I should have mentioned that the walls are a deep gold throughout most of the house and we're not afraid of color. so it seems strange to have a black and white kitchen.

My foremost questions: if you have granite with a lot of movement then it seems like you need a quiet tile. but this kitchen is already kind of bland and the backsplash shows up more than the counter - so where would you put the color?

also, how would you prioritize what to focus on first? I'm a bargain shopper and love a deal. I can't do the whole kitchen at once, I have to do it piecemeal. So where would you start?

tia

I think you have alot to work with. White cabinets and wood floors are very classic and should be easy to work with.

I think your next step would be finding your countertops which will probably be the biggest expense if you go with granite. Once you get the countertop the backsplash will be an easier decision. If you want an island and you are not afraid of color, go with something contrasting - wood or painted. Maybe something fun like a burnt red?

If you are looking to do this in steps and want to find bargains, start looking for knobs and lighting that are on sale.

I think you are very smart to look at pics of your space. Isn't it amazing how different it looks in pics and how you see it differently? Finally, to get inspiration, look at the finished kitchen blog and magazines to help you decide what you like and definitely can rule out.

Good luck!

oh if you knew how many hours I've spent on the finished kitchen blogs and magazines! I love the white cabinets and black counters, either granite or soapstone, with white subway tile backsplash. But that seems similar to what I have except my counter is laminate and my backsplash is plain square tiles with some black tumbled marble insets. Back then tumbled marble was not used nearly so much and was much more expensive. I am thinking of a black island with either wood top or soapstone.
The granites we have liked have been with a lot of movement in the colors of black and gold, but I think it will need some white in there someplace to look cohesive. And that leaves me with a quiet backsplash which worries me.

I found a chandelier at lamps plus that is on its way. Searching for knobs now. So that's all the small priced changes I can make. Everything else is $$$. You think granite should be first, or island?

Ideas to play with:

1. You don't have to have a quiet back splash. You can do the back splash in the matching granite all the way up or in a partial back splash if that is too expensive, but will still make the dramatic movement more visible, and go with painted wall or plain tiles above that.

2. Do you know who made your cabinets? Are they still available? You could purchase doors for one or more upper cabinets with glass and put colorful plates or pottery or something in there to bring in a lot of color, and allow you to change those colors at whim. If you can't order matching doors, you have yours altered to inert glass if you wanted.

3. Change the chairs at the pennisula to black for contrast and add colorful cushions.

4. Add rope lights to your upper cabinets hidden by the moldings, to light up what is up there and add ambience. You could change those items to more colorful ones if you want.

5. If you like the look and your cabinets are still avaialable you could just replace 2 or 3 upper cabinets to taller ones to give the look of staggard height cabinets. Maybe the one at the end, the corner one and the one over the Fridge.

You could paint them all bright red and get a wild black and white granite! :)

Ok, maybe not the last one, but I was on a roll.

Sue

lol sue_ct: red is about the only color I don't have. although I do have one red leather chair bought just to add some interest to the great room. I don't know where to get these cabinets. they are thermofoil and are holding up great but I've never seen the exact ones again. We have rope lights above the upper cabinets and below the upper cabinets. My husband wants to add molding to both upper and lower so that will jazz it up a bit. We do have seeded glass that we just put into the pantry cabs that you see in the pictures. We're all about doing the less expensive stuff, we just haven't done the changes that cost more.
I would like to get backless stools for the bar. I haven't yet because I don't know if we'll end up with a counter height bar like we have or a taller one to hide the kitchen counter. I guess I'm at a point where I'm going to have to commit to a design plan.
I don't like that the microwave hangs below the cabinets. Can't duct to the outside. that's another thing I wish I had known about 10 years ago and before I knew of this forum. I'm thinking if I had an island I could put the microwave in that. I'm not sure if that means you buy a counter microwave? My dh will build out the cabs around the fridge. I'm wondering whether the fridg should be ss or remain white so as to not stand out. All white appliances except for a pro-look range? or all ss appliances. I need a plan:)