Thanks annettacm, for your response. Yes, it would keep the dust from accumulating. I came across your before and after pictures last night, and your floor plan looks very similar to mine. I love how you opened up the dining room and incorporate all the space. Hmmmm (I can't go there - I told my DH I would not move any walls!) Back to my crown molding questions. I want to be sure that the different heights look in proportion, so I think I just need to be careful that the trim extension/filler on the 48" doesn't get too big/tall (the KD is telling me 2-3"). Does anyone think the heights look out of proportion if 48" cabs have that 2-3" filler trim piece and the 42" cabs don't? It adds expense and I'd rather save some dollars there if it would look fine and in proporation without. Thanks everyone!

I have a small kitchen and went with 36" uppers and 4-6" of crown. I don't have a good picture of the crown right now, but I'd say that I didn't get 6" out of it all the way around, actually my ceiling may be an inch or two less than 8ft. I don't think I would have liked the look without the crown and the added storage isn't that much when you factor in how hard it would be to access. I'm pretty tall ( 5'8" ) and with my old 30" cabinets I could reach the top shelf, but not all the way to the back. Now I don't know if I will be able to reach the top shelf at all and certainly not all the way to the back. I'm researching folding step stools! I think if you use your space more effectively less is more. That's what I'm trying to do.

ffjunk, of course it's a personal choice, but thought I should add, we have a situation similar to yours, with a pass-through window between painted cabinets, as well as a pocket door between a cabinet and a cabinet pantry. Our cabinet crown molding, and our whole house crown molding are the same heights, but different cuts, so the choice was easier for us - keep the same crown molding throughout the kitchen, though it is open concept. We are using stop blocks at the pocket door crown as the pantry is a stained along with the crown molding above it, and the cabinet adjacent is painted, along with the crown above that. The trim around the door will be painted the same as the cabinet/cabinet crown molding. Our ceilings are 9'. We are also using a stop block where the whole house crown meets the kitchen cabinetry crown - it would be very difficult to both cope and scribe the crowns to match and we prefer the stop blocks. I don't have photos as we are still in the midst of remodeling and our cabinet maker has yet to bring and install the stop blocks.

All base cabinets should be installed to a level line at 34.5” above the high spot of the finished floor. The bottom alignment height of all wall cabinets should be at 54” above the high spot of the floor. The height of the wall cabinets should take into consideration any fall in the ceiling, and be designed for the shortest distance between the 54” AFF line and ceiling height, rather than the tallest difference. You’ve designed for the tallest difference, and the molding is too tall for the shortest distance. You need a shorter crown. Then you use starter filler strips, scribed to the ceiling slope. Apply the shorter molding. Done. Cutting down moldings never works, or looks good.