Check out rustoleum counter treatments. It's a diy treatment that can change the color of your counters.

I once painted a counter and went over the paint with polyurethane. It lasted a couple years.

well, replacing those horrid knobs would be first. look online or buy a contractors pack (cheaper in bulk) of brushed nickel knobs or handles.

you have that shiny 90's oak veneer cabinets. Personally, I'd paint them white.

do you want to leave or replace the laminate counter? it just doesn't go w/the oak.

what is the backsplash? the counter material?

remove those heavy white blinds.

finding home for stuff on the counter will reduce clutter.

floor really isn't that bad from what I can see. you could put down a large sisal rug or something.

your countertop is the main issue here. have you looked at pre-fab quartz or granite? 9'x22" countertops run between 300-550. a fabricator will cut them to fit. maybe 800 or so for your kitchen.

or, if you guys are DIY'ers, do a cement overlay countertop w/Ardex. look at he videos. less than $100. but you would still have to remove that backsplash

http://www.creativelylivingblog.com/2016/03/concrete-countertop-overlay.html

Have the floor tile professionally cleaned and sealed. Pros can work wonders because they have skill, training and equipment. Then you can paint the grout a light color to match the tile. It will look like new.

Get an estimate for replacing the purple countertops so you will be ready when the time comes. Some people like the Rustoleum treatment, others think it looks worse than the originals. YMMV.

Here's a link to some before and after photos: http://carpetcleanerinflorida.com/before-and-after-carpet-tile-grout-and-upholstery/

Yeah, the countertops were mentioned:

What to do with the horrible color counter/backsplash combo

Is the backsplash also laminate or just painted to match? It's kind of hard to see in your photo?

I would definitely get rid of the counters and splash, although you may wind up needing to replace the drywall in the backsplash area if it's the same laminate. Then, since this is just a refresh and not a full-scale reno, I'd run down to the local big box store for some grab-and-go laminate to replace the counters. Most of those come with an attached 4 in backsplash, so I'd just paint the rest of it a nice light color. There's a lot of prejudice here against stone pattern laminates, but some of my neighbors just did that in their kitchen reno and it actually looks quite nice.

Agree with new hardware, but I wouldn't paint the cabinets. Do the counters, splash and floors and see what you think first. For flooring suggestions, what is the rest of the house like? Is this a closed-off kitchen or an open one?

Paint the cabinetry white and replace the hardware. That will actually work well with your countertop and backsplash. Lose the blinds and valance. If you need something on the windows a simple lightweight translucent white cafe curtains will be attractive and go with the new white cabinets and purple counters. If it is in the budget consider replacing with white cork....easy on the joints and feet. If not, toss a light rug on the floor. Keep clutter to a minimum and add easy DIY warm under counter lighting. It will look like a new kitchen and you can save for your ultimate redo or other priorities. Good luck and please post before and after photos.

Thanks everyone for the ideas. The countertop is a maroon and does go up as a backsplash. The floor looks much better in the picture than in person. the grout is cracking and discolored, their is some missing pieces.

If I had $3000 to spend, I'd spend $200-$300 to get the floor tile and cracked grout cleaned up and spend the majority of the money on a new laminate countertop, not the other way around.

New flooring that requires removal of ceramic tile and installation of a new smooth level surface before the new flooring goes in will be expensive. The time to do that would be when you gut a kitchen.

I think that the worst is counter/backsplash. If it were mine and I could afford it, I would replace the counter/backsplash and floors first.

Another question, what "color/tones" would you suggest for the countertop if we leave the cabinets as is (and just replace hardware).

depends what material you're looking at. anything in the warm toned family will work better than something in the cool blue/purple gray tones.

greens, tans, beige, whites, ivories, black,,,look super w/that oak color.

I'm sorry that you won't have any money any time soon, but money is the only way you're going to fix that kitchen. And the amount of money would depend on how handy you are and how much you could do yourselves. With some elbow grease you can fix those cabinets yourself with sanding and painting. And then I would find a discount granite place where you live and for $1,500 you could put in a new counter top. And then get some back splash tile that is DIY where you peel and stick. Go to Home Depot and get yourself some new hardware for $50.. And then I would buy new stainless appliances on credit with zero interest and pay them off over a year OR save up and buy piece by piece as you can afford it.

Do you have a budget in mind? When you say a redo is not in the near future - would you say it is over 10 years out? I ask because that makes a difference on what I would suggest. I totally understand having important expenses that make a kitchen redo out of the question.

Do you have a style you like? When a kitchen is older and funds are tight, it can be fun to do something a little creative - cottage and vintage type - but if that is not something you would like, then I won't go there:)

If you have around $5000 and the cabinets are sturdy, you can do stone counters and a pretty backsplash - and maybe the floor.

If you have $1500 - pretty laminate counters and backsplash - and maybe the floor.

My own oak kitchen refresh is in my "my pics" idea book and my "wood kitchens" idea book includes a few others. My very inexpensive oak basement kitchenette ($1000) is also in my "my pics" idea book - towards the end - just some ways to work with oak cabinets in a vintage / cottage style.

One thing you have going for you is the kitchen has a good layout - unless there is no counter next to the fridge - it is always nice to have some landing spot near the fridge. If possible, move the microwave to over by the fridge and get a pretty hood.

It does look like the floors, countertops, and backsplash are the main culprits here. We recommend updating the hardware and the flooring, however it looks like you have a lot of great ideas listed above for the countertop/backsplash. Also try removing the window treatment and getting a roman shade. Then update the faucet as well.

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If your budget is tight, you should consider replacing your current counters with laminate counters. You might be surprised to find that there have been BIG improvements with laminates and some are very, very nice looking, imitating the look of stone or quartz which are both very popular.

Have a look at Formica brand. They have 135 different patterns available. Almost any of them would be an instant improvement over your purple.

Your cupboards could benefit from painting but painting oak isn't easy to get really good results. A job best left to a professional, but that might be more than your budget would allow. They don't look terrible so a really good cleaning and new knobs/pulls would make a big difference.

Simple tile backsplash once you've chosen your counters. Subway tile goes up easily and looks great, and can be very budget friendly. It comes in many colours so you can pull something out of your countertop and then decide on matching or contrasting grout. Have a look on the forums for many different discussions on those choices.

Open up that window by removing the shade and blinds and clear the little bits and pieces off the window sill.

It is difficult to see your wall colour. Changing that out might help as well. Also can't see your lighting. It might be time for a change on that too.

The floor doesn't look terrible in the pictures, like others have mentioned, maybe a professional cleaning would help and have the damaged grout replaced. If you are handy, you could likely do many of these jobs yourself.

Start with the counters and backsplash - best bang for your buck. After that see what else still stands out to you and how much you have left in your budget.

Reality check...you are stuck with your floor. Removing, leveling, replacing the tile is not cheap. New hardware, a sisal rug, new window treatment.

Find a small cabinet shop (NOT a big box store)...your current counters and backsplash can be covered with new laminate...I've had it done.