Thanks, all. Yes, the island really is 17' long! And the beauty of it is the aisle is more than 42" wide, so there is plenty of room for 2 or 3 or 4 people to work. The ends of the island are pony walls about 4" thick and as high as the backsplash w/o planter boxes (which just lift off, BTW) -- sided with a distressed hardwood tongue-and-groove that is used elsewhere in the house on walls. We don't have to keep the pony walls, and if we went with a no-backsplash option, they would go, anyway. To be replced with ? ? ? The idea of splitting the island with a walkway is interesting. But the sink is centered in the island and would have to be moved, and we would have to deal with the flooring then. There are some spare pavers in a pile in the yard near the spare brick(!), but it would involve chiseling away at the slab to try to recess the new pavers to the proper level. I never thought about rebuilding the planter boxes of a different material. That is an interesting idea. I've thought about putting the WOW granite on the range backsplash only, with a simpler quartz on the counters (there is also a groovin' wet bar across the atrium from the island, so it needs to be updated at the same time with new cabinets/countertop). But I'll probably need to do some photoshop mock-ups of various granite patterns. I wouldn't want it all to get too busy. Pavers, bricks, slab wood, pebbles, distressed wood, trees, loud granite, stainless range hood -- yowza! We may have to be tranquilized. I'll try to take some better pictures tonight so it all makes more sense. But here is a shot that gives you a peek at the pony wall on the end of the island. The wood on it matches the wood on the living room wall at the far end of the shot and on the "front" wall on the right side of the shot. The brass doorknob in the lower right corner of the shot is the front door.

You also might consider something like a china cabinet (a Haywood-Wakefield -style china cabinet would be very hot!) as a furniture-style solution. It can hold more than china -- vintage staples canisters, cookbooks, linens on the bottoms etc. That way you can just move it around the house as needed. Some people find things stay cleaner. (I have open shelves and don't have a problem.) You can definitely replace the laminate counter (they pull the whole counter out, not just peel off the skin) and put in a new laminate counter, or put in another kind of counter. Sometimes a "period feel" can be done with just what you have and some accessories. You don't need to add a thing that would turn anyone off. I also wanted to raise the issue that some people, contractors, designers etc, may come in and advise you to rip everything out. They may do this for a silly reason -- it's just easier for them, or a real reason -- a slow drip has been rotting the sink cabinet for 15 years, and it actually does have to be replaced. It's easy for things to get the "while we're at its" as someone here called it, and before you know it, your very modest kitchen plan calls for bumping out 3 stories and adding an indoor pool. I just want you to remember that, no matter what you decide, YOU are the one in control of this project. It's YOUR house. You can really say "No, we're happy with X as it is. We'd just like a quote on the Y right now, thanks." If you needed to get a couple of cabinets built because one is very rotted and unsalvageable, it might be done by a local carpenter for a reasonable amount of money, less than getting a whole new set of cabinets. But if what you really want is a whole new kitchen in 5 years, then -- get the leak FIXED, come back and let us know.

I'm pre-reno still, but in my former kitchen, even though it was super tiny, I had PLACES for things to go, even if it meant that the crockpot went above the fridge cabinet, it still had a place that it could reside. In the current kitchen...no proper places for anything. It's infuriating. My pots and pans have to go in a corner cabinet and everything goes everywhere when I try to get one thing. So, I've taken to leaving my "daily use" pots and pans on the counter. The weekly use or bi-weekly use ones usually get put away. And because I dislike it so much, it's kind of a dumping ground for mail and so on. We have no place for recyclables, so those sit on the ground next to the garbage or on the counter until we remember to take them out when we head outside. Even though my former kitchen was smaller, it was much better planned (surprisingly for a builder layout) and had places for things to go and it was far easier to cook in and clean up. As for marble. I don't know what to tell you. Hopefully you got honed so that you won't have a lot of etching show. Will it stain? It probably will at some point. Some time you will be at that point where you *should* reseal it and you won't have gotten around to it. And someone will spill red wine. It'll happen. At some point. But Europeans have been using marble for ages and ages and they live with it. Your first stain will kill you. After that, it will begin the process of turning into "patina" and memories of your years with it. Honestly, if I could find a piece of marble countertop that has been well loved for about 30 years so that the first stain and etch wouldn't be mine, I'd snatch it up in a heartbeat. Or if my husband weren't as, ummm....let's say "detail oriented" to remain positive...I would go for marble. He would never forgive/forget the first mark be it that he made it or I did. So, for us, marble isn't a choice. But, if you can look at your marble as inevitably getting signs of being loved, you should be happy with it. :)

Houzz is great but it takes a bit more than photos and a back pocket full of design opinions to design a space well. Great custom design takes into consideration the architectural period and detail of the property, the owners preferences and styles, and the budget and timeline. What will remain, what will be removed, and what will be added? Does the architectural footprint change? It is best to have a design vision and plan for the property as a whole and then design each space, embracing that design plan, that moves that vision toward reality. This will help assure that the design will be cohesive, can be planned in phases if need be, and, come possibly come in on budget. Based on this one photo and the info you provided: The house was built in 1974 but the kitchen looks later than that. The lines of the architecture looks like it may be a bit more contemporary, many homes in the 70’s were, and it looks like you have a Mid Century piece of furniture in the adjoining room. If you do not plan on replacing cabinets then I would paint them. The maple looks very yellow, which happens with age. If you plan on replacing or refacing the cabinets I would recommend slab doors as these are keeping with the typical design of that era. I would change the countertops to a quartz with an eased edge as the double pencil edge is to traditional. I would change the backsplash to a true subway tile, not beveled, or continue the quartz up the wall for a seamless look. Save choosing the wall color until last as it will be easier that way. If you go for a light cabinet/countertop I would choose a medium tone for the floor either in wood or wood looking tile. Lastly choose your fixtures and fittings. Again professional designers look at the space as a whole, even if you are only doing one space at a time, so that the end product is consistent with your overall vision. Good luck.