Don't stress too much about paint. It is by far the easiest thing to change later, if needed. I was in the same boat as you are now, and I picked a boring, neutral off-white, figuring I'd always be able to repaint later. Three years out, and that boring neutral is still just fine. So little wall shows that it hasn't been worth it to me to change.

We did the green and cream cabinet combination, too, and went with a pale green wall paint. We're very happy with it.

The sheetrock really NEEDS to be painted or at least primed with drywall sealer to prevent the stuff behind the cabinets from absorbing cooking odors. It can get really stinky after a couple of years.

Pick a light neutral that goes well with the main surfaces and repaint later.

I agree, pick a neutral that will suit for a while, then pick your final colours when everything else is in place. The nice thing is that you can be totally free with your other, more restrictive materials, then pick your paint to match the total picture. This may well be a blessing in disguise:)

Jo

what a friend did, and i have subsequently heard of a lot of people who used this technique, is to take samples her samples and pictures to her Benjamin Moore dealer ( or i guess it could be any reputable paint company who has educated in paint people instead of just anybody for staff) and told them what they had in mind.
The choices they were given were excellent.
It wouldn't hurt as a jumping off place
Having said that, paint IS the easiest to change but still, you have to do it or get it done so it is an inconvenience

Thanks for the replies. I think what I will do is take my two cabinet samples to the paint store, and get some educated suggestions of something relatively neutral that I'll use. I like a little "something" in my wall color, so I was thinking of trying to get a color sort of like a taupe maybe...just something a little deeper/richer than your basic off-white, but still in the neutral zone. I'll see how that flies with the folks at the paint store.

Thanks for the tip about the odor issue. The builder did tell me that if I didn't want to pick a paint color, he would at least prime right away. I guess that's part of the reason why. SQ

I used a designer for the first time on this project, and she picked some really beautiful, neutral paint colors that I'd have NEVER picked off the sample cards - you should take a look at them, just see what you think:

Sherwin Williams Tony Taupe:
using in my entire living area, including kitchen, hallways, entry, etc.

Sherwin Williams Balanced Beige:
if the Tony Taupe feels like a little too much color, this beige is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen. I have it in rooms w/light from every direction, and it never turns an "off" color, no matter the time of day.

Benjamin Moore Ashley Grey:
If you need something w/a more grey cast than a yellowish beige cast, this is really lovely.

For a "white" w/just enough color to really compliment brighter colors, I like Benjamin Moore Cotton Balls. I used it in a room w/candy cane red cabinets, in a Laundry Room w/Pear Green cabinets, and in my pantry ... where I have the palest of blue cabinets done in Wedgewood Grey. From the card, I'd never dream it is the perfect robins-egg blue!

Hope that helps a little - I get overwhelmed when it comes to paint colors, but don't be pressured: painting can easily be done after cabinetry. You just need to get a skim coat w/some texture over the sheetrock, and you'll be good until cabinets are in place.

riley - Thanks for the great suggestions. All 3 of the colors you mentioned are definitely like what I was thinking about. Definitely a really good starting point! Thanks again - SQ