Sujafr - “We also discovered that you absolutely cannot go by the manufacturer's specs to know the height.” That is so terrible! What’s the point in giving specifications if they’re not accurate since that’s the whole point, you know? I think I remember seeing a small note on a set of specs saying they may not be accurate. *smacks head*. :) “That second pic looks like they pieced the panel between the upper and lower...not the best IMHO” I agree that looks a little strange. Our crown, I believe, is 2 3/8”. It’s ok, I was just thinking something a little larger, would look nicer. I don’t want to crowd the ceiling crown though. I suppose I could just buy small replacement piece if needed. I’m still concerned about the stain matching. I’ll have to do some test runs for sure. About your neighbor, I didn’t even realize they could do that with the hinges. Thanks for the link! Bee - DH did poo pooed that idea, but I think just because it sounds like a complicated pain. The laundry room is on the other side, and the wall behind the fridge is where the wall drying rack is. I could live with a bump out in there. With recessing it into the wall, I would need someone for cutting/new drywall as well as a plumber and electrician for the water line and electrical outlet, right? Unfortunately, I don’t thinking taking away the cabinet space would work well for us. Hmm… as for the cd, my current fridge is 21 something cu ft. and works great. However, if my kids end up with an appetite like DH during the teen years we’re going to need another whole fridge somewhere. :) The cd one I was looking at that fits is 20.7 or .9. Is the size really going to be that different? I know it’ll be wider vs. deeper. I’m hoping to get out this weekend to see it IRL. Suero - I agree with you. I think I’d rather see the side panels match the fridge even if it sticks out past the cabinets better than having it boxed and the fridge sticking out past the box. Since my fridge isn’t on the end I’m still trying to decide if I’m going to think it looks much better that what I have going on now (I’m referring to the cabinet set up - I know ss will look better). It’s the sticking out part that bothers me so that’s why I was thinking the counter depth fridge would take care of that. Hi Val! Thanks for the panel info. I really know nothing about kitchen stuff and what’s available and I’m finding this whole process somewhat frustrating. As for boxing the fridge, do you just go in as far as you needed to accommodate the fridge size or is there a standard depth for this? If we went this route, which I don’t really see me being able to convince DH at this time, I’d rather not have a bump out in the laundry room. “Put the refrigerator at the end of the cabinet run by swapping the refrigerator cabinet with the cabinet to the right.” At some point in life, this is going to happen but I was going to wait until we replaced the counters (& floors) or redo the kitchen. I’d like to have the fridge on the end with a wall beside it. “If you are not replacing counters, consider putting a butcher block counter top on just that section.” I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that done. I’m off to look for photos. We are keeping the counters at this point. I only got a few responses from the kitchen forum. I suppose I know what my options are at this point I just am having a hard time making a decision. We don’t have a large budget for this mini makeover and have decided to spend more on appliances than originally planned. I’m trying to sort my options out. I like details and I'd much rather have someone present me with a plan of options, lists, and prices and us pick one. ...And this is why people hire designers & GCs. And just because I feel like being chatty, my actual plans are to replace the appliances, stain the cabinets (GF Brown Mahogany), I like to replace the cabinet crown, add a 6" can above the sink and remove the wood valance, paint the walls BM Shaker Beige to coordinate much better with the counters and floor, paint the island a TBD color, change out valance fabric/considering making a cornice, replace fabric on chair cushions, and I’d like to replace the current art (main wall behind the table) with a set of botanical prints. I'm not sure what I'm doing with the backsplash area. I need to see some of these changes first. This post was edited by sheesharee on Tue, Mar 4, 14 at 23:03

I agree with Ranton, assuming I understand that you've already decided on the cabinet choice? If you have and you've got the style and stain/paint picked out, I'd do the counters 2nd. I'd do the floors 3rd. Flooring, unless "it's in your face" attention grabbing, tends to just be the anchor and gets relegated to almost being overlooked. If you only want the blaring floor to take center stage,(that's your main objective) then highlight that and let everything else just be a supporting role for the floor. That being said, if you have a lot of movement in the graining of the wood (cabinet), you don't want to fight "movement with movement". So let's say you have a really intense movement in the wood grain that will show through the stain, I'd quiet it down on the granite and/or pick a quartz that is quieter to the degree that the cabinets are already "speaking". ** One thing, are you looking for a certain look or style? Can you tell us that if you know? The reason I ask is that depending on what look you want to achieve be it for example, sleek/modern/minimalist, Tuscan/Mediterranean, French country, Craftsman/earthy colors etc., you get the idea. So write down some basic words that you think of when people say (your) XYZ style. From that, when you are looking at each material or pattern, what is the first word that comes to mind when you see that pattern/color/style in the granite yard or flooring? If what comes to mind belongs to another style/look, you may be about to combine things that don't belong in the same "box". Something to think about...... Oh, definitely choose the granite then choose the backsplash color/pattern/material after that. Regarding flooring, ask your DH the one thing that he wants to first be noticed in your kitchen. I.E. if someone where to come for a visit after it's completed and says they love XYZ about it. What element would be choose as the strongest thing that stands out when you walk into your kitchen? I know on some of these design shows when it comes to pattern be it fabric, upholstery, wallpaper, whatever, they suggest that the "scale" of each element not be the same. Like if you had a large print on a fabric in whatever color you'd want to choose a smaller scale on the other elements in the room so they don't compete. If you've got several large (busy) 'in your face' patterns in the room, they compete with each other. The result is that the eye bounces around constantly from large pattern (i.e. movement) to the next large/busy/heavy movement pattern. What happens is a feeling of vibration and competition between all the elements that is not restful to the eye or mind. I know I'm jumping around here. All these things are coming to mind that might help you so I'm just throwing it out there before I think of something else. Question: Are your and DH's style the same or different? If they are different, there was an HGTV show that integrated the two (sorry, can't think of it or the host's name) but there were some good points in how the host did it. Good luck and let us know how it goes. I don't know if I've helped here or not, but hopefully it will spark some thought processes that might help you.

Thank you for all the help. I have read over the older threads and it has given me a lot to think about. These were helpful and thank you for posting them. I really liked the trash bags on the counter idea to see how it would look. Can anyone explain to me the difference in honed or leather Absolute Black? The leather Absolute Black would give it the rustic look we want. rgps can you tell me which quartz that is. Soapstone would be my number one choice but it really is not an option. Soapstone looking quartz could look very nice. RightDi I don't know the name of the granite slab, but I can find out tomorrow to let you know. Thank you for your help.

Every choice has pluses and minuses, in the end you have to choose which plus and which minus matters the most to you and/or which have an easy fix (like using a cutting board under the crockpot; at work we have an extra piece under the big coffeemaker). budget mattered a lot to me (and I hated formica) so, I ended up with a lesser expensive granite and am very happy, no sealing or extra work for the stone I chose. I had formica previously which looked like h#*! from the day I moved in and didn't get better (except that I could use bleach to remove stains) so those of you whose formica looks like new after 30 years must be taking appropriate care -- using cutting boards (mine had little cuts all over) and so forth -- where my previous owners did not. But, I read that formica now is much better quality than what was installed 30 or 40 years ago. I looked at Burled Beach and liked it. It looked a warm sand-ish color on my samples in my house, but I saw a demo kitchen of it at a big box store and it was a warm greenish tone (I still liked it) under their fluorescent lights. You always have to ability to STOP and make changes unless the cabinets are all already made. If he is just now starting it might not be too late -- call him now! PS do you have an IKEA near to you? Most counter materials are less expensive there.