I'm looking at that island with the large plant on it and wondering what you do with that surface. I would use it for prep on one end, although the rangetop takes up the middle half of the space. And I'd put foods ready for the table on the other end of the island. I'd have a rule that NOTHING extraneous can be plunked on that island, that it was only to be used for meal prep and subsequent aftermeal cleanup. Because I'm a sitter not a stander when I do prep, I look for a place to sit. A built-in cutting board that you pull out + a stool would render that island much more useful to me. And the plant can go sit on the floor in the living room. In my life, the prep flow goes this way... 1) bring meat/veg from refrig/freezer or produce from garden or onions and spuds from pantry closet to the prep sink. 2) decide what I'm going to do with them and gather recipe book, prep equipment and pans, casseroles, etc. 3) wash what needs washing and lay it out to air dry--in old kitchen before I had a second sink, I used a separate small basin for this if the sink had items in it or was full of dishwater. Even my big pans got used for veg washing sometimes. 4) chop on pull-out chopping board, send refuse into temp compost container (veg matter) or trash (meat scraps, wrappers) or recycle container (cans, plastic); put chopped material into a holding container or begin throwing it into casserole or cooking pan. If there is no trash bin at hand, you need to have a temp trash container also. Nothing more irritating than having to get up to go a distance to throw away chicken fat or meat wrappings or ____ (fill in blank). 5) boil it / fry it / bake it / send it out for grilling / or assemble it if it's a salad. The range should be close by the chopping area and finished foods should be set out on area designated for transport 6) check over finished foods so they're ready haul to table--garnish, salt, remove covers, find hotpad, locate dressing, get serving spoon, etc. In your kitchen, the flow would go from one end of island to the other along the aisle, with short turns toward the sink side for certain steps. The closer these activities can be conducted the more useful the prep zone is to me. Because you have a second walkpath, no one else will dare walk into your prep zone, right? If they do, you need a rule here to keep them out. You need a different zone for after-meal cleanup, even if it's an overlap with the prep. And one for baking and use of oven. And one for food preservation if you're into that. And so forth. Rethink your zones and you'll rethink your flow. If you can add to your chopping area, you can improve your chopping zone. Could you have a pull-up addition to one end of your island so that you can stand/sit with legs under the working surface? ___ I can't tell what you are showing us in the photo of the blue wall with the white open cabs. It's nice display space but if you need storage, reclaim that space by putting the doors back on and get yourself some cabinet organizers if necessary, such as the one that allows stacks of plates. Decide how you're going to use the counterspace--perhaps turn it into a baking zone, with a pull-out surface for rolling dough? You have plenty of space there for food processor & mixer to sit out, ready to play. Put custom fabric bags over their heads if you think they'll get dusty when not in use. Add canisters of flour &c if you need them. ___ Have you rethought your cabinet contents? Looked into roll-outs and repositioning the interior shelves of your lower cabs? We did this as an experiment before we tore out our old kitchen. One roll-out unit made all the difference on the bottom shelf of a nasty deep cabinet with unused items at back. We put the unit into our redone kitchen later. Why didn't we buy these things years ago, we asked ourselves. About $35-50 at Menards, I think. Same with roll-out units under the sink--duplex ones can relieve the clutter under the sink.

A factory finished paint is durable. However, there is a possibility of chipping and when the weather changes, you might see a bit of expansion in the joints. I was given a repair kit and have used it in a few places. Nothing drastic. When my new kitchen was installed six years ago, I did not have the issue of young kids. But, even when mine were young, I don't remember them being especially harsh in the kitchen. That's what the family room and backyard is for. I have Dura Supreme painted Dove White. I love the look and feel of a white kitchen with hardwood floors. I haven't seen a wood kitchen and wood floor combo that I truly wanted. I wipe spills or occasional splatters with a damp rag. You will see everything on the white, unlike a darker wood where it might blend in. IMHO, if your dream is of a white kitchen, you will be disappointed walking in to a wood stained one. Not saying they cannot be just as nice, just not your vision!

I have one, I started at the bottom and worked my way to the top. I used identical frames, in varying sizes. I think it tends to gets busy/messy looking if you either don't match the frames or if art is mix and match in theme. Mine are all family photos in black and white, starting with wedding photos and working up the stairs is the progression of our family with newborn and 1-year pictures of baby 1, 2 and then 3. They are now 13, 12 and 8 so I love admiring their baby pics every time I go up the stairs. I will say, in a high traffic, narrow staircase, be prepared for them to get knocked around here and there. Especially if you'll be going up and down with a laundry basket, etc. Be sure to use good hardware for hanging. It looks like a newly painted stairway (what color? Love it!) so definitely take the time to use paper and cut to size and tape it up as a mock gallery, with painters tape before lifting a hammer. The last thing you want is holes and spackling after you decide the layout you chose wasn't measured right or looks too busy with the spindals. etc. Also, if it's a new build, wait until all upstairs furniture is delivered and in place before you start this project. Movers are NOT the most gentle to your walls! In your space I think a few larger prints in larger format will look better than many smaller ones. It's a narrow staircase and you don't want to detract from your beautiful railing and woodwork.

Buy whatever you like. If you see a mass-produced piece from a big box that strikes your fancy and you want to live with it, by all means do so. Part of the pleasure of curating your home is the evolution of your personal style. My walls display large original paintings by several prominent artists in a particular genre, nice quality antique photos, prints made from photos I took with an iPhone, and a few inexpensive canvas prints from Kirkland's. It's all an expression of the people living within these walls. There are infinite sources of artistic expression -- and none of them are "wrong" or "against the rules." Re the OP's query as to how much to hang-- again, all very personal. A decorator may have one idea. A collector may have a completely different take. I've had my walls so full that I seriously started to think about hanging art from the ceiling in a previous home. In my current home, I find I need plenty of negative space to rest my eyes. There may be rules of thumb for some, but there is no one size fits all answer to the question of "how much."