Most people assume a white kitchen that feels cold needs new cabinets to fix. Caroline and Julien, a couple living in a 1920s house in London, didn’t buy that. Their kitchen worked. It just didn’t feel like anyone lived there. So instead of tearing it out, they called a color designer with an unusual request: make it feel like Miami Beach, the trip they still couldn’t stop talking about. Six weeks and a few cans of paint later, that’s exactly what they got.
A kitchen that works isn’t always a kitchen you want to spend time in. Caroline and Julien’s was dominated by off-white cabinetry and gray tones, with basic lighting and not quite enough function. Rather than gut the room, they brought in designer Justine Guillermou of Rainbow Shaker to layer warmth and personality over what already existed.
Why a functional kitchen felt forgettable
Before Guillermou stepped in, the room did its job and nothing more. According to the designer, the original kitchen didn’t reflect the energy of a creative family that loves color. She describes the kitchen and dining area as the emotional engine of a home: this one worked on a practical level, but it didn’t spark joy or say anything about who lived there.
So she started with questions rather than paint chips. She spent time interviewing the couple about how they actually used the space, and which colors had stayed with them from Miami.
How paint creates zones without walls
From those conversations came a palette built on memory: pink, green, yellow, lilac and aqua, with a bolder orange and a soft white to calm things down. Guillermou tested several shades before landing on the final mix: Smashing Pink and Sea of Green from Benjamin Moore, Fresh Yellow, Fresh Lilac and Fresh Aqua from YesColours, Satsuma Spice from Dulux, and Swansong from Johnstone’s.
Seven colors could have been chaos. What keeps it calm is the method: Bauhaus-inspired color blocking, which she chose to avoid visual noise and keep the result timeless. Each block of color also has a job. One zone for prep, one for coffee and conversation, one for family meals, all defined by paint rather than walls. New lighting finished the work.
The result reads as intentional rather than busy. The eye moves through the room instead of stopping on one loud spot, which is why so many hues never feel cluttered.
A DIY project that became the centerpiece
The piece everyone remembers isn’t painted. Guillermou sketched an idea for an upcycled dining table finished in tile and resin, and Julien built it himself. It became the statement of the room: playful, personal, and impossible to buy in a store.
Along the way, she added a few found treasures, including thrifted stools that match the table. For her, the balance matters as much as the color: a functional layout, pops of yellow in the skylight, and a table that is both recycled and striking. In her words, the room tells a story instead of looking like “a snapshot from a catalog.”
How to borrow the idea without hiring a designer
Nothing about the method requires a renovation budget. Broken down, Guillermou’s approach comes to five moves anyone can copy:
- Start from a feeling or a place, not a trend. Theirs was a beach holiday. Yours might be a grandmother’s kitchen or a city you loved.
- Test several shades on the wall before committing. She did, and the final palette came out of that testing.
- Give every color a job. One block per zone keeps many colors from turning into noise.
- Keep the bones. Same layout, same cabinets: the change happens on the surface.
- Add one handmade anchor piece. A table, a shelf, a painted stool: something with your own hands on it.
The whole makeover took about five to six weeks. If your kitchen feels forgettable, the cabinets probably aren’t the problem. The missing layer is color with a reason behind it. Every corner of Caroline and Julien’s home, including the before shots, is in the full house tour on Apartment Therapy. That’s the trick.
I grew up in Miami. They did a great job! They captured the color and liveliness of South Beach. South Beach is a party area, but they made it look classy. They seem to be nice people – the kind of tourists we like to have.
That’s exactly what they were trying to capture — the color and energy of Miami without turning the kitchen into a theme park :)
Miami? Ugh! Well, I guess if they like it.