The Wood Tone Trend That Makes Kitchens Feel Timeless Instead Of Dated

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Ironically, the kitschy adage "there's no school like the old school" doesn't often apply when it comes to the kitchen. Interior design trends tend to change as quickly as the foods we cook in those kitchens (are we still on beef tallow and tinned fish? and what on earth is "swicy?"). However, happily, exceptions do apply, and today we're shining the spotlight on one timeless kitchen feature that might already be in your home right now: Deep wood cabinets. Long gone are the days when foodies purchasing a new home lamented inheriting existing dark wood cabinetry from the 1990s and early 2000s. If your kitchen is outfitted with deep wooden tones like cherry, mahogany, or walnut, rejoice! 

Dorothy Weise, interior design department lead at Chapter, sat down with House Digest to let aesthetically-minded foodies in on the latest design trends — and, perhaps surprisingly, they're more rooted in lasting appeal than what's-hot-right-now temporalness. "White oak has been the darling of design for well over a decade, but designers and homeowners alike are now craving richer, deeper wood tones once again," says Weise, "think walnut, mahogany, cherry, and even stained oaks." Even 1990s honey oak cabinets have seen a recent comeback in modern design schemes (never say never). The atmosphere doesn't have to be heavy and traditional, either. Dark wood cabinets can be lightened up with accents like a paper lantern lamp, a light-toned backsplash, matte cabinet knobs, a retro chrome-legged Formica dining table, or lots of leafy green plants.

There was a not-so-long-ago time when the word "contemporary" was aesthetically synonymous with "cool," "sterile," and "probably chrome." But Merriam-Webster defines the term as "of the present," and nowadays, the ever-reactionary pendulum of consumer desire has swung back from hyper-clean modernity to spaces that feel like (gasp) people actually live in them. Quoth Weise, "These [deep-toned] woods bring warmth, contrast, and a sense of permanence to interiors [...] making spaces feel cozy, grounded, and timeless." We're leaving behind bleached woods, stark whites, and "Millennial gray" in favor of a warmer home kitchen.

Deep wood cabinetry looks inherently luxurious, natural, and high-end (especially when paired alongside complementary rich earth tones, such as terracotta or burgundy, which are in-style hues for 2026). Consider the existing furniture and accents of your kitchen decor as you pick a wood; a walnut mid-century modern dining table might be complemented by matching walnut cabinets, while a cool-toned dining set might benefit from a mahogany or cherry warm-up.

On the flip side, there's no need to replace your cabinets to hop on this timeless bandwagon. With a good can of stain, your existing cabinetry can sign a new lease of simple yet elegant life. Minwax PolyShades Wood Stain and Polyurethane Finish in Bombay Mahogany, satin finish ($11.90 per ½ pint via Amazon), for instance, can be applied to bare or finished wood for easy renovation, delivering rich tones on a dime.

Static Media owns and operates Tasting Table and House Digest.