Our lighting is bad (at some point we will put in a few more recessed lights) so it's hard to see our coloring. Pick your cabinets first, get a sample (i.e. tiny size drawer door) and then countertop shop. We picked Silesstone and I ran to the Silesstone installer (they don't sell directly) who gave me the 12x12 tile and when I got home I hated it. So, that began our great granite search. Ours has whites, off whites, and lots of other browns and some black (not in the original plan to have black). In the initial stages, my husband wanted granite and I wanted Silesstone so I won but in the end, he did as I hated my first choice (which would have looked nice too). And, I never would have guessed I'd pick an granite with movement, but we have a small kitchen so we figured we'd go for it. In person it looks really nice - it would look nicer if we ever finished it. Oh, we still haven't cleaned the grooves well so you can see it doesn't show that much but if you look up close you can see some dust. I tease my husband with that and the windows - I only design, buy and install, I don't clean.

To post pictures: 1. Open an account on a free picture hosting site such as Photobucket, Webshots, Flickr, etc. 2. Make your album "public" so others can see your pictures .....In Photobucket: Click on "Account Options" (top right corner) ..........Next, click "Edit Album Settings" ..........Then, where it says "My album is", be sure it says "Public" (if not, change it to "Public") 3. Using camera software that came with your camera or other software like Microsoft Picture Manager, resize the picture so it's less than 600 pixels in both directions. It's best to resize based on a percentage (like 20%) so the picture dimensions remain consistent (not stretched out vertically or horizontally!) 4. Upload the picture to your account (see #1) 5. If you use Photobucket, when you see your picture on the site, copy the link from the box labeled "HTML Code" (I don't know where the link is in Webshots, Flicker, etc.--I use Photobucket) .....[BTW...You can also resize your pic on the Photobucket site] 6. Simply paste the link from the "HTML Code" in your message...you're done! When you preview your message you will see the picture. Is this understandable??? [Please let me know if it's not so I can re-work the instructions!]

The minimalist look is very appealing! Reminds me of a photo I recently saw on the Instagram account of one of the brands we sell. Here's the item shown in that photo. If you're still interested in the adjustable/articulating wall lamps, here are some ideas: Savoy House Dakota Hudson Valley Latham Savoy House Morland Hudson Valley Metal No.2 George Kovacs Save Your Marriage (cute name, huh?) Plus, some wall lamps that are not adjustable, but are stylish: Hudson Valley Signature House of Troy Hyde Park Elk Boudreaux Sonneman Chelsea Kichler Alden These are just a few options. Let me know what you think!

What options are you considering? I'd say your choices are: -White (to blend with cabinets and tile) -Black (to match counter) -Dark wood (to highlight floor accents) -Light wood (to match main floor color) -Stainless (to provide bling) or go crazy with a color It kind of depends what look you like best! We also have variable floors (not as variable as yours) and white subway tile, and we went with a dark-stained butcher block for the counter and shelves on one side of our kitchen. We love it, but you'd have to see if you were comfortable with the contrast with the black counter. I might lean toward a lighter walnut stain in your case that shows more of the wood grain.