Can anyone help? Thanks!

Can you tell us what colors you favor the most, do you like dark or light walls in the kitchen. Give us some hints please.

This is an old pic of my half bath, but my granite is similar to yours, and my 'old bureau vanity' and corner shelf are similar to your cabinet color, although a bit lighter. I think you might be able to get away with a green tone. This was Behr Ryegrass.

SW Sea Salt or Comfort Gray, maybe Agreeable Gray, or SW Creamy?

Comfort Gray. Sea Salt is lighter.

Or a very pale gray pulled from your counters.

Sea Salt would be pretty! We also have oak cabinets and our kitchen is painted Bleeker Beige. I have usually preferred yellow or green tones with oak, but I think this particular beige works, too. It came with the house we purchased and we haven't repainted because we do like the look.

This article may be helpful. Best Paint Colors to go with Oak

I like BM Gray Cashmere and the SW Sea Salt but I honestly can't envision those two colors with the color of my granite and backsplash. Maybe a gray or beige tone would be better. I just don't want it to look blah! Help !

I think Sea salt or Rainwashed would look very nice with your backsplash and counters, both the island an the perimeter. Could you get some samples?

Or maybe Benjamin Moore Quiet Moments or Healing Aloe?

Hi Bixa --

Thanks for the additional info. It may not feel like it right now but you actually have a lot of choices that will work with your cabinets/tile/backsplash.

Qs:

• Are your cabs more of a brownish oak tone, and your kitchen table more of a golden one?
• {related} Do you have a good photo of how the new oak laminate-in-progress looks in the FR/DR? Would you say it's more brown or golden?
• I see mostly darker tones in your FR, but can't tell what color the couches are...?
• What does your DR furniture look like?
• How would you describe the current DR wall color? [on my monitor it looks like a medium depth greenish-grey] Do you like it?

And finally --

How do you want to feel in each of the rooms? For instance:

energized; sophisticated; relaxed, cosy, etc

Nosoccermom I will definitely be picking up some samples. I wrote down some of the ones you mentioned. House vixen my cabinets are more brown then my table but they lean a bit red too. Also the floor isn't in yet but it leans brown more then golden. Our living room furniture is brown and our curtains are burgundy. The dining room table is solid oak with a hutch to match. It leans more like the kitchen cabinets and is brown/red in color. Your observation of the dining room wall is fairly accurate but I see more green then gray when I look at it in person. I do like the color of the dining room but thought since we are redoing the floors and everything is cleared out now would be the time to paint. I look for all the rooms to be cozy and relaxed but I also want something fresh and up to date. I feel the kitchen especially is a dated color. Some would say our furniture and cabinets are dated also but we are going to down size in about 3 years so we don't want to put a ton of money into the house. We would like it to be inviting though if that makes sense. Thank you for any help you can offer.

Another favorite of mine is SW Agreeable Gray. It changes from beige to gray to greige, greenish, bluish. My 70+ old paint guys loved it as did my 20something tenants.

Hi again Bixa --

Thanks for giving us additional info!

Sounds like you have a great neutral palette that just needs to complement all the brown and golden tones vs adding more of them since you are "gold-ed" out!

As others have said upthread, those complex shades of green-grey, yellow-green-grey, blue-grey, grey-brown, etc can work so well with your colors. Totally makes sense that you are repainting the DR at this point, but if you like that general color it's probably a good one to test in your kitchen/FR!

From here it's really a matter of testing samples in your space and seeing how they work technically and how they make you feel.

• Not sure if you're in a place that's sunny year-round but if not -- it can be a little tricky to test in summer because the light is SO different than winter. Yes, the sun is higher in the sky everywhere but....For instance, I find I'm drawn to paler and/or greyer shades when it's warm and bright and then when the cold grey light hits it's "aiiiiiiii, no!" unless certain conditions are in play. So I change out accessories and leave white walls to others. ;)

Obviously you can't change the season, but I'd suggest really paying attention to your test colors first thing in the morning when the sun's still low. [In addition to other times, when your lights are on, etc.] If you find yourself very "meh" about it then move on (maybe to a shade 1 or 2 deeper on the strip).

• Because you have a lot of deep colors you'll have to figure out if you're more of a "stew of rich shades" type or a "brighter to add pep" type or a "light/dark muted" for each of your rooms. [treating kitchen/FR as one, DR as another]

To add to what folks have already posted upthread, here are more color combo ideas that include the tones you already have in your house:

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Thanks for all your help housevixen, I picked up some swatches today and so far I am gravitating to the beiges, creams and light brown colors for the kitchen/ family room. I just can't see the blue or the green going very well in that room. Now In the dining room I am open to more color, probably along the shade of some type of green. Do you think this will be to boring in the kitchen/ dining room if I stay more neutral?

You can liven things up with brighter curtain panels, colorful artwork, area rugs, pillows etc. They are easier to change than wall color so you can more adventurous.

How do you want the room to look? Do you have any inspiration photos? Right now it is dark and cozy. Do you want to brighten things up or do you want to keep with the same look?

Hi again Bixa --

One thing that can be tough is that you mentioned you felt the gold was "dated" and wanted "fresh" -- and right now the trendier colors are ones that folks have mentioned here [greys, "greige" (grey-beige), green-greys, blue-greys; high-drama darks like blackened navy or brights like pink and citrus.]

And so far you're not really feeling those!

Which is totally fine and why I think color needs to be personalized.

YOU all need to feel like the color in your home is right for you. I've certainly enjoyed visiting places with decorating choices I'd never make so I wouldn't even worry too much about guests. Or we internet strangers. ;)

That said, because you've mentioned it:

• brown-on-brown (tan, beige, sand) was pretty big in the early 2000s (lots of medium wood cabs + tumbled marble backsplashes + beigey/tan/brown granites)
• those shades can be a little tricky with oak's undertones, and "creams" can end up looking quite yellow once up so test test test (I think there was a thread on GW here about good creams, you may want to search)

Before the Golden Era of Grey seems like everyone who liked light neutrals used Ben Moore Navajo White (or Swiss Coffee), and you might try to test those or shades along those lines. Houzz tells me this is NW so you get a very general idea of it.

Lakemont · More Info

I've lost track whether folks have mentioned shades like Gravelstone (big sample, bottom left) but that could be what you're looking for.

Pin by House Vixen Design | Customized Color for Places and Spaces on Color insp · More Info

D_GW, I would like to brighten up the area a bit since our furnishings are darker and mostly earth colors. I agree in that you can add color with drapes and decorations and I will definitely consider this when choosing our paint color. House Vixen, thank you so much for all your help. I appreciate all your advice andI will definitely test out whatever we choose before we go all in. I would like to brighten things up so I think choosing a lighter neutral and then adding touches of color might be the way to go. Thanks again everybody! I will post pics when we are completed.

One of the colors I've recently used and that I love, is SW Creamy. Another great suggestion by others is BW Capital or Capitol White.

Thanks I will give them a look.