Debra - I'm also a "warm and cozy" person. Not to say that I don't appreciate "light and airy" for other people...I look at all these kitchens on here and think that they are gorgeous - for someone else. Probably the closest I get to the "light and airy" is that I love marble (even with all of it's "flaws"), but I could never live with my husband and have it - he's a bit umm...unforgiving, we'll say...about patina.

But regardless, for my own home, I like warmth. Interestingly, I'm drawn to a more contemporary styling rather than traditional, which some would say is "cold"...so, I guess that I warm that look back up with deep wood tones.

In our area, our kitchen would not appeal to a lot of people. It has the warmth of the wood which is found a lot around here, but the styling (dark cherry slab) would appeal to less people. Particularly since our kitchen is set in a 1950's traditional brick Cape Cod-ish style home.

I would describe my kitchen as open and bright due to removing walls and soffits and light counters where we had darker counters before but I think our natural cherry cabinets add warmth. White kitchens just don't do it for me.

Dark and cozy and traditional make me feel hot and claustrophobic and crowded and cluttered. I'm a minimalist big time. Light and fresh breezes are my thing !

to me, what makes a kitchen cozy and warm is the family, friends, food, and nurturing that take place there, not the color of the cabinets.

I don't think it's a male/female thing at all. A lot of masculine decorating is what I would call bright and airy -- think of loft style decorating.

climate and the amount of light available/desired are also factors.

Bright and cheery - because I live in Seattle.

I live in the south Florida, I'd feel overwhelmed in 'warm cozy'. I do like the look and if I lived up north I might go for it.

I like both! I tried for a compromise - big window but warm cabinets, including uppers.

Light and airy:
* Big bay window with no window treatments
* Took wall down b/w the DR and Kitchen

Warm & Cozy:
* Warm wood tones (I also think white looks nice, but it's not for me!)
* Uppers on both sides of the kitchen and full pantry.

I have to laugh about the comment: "...many women now spend their days in cubicles...".

Our company is remodeling and they're making it more "open and airy" (translated: noisy, no privacy, crammed into smaller spaces with no real walls and virtually no storage space!)

Our floor was the first and everyone calls it the "IKEA Floor". However, IKEA cabinets are much nicer than what we have! I'd love to have IKEA! (Don't get me started on the [dysfunctional] kitchen areas they designed and the flooring they chose! [Very light gray tile (no pattern) that shows every little speck of dirt and coffee spill coming into the building from the garage and outside; thin/stiff light gray carpet that shows the same!] Had surfaces everywhere! And no pictures or other things allowed on the walls (no holes!) or plants that might trail...OK, I ignored the latter. It is VERY loud and distracting!)

Sorry about the rant - it's a very difficult environment to work in. Companies did exactly the same thing in the 90s and when they discovered how noisy, distracting, etc. it was, they started throwing up walls! Obviously whoever "designed" our space did not learn from earlier mistakes!

Christina222 - good point!

"...if I lived up north I might go for it..."

I think that's exactly why I like both - open and airy in the summer and warm & cozy in the winter! You nailed it! :-)

I like them both. I like to visit warm and cozy and live in light and airy.

I wouldn't use either to describe what we were going for. I think of those terms as being used in real estate.

We also didn't want to try and create a gathering place or a showplace kitchen. We were going for a functional, colorful kitchen that fit our vintage home.

That gave us a beautiful kitchen where our friends sometimes gather with bright white walls that balanced the subdued color pallet and we love being in there almost as much as we love the food that comes out!

I am, thankfully, not a man. ;)

Right now my kitchen is white, bright, certainly...because of all the white...
I thought I might want to go with white cabs, dark counter tops...then We bought this house...with white every thing, faux butcher block laminate...taupe colored vinyl floors...white appliances...white cabs over the peninsula that are leaving as soon as I get my husband to help rip them down.

It's got all looming wall cabs too..haven't measured but at least 30" to the ceiling..I'm 5'4".. I feel like they are hanging over me..can't even use the top 2 shelves easily.

I left behind natural stained maple, dark Corian counter tops, stainless with black accent appliances. Walls the color of Paprika, floors grey flagstone vinyl...I want my beloved warm and cozy kitchen!

