Choose natural fixture colors to match your environment

Q: Dear Ed, my husband and I are lucky to retire in a small house in a seaside community. We plan to remodel the kitchen and wanted to ask about kitchen decorating choices to blend in with our surroundings. Can you please give us some ocean-inspired kitchen ideas? - Dottie, Rhode Island

A: It's a good practice to include a little of your outdoor environment with your indoor projects. This budget-friendly upgrade can be done with a creative plumbing fixture color choice.

For a seaside community, make the kitchen sink your anchor point by installing a strong-looking sink with a theme. I suggest cast iron because of the wide range of natural color choices now available.

Just pick a color that expresses how you feel about your area. Some ocean theme colors you can consider include sea salt (white finish with little textured salt specks), sandbar (for a weathered gray sandbar look) and caviar (a dark rich caviar-egg color).

Bottom line: No matter where you live, choosing a natural plumbing fixture color should be your natural choice.