Even bright kitchens with lots of windows have to operate in the dark once the sun goes down. The key to a good workroom is lots of layered light. Lighting in your glass cabinets is a no brainer to highlight your pretties. You want undercabinet lighting to put the light right on your counter workspace. You want the first row of recessed lights to wash light down the front of your upper cabinets. You want the second set to light up your aisles. Pendants or semi flush fixtures over peninsulas, island, and sinks. Over cabinet lighting if your cabinets don't go to the ceiling. If you have really high ceilings, put hidden lighting over the crown molding to wash the ceiling in light. Put some small lamps in unexpected spots for drama. Some people have done toe kick lighting. Some cabinet makers offer interior cabinet lighting for base cabinets. Put it all on dimmers.

Our kitchen is in the middle of our house with a tiny window and little sun exposure. It is open to dining room, where there are lots of windows but also a covered patio. I went all white on one wall with a chestnut stained island. I have a lot of light in my kitchen.

I do think dark cabinets could have worked--like a walnut color, but not espresso--especially if I went for light counters and backsplash.

I agree with the others that great lighting and light counters and backsplash are the keys to a successful kitchen with dark cabs. When the other elements are right it goes from being a dark cave like room to an elegantly dramatic room. Good luck.

When you were describing the area, it came VERY close to our area and we too will have black cabinets.

I can understand your concern because we have (and continue) to struggle with how much black is too much. If you do this, and get the lighting right you will get a dramatic effect, done wrong you could get the cave. You of course don't want the cave but do you want a dramatic effect or is there another look you're going after?

Can you add some windows or is the kitchen an interior room? Initially we were going to have a windowless kitchen as it is now. Even with all the windows we have (w/o a covered patio), it's just not enough for us. We're adding 2 new 3' windows that will be almost to the top of the wall. We inventoried the space and realized both with the more efficient use of space and what we were actually using, we didn't need hardly any upper cabinets.

I've also seen some small "skylights" that can be installed too. They are suppose to be easy to install w/o all the hassles and expense of traditional skylights.

Ditto to all the lighting advice...

I think your cabinet choice depends on how you want the space to feel - warm & cozy or bright & "clean"???

~Jeana

If you love the darker cabinets, go with them! I just finished my kitchen in dark cherry with black accents. My kitchen is sort of in the middle of the house so no direct windoiws but borders on the dining room that has a HUGE picture window and borders on the family room, also has lots of windows. Like you was worried about the dark cabinets.

Glad I went with it though as it looks great and doesn't seem any darker than the prior kitchen. we even went with a almost black plank tile floor that looks so much like real wood, its hard to tell. Walls are a lighter color and have some recessed lights and fan lights as well.

Go with what you like...

Your set up sounds similar to my sis in law. Large kitchen with island, dark cabinets, slider onto a covered deck. Space opened onto FR. It was ok, but when she remodeled she went with cream cabinets....it really opened up and brightened the space.

I have a galley kitchen with just a slider that backs onto north facing woods. Dark cabinets when we moved in and I painted them white 14 years ago because the dark cabs sucked the life and light out of the room. We are now remodeling and just ordered natural maple cabinets. I'm even debating SS appliances because stoves and microwaves have a lot of black on them and afraid SS will darken the space vs. White. Good luck with your decision!

Nikkidan...your kitchen sounds just like mine, open to breakfast and family...l-shaped with island, etc. I would LOVE to see pictures of how your kitchen turned out, if possible. I am doing walnut cabinets and am worried it will be too dark, as well. I plan to have light floors and countertops to break it up, but would love to see how yours turned out. ThankS!!!