This big white, bright, monster will be replaced with wood, likely dark stained.
But it will sadly be a while...in the meantime, I'm thinking about painting these crappy '79 particle board cabs turquiose or mint green...lol

Warm and cozy - because I live in rainy, woodsy Portland. White seems out of place here.

Bright and airy because I live in cloudy Nova Scotia, my interiors are as light as possible! I am not much of a dark/cozy person overall, but neither am I a minimalist white kitchen person. More like light, bright and colorful. sort of that seaside look I guess.

I have black lowers and white uppers and when they first went in, the kitchen felt very cold stark to me. Then the butcher block counters went in, the colorful backsplash went up, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Finally had that mix of light but cozy that I needed.

I have always had stained wood cabinets, but with my kitchen is on the north side of the house it always seemed dark. Any direct sunshine is cut off by an addition so I wanted to add light surfaces. I love vintage white kitchens and tried to add a hint of it in mine without dating it. We went with white and I love it. Now I don't feel the need to turn on the lights during the daytime.

both! White airy cabinets with a light yet warm countertop, warm walnut floors, open to a warm yet light fireplace stone, stained beams, and the whole thing done with a warm light gold/yellow wall color. i'll bring in more earth with texture in the fabrics and blinds. Lots of sun too!

Warm and cozy all the way for me. I've seen some very pretty white kitchens here on GW, but I could never have one personally.

I like a warm, cozy, lived in look and white doesn't feel bright and airy to me, it feels cold and sterile.

Can I be warm and airy?
Airy, because I loathe clutter. My house has few tchotchkes, my surfaces are quite clear, I have no uppers. Walls are painted white pretty much throughout the house.
Warm because I do love wood tones: wood cabinets, HW floors, ceiling beams. Any color is a warm neutral. Lots of art. Several pets and any stray who wanders in is welcome. :)

I have had both kinds. For me it always depends on the style of the house first, and location second. The "feel" of airy or cozy is definitely defined by the architecture, unless someone rips down walls of a Victorian to achieve the modern openness. We all know that is wrong.

I think it's funny that Seattle (me) espouses bright and airy while Portland espouses warm and cozy (may_flowers). We actually have a very warm dining room separate from the kitchen that perhaps balances things out?!

I went with white cabs mostly because they were more affordable than the woods ones I liked, but in the end it was a smart move because my condo doesn't get a lot of natural light. The white cabs really brighten the room up--and then i went with white walls, too! I haven't had white walls in YEARS. But i love it SO much. The rest of my home is very cozy and warm, all muted colors and lots of vintage Danish teak furniture. So it works for me.

I'm not sure why you can't have a space be all of those things. I guess for some people white is cold, but I think it all depends on how you balance it, and the shade of white. To me only blue-toned whites seem cold. You also really need to consider your space. We have a small galley that is north facing in the Northeastern US. If I had dark wood cabinets, it wouldn't be cozy, it would be a cave. I don't think bright and airy means you can't be warm and cozy, or vice versa. It's all about balance to avoid shockingly cold and open or overly dark and claustrophobic.

As for male vs female, I don't think that has too much to do with it. Color and tone can have a real emotional impact on us, so I think it has more to do with your personal reactions to particular colors and shapes than anything else. Green and yellow are everywhere in my house because those are the colors that make me happy, but even with those cozy colors I will have off-white cabinets, grey-toned counters and some open shelving. And, honestly, I'm hoping to achieve a balance of cozy, warm, open and airy.

I'm in the Upper Midwest and have white cabs and soapstone counters. In the morning, my kitchen is light and airy. In the evening, with dimmed lights, it's peaceful after a day's work. I think much of this depends upon lighting as well as geographic location.

Personally, I don't want my kitchen to be warm, welcoming and sexy. Just not my thing. ;-)

I love warm and cozy, and adore a craftsman style kitchen, but it darn well bettter be flooded with natural light, lol! I painted my cabs white(ish) because my kitchen does not get a ton of matural light and the white bounces it around. While me last house was my dream location the kitchen was very dark. It was on the north side of the house and windows were under an overhang. The counters were very dark laminate, sink was black and cabs were builder grade oak. It was neither warm nor cozy. I hated it, not because of its function, which was actually pretty good, but for its decor. It was depressing. Its only saving grace was that I could look through the pass-through and dining room out the windows to the pasture and prairie.

