March 23, 2026 • Updated May 22, 2026
How to Pair Bold Wallpaper with Colorful Cabinetry for a Timeless Look
Here are tips from Kim and Scott Vargo from Yellow Brick Home on finding successful wallpaper and decor combinations that work together without being overwhelming.
Pairing bold wallpaper patterns with colorful room elements can be a daunting task, but the end result is worth the effort!
We recently converted our kitchen-adjacent workshop space into the pantry of our dreams using Medium Vertical Stripe wallpaper from Spoonflower as the star of the show and it absolutely
transformed the space!
Here are our tips for finding successful combinations that work together without being overwhelming.
Work With What You’ve Got
First, we always start our design process by assessing the space and existing elements. The home’s bones and style should be embraced rather than ignored here. For example, a midcentury modern style wallpaper may not play well in a traditional home or vice versa. Although a hint of juxtaposition can sometimes go a long way! In the case of our late-1800’s home, we embrace lots of traditional elements, but always mix in a handful of modern touches to each space to keep things interesting. The dark red palette of the Medium Vertical Stripe wallpaper feels bold and timeless and we knew it would function beautifully in our home as soon as we received the sample. It’s a perfectly imperfect blend of traditional and modern that works perfectly in our space.Don’t Be Afraid of Color
When used effectively, pops of color can act as focal points that draw the eye toward specific elements of a space. Since this room sits at the back end of our home behind a vintage pocket door, we knew from the beginning that we’d choose a bold pattern to draw the eye into the room. Since the new pantry cabinets are identical to our existing kitchen cabinets in SW Reddened Earth, we wanted to find a way to define the spaces, while also keeping them feeling unified. A boldly colored wallpaper pattern was exactly what we needed. We specifically designed our cabinet layout to ‘frame’ the wallpaper and the window perfectly and we love how the colors compliment each other without competing. While the kitchen’s walls are a warm off-white, the small space was the perfect playground for a bold, colorful pattern.
Aim for ‘Pairing’ Colors Instead of ‘Matching’
Speaking of color, when selecting colors for wallpaper, we try to avoid matching colors, but instead attempt to pair them. Since we chose a bold cabinet color that already existed in our kitchen and continued into the new pantry space, matching the color perfectly would have been an obvious choice that felt too perfect. Instead of choosing an exact color match, we selected the Medium Vertical Stripe wallpaper in Dark Red to pair with the cabinets. The primary stripe colors are in the same family as the cabinetry, but don’t match perfectly. It’s a recipe for a bold but sophisticated palette that just plain works.Consider All Adjacent Surfaces
When using a patterned wallpaper, we’re always sure to pay attention to every space it will come into contact with. In the case of our compact pantry, the Medium Vertical Stripe wallpaper contacts the terracotta cabinetry, the butcher block countertops, the pure white millwork and a small patch of ceiling. Rather than ignoring the ceiling completely, we pulled a color from our favorite paint deck and matched it as closely as possible with the off-white base color of the wallpaper. It’s a subtle but impactful touch that might go unnoticed, but it allows the wallpaper and cabinets to play the leading role.
Use Wallpaper as a Textural Element
Texture brings depth, warmth and variation to a space and wallpaper can be a great way to integrate it! Between our cabinetry, hardwood floors and walls, we weren’t left with too many areas to add natural texture, but luckily we were able to solve for this with wallpaper! We selected multiple samples from Spoonflower that integrated both actual grasscloth texture and printed texture as in the background of our non-pasted Medium Vertical Stripe selection. One of our favorite things about Spoonflower is that every wallpaper pattern is available in multiple paper styles. Our selection, for example, is available in six colors, seven wallpaper types and four different sizes. The options are nearly endless!Bringing it all Together
Trying to imagine our new pantry space without this exact wallpaper seems like an impossibility! It feels like it was created specifically for this space and we’re thrilled with how it turned out. In making our selection, we were mindful of the existing elements of our home. We considered all of the adjacent textures and surfaces and found the wallpaper out of Spoonflower’s thousands of style and color options. In our opinion, the end result is bold without being overwhelming and sophisticated without being too serious. For more on this pantry project or our other renovation adventures, follow along @yellowbrickhome or at yellowbrickhome.com. Scott Vargo is one half of Yellow Brick Home. He and his wife, Kim, renovate homes and design spaces that hug you back in Chicago and Southwest Michigan.WHY SPOONFLOWER?
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