Selecting the right metal accents to pair with your wood kitchen cabinets can really take your kitchen design to the next level. The combination of natural wood grain and the sleek, industrial look of metal creates a stylish and modern aesthetic. But with so many metal finish options to choose from like stainless steel, chrome, nickel, brass, bronze, and more, deciding what metal goes best with wood cabinets can be an overwhelming choice.

This comprehensive guide will walk you through the most popular metal finishes and provide tips on how to effortlessly blend metal hardware, fixtures, and accents with gorgeous wood cabinetry for a cohesive and eye-catching look. We’ll cover how to match metals to create a unified look, recommended pairings for specific wood types and cabinet colors, and ideas for adding the perfect metal touches throughout your kitchen design.

Factors to Consider When Pairing Metals and Wood

When mixing metal and wood elements in your kitchen, there are a few important factors to consider:

Style of Cabinets

The style of your cabinets will impact the look you’re going for. For traditional cabinet designs like Shaker-style cabinets, vintage metal options like antique bronze and brushed nickel are recommended. Modern cabinet styles often look great with more contemporary metals like stainless steel or polished chrome.

Color of Cabinets

Lighter colored cabinets like white or light grey look fabulous with bold metals like polished brass or matte black that make them pop. Dark wood cabinets pair better with more subtle and natural metal tones like oil-rubbed bronze. Matching the undertones of your cabinet color and metal choice results in a cohesive look.

Type of Wood

The natural patterns and tones in different wood species can help guide your metal selection. Warm woods like oak and cherry complement bronzed metals while cooler toned woods like maple suit brushed nickel or stainless steel. Consistency between the wood’s undertone and metal undertone is key.

Your Personal Style

Consider the overall aesthetic you want for your kitchen. Do you prefer an urban, sleek look or a more rustic, cozy feel? Your metal finish should align with and enhance the style you envision.

Mixing Metals

Be intentional about limiting the number of different metals you pair together. Using two complementary metals can work well, but more than that and the look can become overly busy and mismatching.

By keeping these factors in mind, you’ll be able to narrow down the field and confidently select metal accents that work in harmony with your lovely wood cabinetry.

Recommended Metal Finishes for Wood Cabinets

Now that we’ve covered the principles for pairing metals and wood, let’s explore some of the best metal finish options to combine with wood cabinets.

Stainless Steel

The clean, sharp look of stainless steel makes it one of the most popular choices to pair with wood cabinets. It has a very modern, industrial vibe that complements both light and dark woods beautifully. Stainless steel works with woods like maple, ash, and oak and suits any style from contemporary to farmhouse. It’s ideal for minimalist kitchens and brings out a wood grain’s linear pattern.

Stainless steel looks particularly striking with white oak cabinets. Its neutral tone allows the wood’s variation to shine while adding an eye-catching metallic sheen. Black stainless steel is another option that provides higher contrast for lighter woods like birch.

Black Metal

Few colors pair as flawlessly with natural wood grains as solid black metal. Black hardware and fixtures provide the perfect accent and instant sophistication. The deeply contrasting color enhances the wood’s warmth and dimension.

Black metal finishes to consider with wood cabinets include matte black, black stainless steel, antique black, and oil-rubbed black. Any wood looks striking with black, but it looks particularly bold with woods like European oak that have pronounced grains.

Brushed Nickel

With its soft grey luster, brushed nickel is a beautiful match for all different wood cabinet colors and stains. It has versatile appeal working well in traditional and modern aesthetics. Brushed nickel harmonizes nicely with both light and darker woods.

It’s an excellent choice for light maple or birch cabinets, providing subtle contrast without overpowering the lighter wood tones. Its muting effect also balances out the boldness of darker espresso cabinets beautifully. Satin nickel offers a very similar look and pairs just as seamlessly with wood.

Bronze

For a regal and rustic aesthetic, the warmth of bronze makes it an ideal metal complement to wood. Oil-rubbed bronze has a gorgeous dark antiqued look perfect for traditional kitchen styles. Its brownish-black tone coordinates splendidly with many wood species from pine to hickory to oak.

