If you Google "kitchen black cabinets" you will see quite a few images. Do you have a lot of natural light? My last house had white cabinets/black island, but that's not what you're asking about.

Lil S - Thanks. I have done that. I would love to see photos of how they look in real homes and without professional lighting, etc that comes along with Google images.

have you considered kraftmaid? https://www.homedepot.com/b/Kitchen-Kitchen-Cabinets-Cabinet-Samples/KraftMaid/Black/N-5yc1vZc3b4ZbmcZ1z0vm5i

This is how they look in real homes without professional lighting:

Novel Remodeling - I would love Kraftmaid but I must settle for painted....

arch13 - I think I could live with that light level ;-)

I think it could work in larger kitchens with good lighting. The photo you posted is a good example of just that. Even with black cabinets the kitchen looks airy to me. The windows, white counters and white walls help.

chloebud - I have looked for weeks on these forums for black cabinets and have found very few. My kitchen is small but it does have a good bit of light. Not nearly as much light as the photo posted but still a lot. Despite that, my grey countertops dont help. The photos I have come across are very old. Maybe black cabinets are just out of fashion or maybe they were never in fashion. Nevertheless they are in my soon to be future.

I have a black cabinet on my kitchen island - I love the look of it but - it shows every single dust particle and every mark - it is a pain to keep clean.......also have espresso cabinets in one of my bathrooms - same thing....

search for Ikea Laxarby or Lerhyttan - those were/are black

sunshine home - That is a major difference! I love the huge handles with the black cabinets. I do like your current kitchen much more. Afterall whats not to love with the amazing backsplash. OMG stunning!

https://www.thespruce.com/black-kitchen-cabinets-4588495

oaktonmom - Thanks! I find some of those really interesting. I kind of love the backsplash on #10

Nice transformation from sunshine home!

Have at it! Just know you will see every smudge, speck of dust, and drip,. If you have kids? Keep the paint handy. This wouLD be especially true of lowers.

Plan now for under cabinet lighting as well, even with light counter tops.

Jan Moyer - I am in the process of painting them black now. I am almost done. I have been working on them for about 6-7 weeks. I am fine with keeping touchup paint on hand. I also notice the amount of dust. I am ok with that too. I like what I have so far, just looking for more ideas along the way. Black cabinets dont seem to be very popular.

I am putting a black kitchen into my ski house- it's a lodge style woody thing with huge windows, but I still think it may be dark. Sadly, the kitchen will not be done before the end of summer or early autumn.

I do worry about dirt and scuffs, but I think black is the best foil to my houseful of yellow wood. In general, I think black kitchens look pretty stunning. I can't wait to see how yours turns out, friday.

Rita - Mine is simply painted honey oak. I think it will be a huge improvement from the current honey oak, but still it remains honey oak. I have one black wall in my kitchen along with the black cabinets.

What style are you putting in? I recall you have a fabulous black waterfall countertop. Love that look!

I gather images of all sorts of kitchens in every color and style on my pinterest..just because..))

I realize some have nothing to do with your question, 'cause they're either too posh, very bright, or don't have uppers, etc-but I thought I'd still put some images of black/dark kitchens I found on my huge board.

I've more if you want..just for the fun of it. I thought-these are quite fab, each in its own way

I know yours will be too

We have black lowers and, yes, they do show dust and smudges but I wouldn't change them. Love the look. I also think if you are painting them yourself, the black can look better/more professional than white. When we first got the black cabs installed, the older generation thought they were awful, while our peers gushed over them.

ETA: I'd love to see pics of your kitchen with the new colour, ilikefriday.

Love the idea! Make sure to have plenty of lighting, especially under cabinet lighting. And know that you will be constantly wiping them down as they will show every speck of dust, smudges, etc. Keep countertops light!

daisychain01 - Please post your black lowers if you can. I would love to see them.

My kitchen is not finished. I still have several things to do, including removing the 4" backsplash from the wall behind the stove but that will be the very last thing to do on my list. The 4" backsplash has already been removed from the other two walls. The cabinets on the third wall, not shown in the photograph, have not yet been painted.

megs1030 - Regarding the under cabinet lighting, I think it is a good idea but I am not sure that I will do it because I have a mural to the left of the stove and I think lighting would look odd with that, as the cabinets sit on top of a portion of the mural. Then I have one wall of shelves. I plan to make the shelves with a drop down bottom for storage. That would interfere with the lighting. The third wall, not shown in the photograph, could accomodate undercounter lighting.

