Easier to paint before. Uses more paint, but less labor. Less chance of splotches too. On the other hand when I remodelled my old house I didn't paint before. So few areas that needed paint around the cabinets that it wasn't worth it and I painted myself so labor was just my time.

Since Chalk Paint is at the top of the threads today, just wanted to thank you for the nice comments and add more details. I wish I had the time to take some better photos. Fireplace: In California's Central Valley, we don't have much cold weather. Our fireplace is gas and when we did use it, the gas bill went sky high even for the half dozen days we had a fire. If we sold the house, the fireplace is still there so not gonna worry about 'repurposing' this area for t.v. viewing. Chalk Paint Color: I bought a qt. of Paris Gray and painted the piece. Husband thought it was a little blah. I put some Louis Blue from a little sample jar I had on the middle door and he thought it was too bright. So I mixed Paris Gray and Duck Egg Blue about 50/50, then poured in a little of the Louis Blue all in a foam coffee cup. I painted that on and it seemed the right mix of blue and gray so it stands out but not too much. Distressing: I then coated the whole piece with Minwax clear furniture wax. Then, I took a little sanding sponge and hit the edges as well as a little on that middle door to distress it a bit. Then, I took a tee shirt and rubbed on some Annie Sloan dark wax on the distressed places, just a little at a time. I immediately followed by rubbing off the dark wax with the Minwax on another tee shirt as per instructions. When it looked distressed enough I just let it dry. The wood top: The top was a little scratched up on this old dresser but I used some RAF (Restore A Finish) on the top and cleaned it up good. No chalk paint on top. Left the original, just cleaned up a bit. When I get my living room restored from moving out my old t.v. and black armoire, and pictures re-hung, will post a finished photo. Why the Fireplace? My sofa has been angled for many years to provide a nice seating area and t.v. viewing. The last few months I've developed neck pain from turning my head a little to watch t.v. We needed some way to move the t.v. The ONLY viable option was the fireplace wall. This photo shows the former black armoire for the tv and sofa placement. It's an old picture, so furniture is a bit different now. Red

Get the floor level as you can, this will greatly help with the counter top installation. Lay the floor first. If you ever want to change the cabinets - it's the same floor underneath, additionally you won't lose counter height. The cabinet installers can use floor protection. Hopefully you won't have to add that crappy shoe molding.

Very nice work, it looks so modern! We love that you incorporated different cabinet hardware! Cup pulls, knobs and drawer pulls, fabulous!