Polished or brushed bronze also pairs amazingly with darker woods like walnut and cherry, creating rich depth. The muted shine adds elegance and luxury. Bronze’s brown undertones and woodsy feel make it a natural partner for cabinetry in darker finishes.

Aged Brass

Nothing pairs quite as well with the natural beauty of wood as aged brass. Often called antique brass, this finish has a soft golden glow that feels immediately cozy and timeless. Its muted yellow patina was made to blend with warm wood grains.

Aged brass enhances any wood color from light to dark. It brings out the richness in darker mahogany cabinets and prevents lighter maple cabinets from feeling washed out. For farmhouse or craftsman kitchen styles, aged brass is a perfect metallic accent. The aged look harmonizes the wood and metal beautifully.

Polished Chrome

For a super modern, chic kitchen, try pairing wood cabinets with sleek polished chrome hardware and fixtures. The mirror-like shine of chrome has an eye-catching reflective quality that plays nicely against the matte texture of wood cabinetry.

Chrome stands out boldly against darker woods like wenge and provides sharp definition against lighter woods like oak or ash. Minimalist contemporary spaces are where chrome and wood truly shine together. If you prefer lots of brightness and gleam, chrome is a fantastic metal pairing.

Ideas for Incorporating Metal with Wood Cabinets

Now that you know the best metal finishes to pair with wood cabinets, here are some stylish ideas for working metal accents throughout your kitchen design:

Hardware

An easy way to blend metal with wood cabinets is through your choice of hardware like knobs or pulls. Select hardware in a metal that complements your cabinet finish. Using the same metal finish throughout creates cohesion. For more visual interest, mix two toned metals like brushed brass knobs with black iron pulls.

Lighting

Consider adding pendant lights, overhead fixtures or under cabinet lighting in a metal tone that accentuates your wood cabinetry. Aged bronze pendants would enhance mahogany cabinets beautifully, while modern maple cabinets could shine with stainless steel overhead lights.

Sink and Faucet

Introduce your chosen metal finish through the kitchen sink and faucet. A white ceramic farmhouse sink pops against dark walnut cabinets and brushed nickel faucet. A stainless steel sink and chrome faucet add striking industrial edge to light oak cabinets.

Shelving

Add metal wire, pipe, or industrial shelving against your wood cabinetry for contrast. Exposed black piping looks bold with whitewashed cabinets. Floating stainless steel shelves with wood cabinets create an on-trend blended aesthetic.

Table Legs

Kitchen and dining tables are another opportunity to incorporate complementary metal tones. Iron table bases in an aged brass finish would accent cherry wood cabinets nicely. A marble topped table with black metal legs plays up the modern edge of oak cabinets.

Barstools

Consider metal framed barstools in a finish that complements your cabinets. Woven rattan or leather topped stools with bronze frames enhance the richness of walnut cabinetry. Clear acrylic and chrome stools lend airiness against dark espresso cabinets.

Backsplash

Add a metal backsplash like zinc, stainless steel, or tin behind wood cabinetry and open shelving for bold industrial edge. Subway tiles in mixed metal and wood also helps marry the elements.

Best Metals for Specific Wood Cabinet Types

To recap, here are some of our recommended pairings for common wood cabinet finishes:

• White Oak Cabinets – Stainless steel, polished chrome
• Cherry Cabinets – Brushed bronze, antique brass
• Maple Cabinets – Brushed nickel, stainless steel
• Walnut Cabinets – Black metal, aged brass
• Mahogany Cabinets – Aged bronze, antique brass
• Birch Cabinets – Black stainless steel, polished chrome
• Hickory Cabinets – Oil-rubbed bronze, antique copper

While these pairings work beautifully, don’t be afraid to get creative with blending metal finishes and wood grains in innovative ways to achieve your personalized kitchen vision. The key is selecting metals and woods with coordinating undertones that will create a harmonious, integrated look.