Besides, I am one who has a hard time turning on an electric light when sunlight is free. :)

Warm and cozy all the way. White and modern feels cold and sterile to me. I love rich wood tones and earthy colors and lots of natural light. I'm in the Seattle area too. I don't think it makes a difference where you live, I think it is a reflection of your personality. I can appreciate the look of a white kitchen but it definitely isn't for me. I'm also not a fan of the minimalist look either. Just like white and modern, it feels sterile. My kitchen definitely doesn't follow the trends I usually see on this site. Lots of detail, molding and not a subway tile in site, creamy or otherwise.

Well, I'm not sure I'm exactly going for either. Functional is my primary goal. Then I'm going for appropriate to the 1926 house. . . .

I think one reason people like bright and airy for a kitchen is that it is a work space. A certain amount of space and light are necessary to work in a kitchen. And I think it may also relate a bit to the previous century's sanitation decorating where white was preferred because it was perceived as clean. In general dirt is easier to see on a white surface. I'm definitely not saying warm and cozy kitchens are dirty--just speculating on how some people may perceive white as sanitary.

For me, when I think warm and cozy, I think bedrooms or dens or places people relax and do things like read for pleasure. Just my initial reaction to those words. So I don't necessarily think of them in connection to a kitchen.

I'm an introvert, and that's why I need open and bright. Also, I'm claustrophobic.....

Here is a link that might be useful: design tips for intro/extroverts and how to test what you are

Such interesting replies and I agree with many of the comments.

I think it's really important to understand that dark or wood doesn't necessarily create warm and cozy, and white doesn't necessarily create bright and airy even if the space is objectively lighter.

I definitely want "bright and airy" in my kitchen for many reasons:

- I live in a condo - space, light, and air are the most precious commodities in a small home, especially when the space is shared by a family

- I live in a climate that has dreary skies for much of the year...I often use overhead lights during the day so it's partly a functional issue

- I'm at home more than most with homeschooling and running a business at home so my kitchen gets a lot of daytime use

- I've realized that I am one of many whose moods are affected by levels of natural light - so much research has been done about this now. It's important to understand one's own biology as folks vary a lot in this area.

- I am lucky enough to have professional artworks in my home...like in a gallery, a bright and airy space allows the eye to appreciate them.

- my home only has 8' ceilings

- I do feel claustrophobic in spaces where upper cabinetry looms

Having said that, I will be integrating some warm elements into my kitchen - oak floors, brass pulls, natural stone, curtains. Also, I find that warm, cozy and sexy is *easy* - dinner for two at the island by candlelight does it :) .

I have seen some gorgeous kitchens with lots of wood cabinetry that are flooded with natural light. That totally works. But I would be instantly be getting out my paintbrush if I had a kitchen that had mostly mid to dark tones and poor natural light...can't do it.

This post was edited by feisty68 on Tue, Jun 24, 14 at 12:04

Regional style, climate, visceral associations, style & age of home, and sometimes gender, are only some reasons people might go for one feel over another.

What I see on GW is more of a mix, even with white cab kitchens. Living in a climate with 4 distinct seasons certainly drives my choices. Ideally, I would have 2 kitchens - one bright with cheery shades (like 2 Little Fishies'..) and another with warm wood tones and a fireplace and keeping area for winter and holiday entertaining.

Reality calls for a mingling of both. So I'll have ivory cabs, a mid-tone granite, and dark wood counter stools that relate to other dark wood furnishings in my home. I'll change out art prints seasonally on a focal wall. This should work to give me a good bit of both airy and cozy in a New Englander in NH.

We're a mix. The kitchen is an interior room so it would be dark in there without the architecture being bright and airy. No way around that.

On the other hand the cabinets are walnut so there's the warm part. The floor is wood too but that wound up being by necessity since due to cabinet layout and architecture again there was no logical place to have flooring change over. I wanted white stone originally.

