A Photoshopped image of my "vision."

I had my oak cabinets painted white and I'm glad I did. At the time my appliances (stove, fridge, DW and hood) were also white. My plan was to gradually replace them with stainless as my budget allowed. So far I'm almost finished and the stove is the only white appliance remaining.

There are millions of whites. My old fridge and DW were beginning to yellow a bit, while my stove is still the color of the North Pole. I would not even attempt to match the color of your appliances, which may not be the same color anyway, could change over time, or you may end up replacing them. The white of my cabinets is a soft, warm white, as are my walls and backsplash tile. They're not the same color, but go together and have a nice layered look. My white stove does stand out as the one true white. It no longer bothers me and I may keep it awhile since its cozy frumpiness has grown on me.

Thank you linelle! You make some very good points. I think maybe I will just go pick up some swatches that "speak" to me and bring them to the room to see what the light does to them. I think paint looks so different in the store than it does in the actual room in your home.

Can I ask - did you glaze your white cabinets? Why or why not? At first, I was afraid it would just look dirty on the white, but I've seen some really beautiful examples since then. Now I'm debating.

I did not glaze my white cabinets. It's just not a look I care for on painted, esp. white, but I think it can look awesome on stained wood if well done. I have shaker doors and the play of light on the stiles/rails creates enough definition and dimension.

Thanks :) I guess we could always paint them and then decide if we like the look as is, or add a glaze later if we choose to. I'm still hoping to obtain an old honey oak vanity for "practice" when it comes out for a remodel.

Catz, you are great at Photoshopping. I love your white kitchen and appliances. I have white appliances and that is the only color I want, although I have toyed with the idea of replacing them with stainless, but don't believe I ever will.

As for white appliances, I discovered that my old fridge and DW looked plastic, because that's what they were. I was glad to replace them with stainless. My stove is enameled metal and it has a timeless-ish look. On its own, I like it. If I didn't have off-white cabs, I'd probably like it more. :) If I could, I'd choose a creamy soft yellow color for a stove.

walnutcreek, thank you! I use it in my career on occasion so I've learned a bit about it. Makes "seeing" the finished product easier for me, and also for my husband, who has trouble visualizing.

linelle, ours are enameled metal, except the fridge handles are plastic. They have changed color slightly, despite my best efforts to clean them. Oh well. I might go stainless in the new house, but it will just depend on the budget. I'd rather have enameled white or black than the "stainless look" that I see on the cheaper ones, it looks kind of like a plastic-y covering. I think what I REALLY want is a French door fridge, probably counter depth, regardless of the color.

But this one will have to do for now! :)

Wow! That brightens it up! Have you considered painting the bottom a different color (navy, green, yellow - whatever flows with the rest of your house) and painting the upper cabs white? Play with that in Photoshop.

hmgbrd, thanks, I am hoping it will brighten it up a lot! The kitchen feels very dreary now.

I actually love the look of sunny yellow cabinets with white, there was an absolutely beautiful kitchen I saw here on the forums recently that is yellow and white. I also like gray! I'm just thinking it will make things easier on us if we stick to one color, especially since we're planning to sell in less than two years, and this will be our first cabinet paint job. :)

We decided to go with Benjamin Moore's White Christmas. I brought home a sample from the store and checked it out at different times of day. I think it's going to look great!

Please keep us updated and post pictures when your cabinets have been painted BM White Christmas. I think they will look great!