that contain equal parts of black, white and gray, and sometimes brown. Granite countertops, porcelain or stainless steel sinks, and dark or light wood cabinets will all look great in a neutral-colored kitchen.

1. White

The number one choice of color for kitchens: White. Hey, you can’t go wrong with white and, in fact, a white kitchen can be amazing looking. It can be contemporary or traditional depending on the color of white that you have chosen, your appliances, cabinetry style, and your accessories. White isn’t just white. There are different hues, tones, tints, and intensities all of which will have a bearing on the outcome. White needn’t look sterile or stark. It can be coupled with warm-colored accessories, shiny or rustic knobs and pulls, cove lighting, soft curtains, wooden surfaces, a checker-board floor, textured throw rugs, and plants.

People like the fresh, sanitary feel of a white kitchen, the brightness and the classic look that a white kitchen possesses. The kind of lights you use in your kitchen will impact the color on your walls and cabinets, whether the color is white or another hue. Consider if you want to use warm lighting or cool lighting and then try it out and see how it alters the color of your walls and accessories. White can be warm or it can be cool depending on the shade of white you have chosen, the lighting and how you have accessorized.