I think I'd get wood fatigue also and might try a white-wash technique in some rooms. Perhaps a bedroom or even just on a ceiling. The link Chris11895 posted shows Sarah's bunkie at her cottage. This is Sarah's answer to the treatment they did on the pine walls: Sarah Richardson says, "In order to get the effect we achieved with the whitewashing we simply rolled semi-transparent oil-based stain tinted in a variety of shades (see the source guides) and then brushed the joints to ensure an even application. Be sure to test an area first and perfect your technique before rolling away! We did not wipe off the stain as recommended because I wanted greater coverage, but the effect was achieved with a single coat. Note: You cannot apply a whitewash stain over panelling which has a urethane coating - it won't penetrate (the only solution here is to paint it in a solid stain)." IMO if the walls have a urethane coating you could do another urethane coat with the addition of some paint. Test it on a scrap of wood or in an inconspicuous place like inside a closet to see if the proportions of paint and urethane gives you the finish you want. You should still see the wood grain but the overall effect will be lighter if white paint is used, and a faint tint of color if a colored paint is used. Always use the same type of paint and stir carefully and frequently as it settles. If you don't want to paint the walls you might use window treatments outside the edge of the windows so they cover part of the walls. Using lots of art or hangings on the walls will give more interest and cover more wood. Use either lots of neutrals or lots of color in WT and furniture, whichever your preference. I would probably use lots of colored/patterned area rugs such as Oriental or southwestern styles. Or seagrass if you go for a neutral look. Alternatively you could just embrace the wood look and use wood furniture in different tones and lots of dark fabrics in WT and upholstery. Cozy cabin style.

What I would do to update old knotty pine paneling is a little different than what most people would do. I would get cream colored milk paint and wipe the boards down with milk paint making the boards an antique white. You'll have to do a few tests with the milk paint mixture to see how thick you want it and what type of effects you can get. As I was wiping down each board with the paint, I would have someone follow up behind me with another cloth and rub out each knot leaving an antiqued cream white board with the grain showing through and the knots visible. Another option would be to get a cream latex paint with latex glazing medium and do the same type of process. The difference is that the milk paint gets pushed into the grain of the wood and becomes part of the wood where the paint/glaze mixture will sit on top. I have done this with knotty alder to make a distressed antique faux barn wood look by first staining the wood with Minwax Ebony (2718) stain applied heavily and then immediately rubbed off as much as possible so that the wood was mostly grey with the knots and crevices totally black. The milk paint was then put on in two coats. The first mixture was extremely thick and used to color streak the wood, and then a thinner mixture was put on and wiped into the wood over the thicker highlights until the wood looked like grey, aged barn wood. The knots were rubbed out so that they were revealed through the finish. As the wood was going into a bathroom, it was sprayed with a dead flat varnish so that the wood looked like it was totally unfinished - but, in reality was totally sealed on all sides from moisture. In your case, since it is paneling in a room, you could leave it unfinished in the final milk paint as it really doesn't need a sealer. In a paneled room, I would go for more of an aged white look and apply the milk paint fairly thick and heavy and then gently wipe it off with the knots wiped back to reveal them,

Hmmm...I have an idea. Never tried before, so please do a sample board. Disclaimer, may fail, too. Ok.... So, since whitewashed knotty pine has a tendency to come out pink, maybe using the opposite of the color wheel to counteract the pink would help. Adding the opposite color into the 1st coat of wash, then a 2nd thicker coat of white wash on top. I use this opposite color application a lot in watercolors to tone colors in my paintings which is similar process in whitewashing. Please note again, it is a concept. Please do a sample board 1st. My process before doing walls for clients.. I get 2-3 sample boards to experiment with to test the products & application before going into doing a whole wall. I highly suggest practicing on samples until application works. Then test it on actual wall, let it all dry. see it in daylight & night lights. Once it passes all the tests to client's liking, then go for it full force in confidence. It's a lot of extra steps & precautions, however a lot less unforseen problems later. Hope that helps. Whatever ends up working, would appreciate seeing. Please post after photos. Good luck!

The most inexpensive would be to paint the ceiling and beams white.I think it would certainly brighten up the kitchen. Then you can do harwood floors that blend, not exactly match the walls. IMHO I would paint all the wood. Sometimes for me, it works, like in a log home for instance. If you want to leave all the wood, how about luxury vinyl tiles for the floor, with a nice area rug.