Thank you all. Either painting the ceiling or the cabinets would be the easiest way to avoid too much brown wood everywhere. (I actually rather like modern high gloss lacquered cabinets.) White paint with a slight blue tint on the ceiling with walnut stained beams sounds quite pretty. However, my DH hates painted wood. Given the choice, he would much rather go with tile floors than paint the ceilings or the cabinets. The wood ceiling doesn't look too bad as is in the photo I posted. I like the depth of the color it is now - not too dark and overpowering - but the tone of the color is the problem. At certain times of day, as the light changes, the ceiling takes on an unattractive pinking or yellowish cast. One of our big problems in the house is lack of lighting, so we are adding as much as we can during the remodel, including cove lighting on top of the cabinets (we can�t do any recessed lighting because there is no space between the wood ceiling and the roof), so the wood ceiling will become more of a feature with the lights aimed at it. Our contractor is supposed to do samples to see if we can dye the ceiling to a more neutral brown shade, without going much darker. We could try to do a greyish tone, like driftwood or aged teak, but that will probably be harder to achieve successfully over a large area than a brown tone. There are little wing walls that separate the kitchen from the dining/living area, so we could do separate flooring in each space. I do not mind using tile in the kitchen, it is the living room that concerns me. I agree that the trick to using multiple woods in one space is to vary the tones and textures, but they still must be complementary. We could leave the ceiling lighter, like it is, and use darker wood floors in the living room, but the furniture in that room is a mix of pecan stained cherry and teak, with medium-dark brown leather couches. I will buy a new contemporary styled rug in lighter tones (creams and blues most likely) no matter what we choose for flooring. In the kitchen, we are using white quartzite counters, stainless appliances and some glass doors in cabinets, so that will break up the brown wood. I still think wood floors in the kitchen at least will be too much with the cabinets and ceiling. I am really torn between lighter or darker walnut cabinets because I love both looks. Black walnut from Smallbone (not sure if this is stained or natural): Sanjuangirl, we are south of you, in San Diego.

if you decide on painting-that really depends on the style of the house, and your own preferences..and of course should work with your countertop. "Light and grayish" is a bit too general of a description..mine is also light and a tad grayish(no movement though)..but it's on the warm side of the grayish. It's important to understand what gray is there..is it cooler, blueish gray? warmer, a bit green(like mine..mine is so light though it's more off white..more white than gray if I explain it correctly) Different paints would be needed depending on what exactly the countertop is going to be. Every color has lots of shades..so you can pick a general direction, and then narrow it to the shade that will work with your stone, and that you will like enough to live with it every day.

Cabinets are fine and I like the idea of black hardware. If you choose slate look tile, make sure it's a warmish shade rather that gray as you need to compliment the ceilings with warm tones, not cool. Would you put rugs down? Dying to hear your plans for resurfacing the fireplace, please choose medium to light tones as you don't want to darken that area. If it was my place I would use wood floors only because it speaks to the organic look of the room. Keep us posted.

OMG, how beautiful! normally I don't go for rustic floors, but this house is perfect for it! light oak with a very slightly whitewashed / greyish tone rather than amber, and just a little distressed. like the "beachy" look. this is a trendy flooring that might be fleeting in popularity, but I think might come across as timeless in your southwest home. the distressed finish will be a nice bonus -- if you scratch it, it'll seem intentional! I grew up in NM and have seen many historic homes all around that area. I think a greyer distressed floor would look pretty authentic.