Honestly, I'm not a fan of cherry, but I think your island looks beautiful in your kitchen just the way it is. It adds warmth.

I would not paint because the adhesion could be a problem with that application. Although the cherry isn't perfect, I wouldn't change it.

Is that Bianco Antico?

I prefer the darker paint color.

I prefer the darker paint color over the lighter.

Another vote for the bronze.

Darker

Definitely darker. The lighter color looks very changeable in the light, which sometimes is tricky. Lighter color looks like purplish undertones in the one photo. (And I also like the current wood tone of the island, but it sounds like it bothers you, so that's all that matters.)

I could try an even darker color like black fox or is there a color paint that would look like the black brown espresso color that I had originally wanted?

i really don't like the red tone.

mama Rachel, yes it's bianco antico

Is that the new lighting??! What a difference! I like the darker color in the first picture but am seeing too much army green in it, in the next two. Love the countertop and backsplash.

Not the new lighting. 1 st pic is daylight.

I think if you paint the island it's going to turn the look of the whole kitchen to one of cold and not as inviting. The warmth of the island happens to enhance the grays in the kitchen. I think you should leave the island the color it is. I love the combination as it is.

Suggestion. Go buy some cheap canvas. A drop cloth will work. Paint it the color you want to paint the island and then attach it to the island and see how you like the look over several days.

Additionally it looks to me like the cherry picks up some of the subtler tones in the granite whereas the grays look to be fighting the colors in it.

Another vote for the darker.

What if I go for an espresso black/brown? Keeps the warmth and gets rid of the red. Any color suggestions for that?

I also think the island as-is nicely complements the grey and adds much-needed warmth. In particular, it picks up some of the subtle warmer notes in the granite color variation and makes it prettier. If you switch the island to grey, your kitchen is going to be very cold and one-note, and the granite will lose some luster. Espresso black/brown is also not warm at all, but at least it'd keep the contrast. That'd be slightly better than grey, but what you currently have is best.

Martha Stewart Molasses? Or Burl? Farrow and Ball Tanner's Brown? Glidden Bittersweet Chocolate? Or Dark French Chocolate?

HGTV Van Dyke Brown? I see the Urbane Bronze in my paint samples...it is a very cool grey.

It sounds like you are very dissatisfied with the color of your island, and no matter how many of us (I also think your island is lovely) tell you it is fine, if it doesnt look "right" to your eye, then you arent going to like it.

Like others, I am also concerned the paint isnt going to adhere to the current finish. Would you be open to us all putting our heads together in trying to find some other way to change the look of that island? Or draw your attention away from it? Or? Cause I dont think you will be happy with the look of peeling paint. ;-)

I would be having a professional refinish. He is the same guy that the place who made my kitchen uses.

Here is a better pic of the current color and how red it looks.

Now I'm considering Benjamin Moore bittersweet chocolate. Thoughts?

I still don't think it looks too red. And it also helps tie in the knobs on your cooktop. The more I see your kitchen and how cool the rest of it is, the more I feel you NEED the island as is. Actually IF and that's a big IF I were to paint your island, I personally would paint it the color of those knobs. But all those other colors you are choosing are not going to work.

If you're thinking about a much darker paint, have you considered a gel stain? I've never tried it, but I've read several threads where it's been used.

GW--gel stain discussions.

I agree with cpartist completely, and I wouldn't even consider painting the island at all. I'd just leave the island alone. It, in its current state, is what is pulling this kitchen together. It's not that we can't see that it's got a red tone. It's that the red tone in the island is making this kitchen. In fact, I think your kitchen looks best in the last picture where the red tone is most visible.

If it's not what you intended, then it was a VERY happy accident. I've not seen an alternate finish in this thread that would be nearly as good.

I'm sorry but I don't think any of the options will bring your kitchen together as well as those cherry cabinets! I know the trend is gray/cool right now, but your granite has the warmth in it and it looks too delicious to fight it! I'm afraid anything other than a warm bronze would look like it's fighting with the granite..

Eta: I hadnt read all the responses.. 100% with Jillius and CPArtist!

do you have pics of your finished island? What color did you choose? I have a chip of gauntlet gray I'm looking to do my island too. I have antiqued white cabinets, and the island is a dark espresso finish. My granite has similar colors. The island shows EVERYTHING and I'm considering gauntlet gray. The board you painted above makes it look so light though.