The Property Brothers Reveal The Color Of Floors That Make Kitchens Look Bigger

Having a tiny kitchen can make cooking harder than it needs to be. While the only way to actually make it bigger is to remodel your kitchen, there's fortunately an easy way to make it feel bigger. According to the Property Brothers, light-colored floors are the way to go. In Season 1, Episode 10 of "Property Brothers: Forever Home," stars Drew and Jonathan Scott revamp a cramped kitchen by adding gorgeous pale gray floors that really open the room up.

In the episode, Jonathan explains to homeowners Augustino and Jennifer that "The light tone helps bounce the light around," creating a more spacious appearance. By contrast, darker floors absorb light, making an area seem smaller and more closed-in. This is great if you want your bedroom to feel secure or your living room to feel cozy, but it's not ideal for smaller spaces. In an already-tiny kitchen, a darker floor can make the space feel claustrophobic.

While any light color will make your kitchen feel more spacious, gray has a few extra benefits. It's neutral, so it matches other color schemes well, and you don't need to worry about swapping it out every time you redecorate the room. A cool-toned shade of gray is ideal for making the space seem bigger, as warm-toned colors can also visually shrink a space.

If you want to make the most of your pale gray kitchen floors, start by choosing the right material. Minimize the number of seams in the flooring for a smooth, uninterrupted appearance. Noticeable seams break up a space, which can make the room feel cramped. Instead of using small tiles or a flooring with a small, tightly spaced design, opt for long, wide floorboards or large tiles. Carpets and rugs are typically great for this, but they don't work as well in kitchens. (If you do want to use a carpet, it's helpful to know this simple way to fix matted carpets, in case of spills.)

If you can, erase breaks between rooms by using the same flooring in any adjacent space. Tying the areas together visually can trick your brain into seeing two smaller rooms as one larger one. On their show, the Property Brothers put this into action by using the same pale gray hardwood flooring with no breaks to visually combine Augustino and Jennifer's kitchen and dining room.

With hardwood or rectangular tiles, try laying them parallel to the longest side of the room rather than matching them to the shorter sides. This naturally draws the eye along the longer walls, making the room seem larger than it is. As for materials, both hardwood and tile are classic options that come in many pastel colors. If you want to stay on top of what's popular, luxury vinyl plank is a trending kitchen flooring option, as it's versatile, comfortable, and easy to clean.