Hi, I love the natural wood features of your cabinets---as they are---no paint. People are all into natural and eco-smart but are they seeing the virtue in the beautiful natural wood of your cabinets? Your cabinets may not be sufficient to keep all your stuff so, in my op, it may be easier, not emotionally but in the overall picture, to donate or sell some or a lot of your stuff. We all could make nice meals and enjoy cooking without 3/4 of the stuff we have or want. (Think tupperware and salad bar/mayonnaise jar, marg, etc., containers) And I am a queen of containers. I am a modernist, minimalist, so that is the point of view, somewhat, that I will suggest---Somewhat- You have a high chair lovey in your house. You may be emotionally torn between having a magazine kitchen and doing right by your family-but the conclusion that I and my neighbors have come to is, that we are happier when our kids are fed, played with, toss and bounce balls, see smiling parents-often with their own parental agendas-paid work, play, crafts, pals, blah,---yes, we, the parents, are happier, when we are not Architectural Digest cops. I would change the hardware, pulls and hinges to chrome or ss. Change the light fixtures and find a fan that's more modern- they are there-I have spent $35 on a decent looking, functional fan. Your planned darker floor and countertops match reasonably well and are very pretty, but looking at the overall pic, of the not painted caramel color of the cabs, white appliances-they'd be a great investment, but you need to ruthlessly de-stuff----pretend that you are Europeans in a wonderfully located but small space- your existing floors are ok, but with new cabinet hardware, new modern lighting, some stainess shelving between the bottom of the cabs and the counters, from Ikea perhaps---your k room would be well modernized. I hope that you are near an Ikea store so that you can benefit from their point of view. I think your cabs are beautiful. I'd try to figure out a way to keep them, UNPAINTED, and fix everything around them. Your appliances, look quite nice, unless you are really set on replacing them. New hardware, lighting, counters, perhaps, and then re-evaluate. Just my 2 cents.

Jessie/Flori - thanks! Those lights came from Home Depot I believe and the larger fluorescent came from Lowe's? Can't remember.... I can't find it on either website. Both lights pictured above are from the same family of lights. I also got the flush mount to go in my hallway. My pendant is from Lowe's and it's one of those you can make the length you want and the globe you buy seperately. I bought something cheap for now, but I'm keeping my eye out for something else. The only thing, is that it matches the dining room globes perfectly. DH did installed it at just the right length. I looked again last night and it has a clear bulb in it, but maybe only a 40w. My problem was finding a ceiling fan to go with the dining room light since I have a dining room/living room combo, in a Hunter brand (personal preference, I love Hunter fans) with a finish and globe close to the other lights. I did finally find one that was pretty close, but the style wasn't exactly what I wanted. What I hate is you find the perfect fan and they stop making it. We have a the perfect fan in our bonus room downstairs, but I bought it probably two years ago and couldn't find it anywhere! I wanted nice lighting, but wasn't willing to spend a fortune for them, my house just doesn't "ask" for it. I think my ceiling fan cost more than my chandelier - but our ceiling fan runs almost 24 hours a day, everyday - so it had to be of good quality. Oh yea, the fluorescent has only two stainless "screws" that can be seen from the outside, which I really wanted something dark to go with the dining room lighting, but stainless works with my appliances and sink/faucet. I don't think anyone really notices it anyways since my ceiling is white and it's basically plain & white. My only complaint. Since my large kitchen light is fluorescent and the others are just regular bulbs, you can see a difference in coloring if they are all on at one time (which rarely happens). But I do like all the light I have in my small kitchen. I promise, as soon as I get pictures, I'll upload (ceiling fan included) Christy

I've been where you are before, and you wouldn't believe how much of a difference a little switching around and refreshing will make. You actually have very nice cabinets, which you may not realize because you are used to them. Go find some handles at a hardware store that are a bit more updated and switch them all out (this is a little time consuming but does re-vamp the whole look of the kitchen). I agree with relocating the microwave, if possible. Simplify the counters and keep any cluttery decor off. Get rid of the two rugs and get one large rug for the space. If you want to go a step further, replace the backsplash with something new. There are cheap ways to do a good job with the backsplash. Good luck!

Hi Julie, 1. “if I replaced the cabinet with open shelving, and extended it to over the sink as well. It would be about 63” of open shelving.” It is very difficult to keep things clean in a kitchen on open shelving. It’s a great look, but really tough to live with. Also, you don’t have much storage in that space. The good news is that you can make the decision after the cabinet arrives. Put it up, take it down, then decide. 2. “Soapstone. I’m afraid it’s too loud for the space and with it I’m unsure about what to do for the backsplash.“ Not marble. Not with soapstone. I would steer you towards glazed ceramic tile in a white that matches your upper cabinets, in a pretty shape, like a star and cross or a paseo. 3. “But a part of me wants to nix the soapstone backsplash altogether and just do tile... part of me wants to get every square inch of it I can in my kitchen.” This is where inspiration images can help you. Look for images of kitchens using charcoal cabinets and soapstone, and keep the ones you like. Study those images and they will help you decide in which direction to go. 4. “My husband would also love to have a fancy decorative tile backsplash over the range but REALLY don’t know what would work there.” If you choose a 5” soapstone backsplash, install it behind the range as well. If you choose tile, keep it the same throughout. You have a small kitchen with lovely, busy soapstone counters. That’s it. No more eye candy.