you and i are in the same boat. i'm looking for something in the same color range, dislike granite's shiny sparkliness, and want something honed, but don't want to deal with the staining issues that accompany marbles, limestones, and sandstones which would give me the look i like. i've been looking at lots of "engineereed" stones. take a look at caesarstone, which has a few colors in that range and can be honed. ditto silestone. also, do a google search for richlite. it's a pressed paper product that resembles wood in look and feel. nice matte finish, good color range, and it's super durable and has a very natural appearance. it also patinas over time. i'll keep checking this topic to see if someone comes up with something good.

terrilynn, I am confused about what to do for the island and also the desk/coffee bar/bar area. I'm going back and forth on wood or soapstone for the island. I'm pretty sure I want wood on the desk and soapstone on the bar/coffee area. (just for maintenance purposes). I'm not sure if I do the base colors on the other areas the same as the island or different. We aren't doing any stainless except for the range, but that desk is pretty cool! Lavender, thanks, and I love the idea of red accents. I hadn't really thought that far, but that will be perfect and will blend with the rest of our house. I guess I need to figure out if I can really do the painted island and how much maintenance that will be. Here are my options, in case anyone else is as confused as I am: 1. Wood colored island with soapstone top 2. Sage/light green island with soapstone top 3. Sage/light green island with wood top Desk: something with a wood top....I'm thinking base should match the island, unless of course the island base is wood tone, and then it would either match the yellow cabinets or the coffee bar area. Coffee bar/bar: definitely soapstone top- either yellow cabinets like the rest of the kitchen, green, or wood colored. I'm even confusing myself, so if anyone is following this, I'm impressed, and thank you for any thoughts!

Hello all so my new cabinets look more yellow than I wanted. Any suggestions for good paint colors? I'm not a beige fan, so I would prefer to not use beige if I can avoid it. I like BM or SW colors. The floors are a medium walnut, no other furniture right now to work around.

Still has a retro vibe because the style of cabinet shows...late 50's . I'd get the boomerang or retro laminate type....maybe solid color-avoid gray or black- just not upbeat enough. Look for retro hardware they are reproducing now.-chrome-have you purchased the satin nickel pieces? Lighting can be ceiling or close to ceiling fixture-catalogue search at your leisure-maybe a track fixture if one suits the space. My goal would be a lighthearted fun attitude w the counter /hardware.