Several years ago, I had an epiphany about how I react to photos of kitchens in magazines and online. I tended to gravitate toward kitchens with painted cabinets--white or other colors--and wasn't attracted to the warm wood kitchens. But once in a while, I would see a pic of a wood kitchen that I really liked (or a white kitchen I really didn't). Then I figured out why. It wasn't really about the materials in the kitchen at all, at least not exclusively. I was reacting to the lighting. Professional photos of wood kitchens are overwhelmingly photographed at night with artificial lighting--warm, incandescent artificial lighting. This plays up the warm glow of the wood. White kitchens are most often photographed during the day with nice cool daylight (which has a color temperature of about 6500 kelvin compared to 2500 K for incandescent lamps). I react completely differently to wood kitchens that were photographed in daylight than I do to ones photographed under warm artificial lighting. I'm sure that I would find most of the kitchens perfectly fine if I were to see them in real life.

Some people wax poetic about the warmth of wood, but when it gets played up too much, I find it oppressive. Even if some of it is lighting and photographers tricks--which I am now aware of--it still colors how I react when I'm browsing for inspiration.

I've seen so many beautiful white kitchens here on GW, just amazing, but they aren't really for me. I just don't think they would look right in my house, with all my doors and trim done in stain. I realized that, much as I can appreciate a gorgeous white kitchen, I do like the warmth of wood. We chose maple cabinets, in a light stain finish and are happy with them. Its just a matter of taste and what works with your style home.

I like both, when done well. But I think that a lot of kitchens out there are neither.

I love all things wood and that colors my perception of what I like in architecture, which I guess would put me in the warm/cozy. Having said that, I like kitchens that are simple and functional but not all square corners and straight lines, Like in nature, I love curves and shades of color but nothing in artificial colors. I do think, however, that too much wood can overwhelm the space, as well as too much visual 'busyness'. I'm thinking more along the lines of Asian simplicity with balance of materials and attention to detail. Everything must have a purpose.

I love both bright and airy and warm and cozy. I wish I had windows in my kitchen to have a little of both.

lynn, you sort of just described our kitchen...
Light, thanks to it's Southeast corner exposure with lots of windows and not many uppers.
Airy, with a dutch door, casement windows, and an opening skylight in a vaulted ceiling.
Warm, with knotty pine paneling, ceiling, and cabinets, used brick walls, soapstone counters, mesquite bar tops, and red oak floors.
...and Cozy because the kitchen is only 10' x10'-6" ;)

This post was edited by ctycdm on Tue, Jun 24, 14 at 19:51

Thank you for all the replies. I've read through most but want to go back and reread as they are so interesting.

I should have used "sensual" instead of sexy, maybe? How I would describe it as wanting to touch it. I find I like to rub my hand on my cabinets or any nicely finished wood. Certain tiles also make me want to reach out and touch them. I find that what I consider rich/warm kitchens have that touchable quality. While I think white or light/airy look nice, I don't feel the need to touch them.

I hope some of you know what I'm taking about and don't think I am nuts, lol. I honestly don't go around rubbing my friends cabinets. If you enjoy walking barefoot on hardwood floors you will understand.

Someday we should start a topic on workplace kitchens. Aren't they the worst?

Interesting about darker kitchens being photo'd at night.... have to look for that.

I guess it matters how you use your kitchen. I imagine when my kids were younger maybe rich, warm, sensual would not be my exact target but not far off. Now we find the kitchen has a warm welcoming appeal that we have many conversations there, like to hang out there, I read books at the island, and yes, it can be romantic place.

I was just thinking about the types of restaurants I like. I like the ones that are darker, with textures like brick walls, wood, etc. Some of those elements are in my kitchen. hmmm

Sounds like most people balance the light/airy with warmth. I think maybe we did that a little as we chose white diamond granite instead of black (which we really wanted) and added some SS with the hood, sink, and island support. Of course I think SS makes you want to reach out and touch it too. I have seen kitchen where the "light" thing went to far and it was blinding with no warmth.

Light, bright and airy in the summer...warm and cozy in the winter! I live in eastern Washington, with the five months of snow...or so it seems :)

I love both. I was very selective when purchasing flooring to pick one that went both ways. While my kitchen is quite open and airy.. I didn't go light. I went colorful in the ceramic tile flooring which I paired with a copper back splash & range hood. My furniture is light but rugs, throws & pillows change with the seasons as does the artwork and a lot of the decor. For me the trick was in changing the small stuff to reflect seasonal preferences.