With the guidelines provided in this article, you should feel equipped to confidently choose winning metal and wood combinations no matter your kitchen’s style. Just remember to keep the overall look cohesive. Be intentional about which metals you pair together. And don’t overlook all the opportunities to infuse complementary metal finishes throughout your entire kitchen design.

When thoughtfully combined, the natural beauty of wood Cabinetry enhanced with the sleek industrial edge of metal hardware and accents makes for a kitchen that truly stands out. So embrace your inner interior designer and flaunt your terrific taste by picking metal finishes that perfectly match your stunning wood cabinets!

FAQs About Pairing Metals with Wood Cabinets

Still have some lingering questions about blending metal and wood elements in your kitchen design? Take a look at these frequently asked questions for additional insights.

What if I’m unsure about matching metals and wood cabinets?

It’s fine to feel overwhelmed about choosing complimentary metals and woods! If you’re still undecided, go with versatile, neutral metal tones like brushed nickel, stainless steel or matte black that pair well with any wood type. You can always switch out hardware and accents later if you want to change it up.

Should my metal fixtures match my metal hardware?

For a streamlined look, it is ideal for metals like light fixtures, faucets and hardware to share the same finish. Or limit it to just two coordinated metals, like vintage bronze fixtures with brushed nickel hardware. Too many unmatching metals can look cluttered.

How do I make stainless steel look warm against wood cabinets?

The cool gleam of stainless can seem harsh on warm wood. But you can soften the look by selecting stainless with a brushed finish or combining it with warmer elements like an antique bronze faucet. Wood countertops also make stainless feel more cozy and natural.

What if I have light granite counters with dark wood cabinets?

Go for an aged metal like rubbed bronze or antique brass that ties to the deeper wood tones. Brushed nickel would look too stark against the wood while polished chrome clashes with the granite. Pick metals enhancing the cabinets since they dominate visually.

Should I avoid mixing black metal with very dark cabinets?

Not necessarily! The bold high contrast can look incredibly dramatic and elegant. However, too much dark color can feel heavy and overwhelming. Balance it out with lighter wood accents, mirrors and windows to keep the space from feeling too dark.

What metal finishes should I avoid with wood cabinets?

Stay away from very trendy finishes like rose gold or extremely glossy metals which may feel dated too quickly. Unfinished metals like raw steel don’t complement wood’s natural elegance. Cheap brass finishes can look gaudy and also age poorly.

How do I choose new metals to update my existing wood cabinets?

Replacing just the metal hardware and fixtures lets you update wood cabinets easily. Look at the cabinet wood’s undertones like reddish, yellowish or grey to determine the best matching metal. A fresh coat of stain can also impact your metal pairing.

Can I mix wood cabinets with metal and glass cabinets?

Yes, combining materials can create awesome contrast and textures. Use metals/glass in small doses as accent cabinets instead of solid runs. Unify everything with matching hardware. An aged brass finish would bridge vintage wood and modern metal/glass cabinets beautifully.

Should my wood flooring influence my cabinet metal choices?

It’s wise for flooring and cabinet metals to coordinate so everything flows. Warm wood flooring supports vintage metal finishes such as bronze or copper. Grey washed wood floors suit brushed nickel or stainless steel. Just don’t go too matchy-matchy. Some contrast adds interest!

Conclusion

The perfect pairing of metal and wood elements can make your kitchen feel instantly elevated and instill it with a gorgeous blend of textures and tones. Whether your style leans traditional or modern, rustic or sleek, following the tips provided helps ensure you end up with a cohesive, eye pleasing blend of metals and wood cabinets.

Remember to think about the look you want, match undertones, limit your metals and take advantage of all the opportunities to infuse small metal accents throughout your kitchen design. Most importantly, embrace and enjoy your beautiful finished kitchen that skillfully combines the best of industrial metallic and natural wooden aesthetics into one seamless whole.