We moved into a goth house (many years ago) where they had painted the kitchen entirely matte black. It was like a cave. I like to see where to clean and what I’m cooking. If there were a ton of windows it might have made sense but one of the windows (maybe both actually?) was under a deck. All the black was doing was hiding a lot of actual filth. And I’m editing to add, that, although I attempted to take some pics for posterity, it actually was just a black void in pictures.

J Williams - I agree, it is very easy to make a black kitchen look like a void.

I'm not into the idea of black cabinets, but IF you're going to do it, I'd say the following:

- I teach photography. Yes, most of the pictures above were taken with added lighting -- spotlights and/or reflectors were used. Trust me. I can tell.

- You will need windows. And more windows. And more windows. Consider that at night these windows will become "black holes".

- Yes, yes, yes to lighting.

- Black will show every bit of dirt and will be more work to keep clean. I'd sooner go with black countertops.

Mrs Pete - Photography is so tricky. It is a true art. I could never be a photographer. I suck at it! I take a million photographs when I am working on a project. It is shocking how different my kitchen looks at different times of the day. That being said, I have two windows in my space. They will have to do because that is all I have to work with.

I can't even imagine a kitchen full of black cabinets. The rental house we stayed in had a black cabinet island. It never looked nice. Every speck of anything showed on on it. To keep it looking nice it would have had to be cleaned every day. Just the dust alone made it look bad. Dust it one day and the next day you see the dust again.

I love your transformation! I also think seeing dust or dirt makes people clean more, and in a kitchen that is a good thing :). The dark cabinets actually make the kitchen seem lighter due to the contrast and interest they add. Funny how refreshing black seems to me compared to the sea of white that has been flowing through every kitchen for the last 15 years.

roarh - That is a great way to think of it! Interesting how changing that one little thought about dust could change the perspective about a black kitchen.

I think white cabinets work perfectly in someone elses home. They would never work for me. I will enjoy them on Houzz, in magazines, and in friends homes. Then come home and relax in my sea of black cabinets. ;-)

Thanks!

I won't be a slave to dusting cabinets. I clean plenty but having to dust a kitchen full of black cabinets everyday to keep them looking nice....No thanks.

Funny how people comment about how horrible it is if cabinets don't go to the ceiling because then you would have to dust up there but it's no problem with having to constantly dust a kitchen full of black cabinets in order for them to look nice.

April - Somehow your post just appeared on my screen 13 hours after you posted. Gotta love Houzz...

Those kitchens are fantastic. Now I want a pink and black kitchen. That will have to be my next redo. I love it! You are right. They are fab. I would love to see more!

Well, maybe it would be a toss up between the all black 3rd photo and the pink and black combo....

vinmarks - People actually dust the very tops of cabinets that dont go to the ceiling? My house must be a dusty mess. LOL If I dont see the dust, it is not there and I cant see that far up. Out of sight, out of mind. That's what I go by. ;-)

Wow! I love what you've done! The black is so much better with both your counters and floors. How did you do the shelves?

You obviously have a good eye for design. It's the little touches you've done and how it all goes together that make it work so well.

Re: the dusting and wiping. It's really not that bad. Around the sink I have to wipe monthly, but the rest I just do every six months - same as the white uppers.

Daisychain - Thank you! Your kitchen is fabulous!

I built the shelves with 2x4's, moulding, Simpson Strong Ties, and a wood shelf. You take the SST and build a rectangle frame. You need 2 per corner so 8 total. Then attach the frame to studs. Next put the wood shelf on top of the frame. Finally cover the wood frame with the moulding . Each shelf cost about $40 to build. Half of that was for the SST's. The SST are not necessary but they make building a frame with square corners a lot easier.

Overall this is a very easy DIY project.

ilikefriday your kitchen looks great; and what you've done so far looks wonderful. Love the open shelves, the black wall behind the stove and your hardware. Really positive transformation!

Dawn Martinez - Thank you! I have been working on it 6-7 weeks so far. I have a couple of more cabinets to paint and then I need to add the hardware to those cabinets. After that I will tackle that black wall that the stove is on. It will remain black but I have to remove the 4" laminate backsplash strip or whatever its called.

your transformation looks fab already just as I thought it would..well some things are easier to predict than others:)

aprilneverends - You are too kind.

- It is easy and pleasant to tell the truth, - remarked the convict.(c)

I love your kitchen transformation so far! It looks very nice and you did a fabulous job with the cabinet paint colour. I also like the open shelving