Kemper · Paint

Kemper Seaside Kitchen Cabinets

Offered in the Kemper Emerge series

Green-gray is the shortest description, and the green wins by a small margin. Seaside sits at a mid depth with a cool, faintly blue lean and plenty of gray, so it behaves more like a soft neutral than a color. It suits homeowners who want green in the kitchen without the garden.

Brand: Kemper
Finish: Paint
Availability: Made to order

Color & Look

Middle in value and low in saturation, this is a green that has mostly been talked out of being green. The hue sits on the blue side of the green range, which is why it reads as sage or eucalyptus rather than moss, and there is no yellow in it to speak of. The chip is a flat, even paint surface with no grain showing and no variation, so the color holds steady across the sample.

Cool north light pushes it further toward gray, and on an overcast day it can look like a green-tinged stone color. Warm south or west light brings the green forward and it looks more clearly sage. Under warm bulbs in the evening it turns softer and grayer still. Because the saturation is low to start with, the swings are gentler than you would get from a strong green, and the color stays recognizable in all of them.

In the showroom the two things people take it for are a warm gray and a blue. It is neither: against a true gray the green is obvious, and against a slate blue the difference is just as clear. Next to Kemper’s Foxhall Green, which is a deep forest color, Seaside looks pale and washed, and against Greenblack it looks positively light. It is the softest of the greens in the range rather than the boldest.

Construction & Quality

Kemper has been making cabinetry in America since 1926 and is part of the MasterBrand family. Offered in the Kemper Emerge series.

Emerge is Kemper’s most personalized series: all-plywood construction, custom sizing, and a choice of full-overlay, inset or beaded-inset doors, with specialty finishes, stain and glaze options and multiple edge profiles.

Kemper backs its cabinetry with a limited lifetime warranty; coverage and terms are set by Kemper.

Where It Works

Mid-tone and muted is a combination that goes almost anywhere. A whole kitchen in Seaside holds together well, because the color is close enough to a neutral that it does not tire. In a bright room it looks fresh, and in a north-facing one it settles into something calmer and grayer; both are pleasant to live with. Cottage, farmhouse and transitional kitchens take it easily, and it works in a simple modern room too.

Split applications also suit it. Seaside on the base cabinets and island with cream or white above is a combination we build often. In a bath, the color is gentle enough not to compete with tile, and in a mudroom or laundry the mid depth hides everyday marks. On an office built-in it gives the woodwork a soft tint without making the room feel themed around a color.

Pairing Ideas

Countertops

Cream and warm whites flatter this green more than a cold white does. MSI Colonial Cream granite, or MSI White Valley, a cream granite with veining, both warm it nicely. For a cleaner look, MSI Calacatta Gold marble brings a bright white field with veining that picks up brass. Cambria Fieldstone, a near-solid gray quartz, keeps everything tonal and quiet.

Countertops we carry →

Backsplash

A white subway tile is the most common pairing here and it does not disappoint — MSI Carrara White and MSI Bianco Dolomite both give the wall a clean, slightly veined white. MSI Almond Glossy Subway 4x16, also a white tile, has a softer face. MSI UrbanSlat Natural 16x48 in cream gives a tonal wall and lets the green lead.

Backsplash tile →

Hardware

Brass and champagne tones look natural against a soft green, and the Berenson 128mm Champagne Bar Pull is a good default. Bronze, like the Berenson Swagger 160mm MDB Pull, leans the kitchen warmer and more traditional. Brushed nickel keeps it cool and current, and matte black gives the most contrast on a mid-tone color like this.

Pulls & knobs →

Floors

Warm wood is the natural partner. Oak in a honey or light brown tone, in engineered or solid hardwood, brings the green out without fighting it. Very gray floors push the cabinets toward gray as well, which is usually not the goal. If you need a hard-wearing surface, a warm oak-look LVP gets you the same result.

Flooring →

Frequently Asked Questions

It will read grayer there, yes. The green does not disappear, but it quiets down, particularly on overcast days. If that concerns you, warm the room elsewhere: a cream countertop rather than a bright white, brass or bronze hardware and a honey-toned floor all pull the color back toward green. Cool tile and gray flooring do the opposite.

Warm oak is the friendliest neighbor for this green, and most existing floors are close enough to work with it. Red-toned floors are the one case to watch, because green and red sit opposite one another and each makes the other louder. If your floor is distinctly red, a cream backsplash and a warm counter will calm the whole room down.

Foxhall Green is several steps darker, a deep forest color that anchors a room. Seaside is a mid tone with far more gray in it, so it stays soft and can go on every cabinet without dimming the space. The two can be used together, with Foxhall Green on an island and Seaside around the perimeter, though we would set the samples side by side first.

See the color sample in our showroom, 238 E Geneva Rd, Wheaton →