SO hard to tell without seeing plans or photos, but from what I'm imagining in my head, I prefer the dark island and white wall. This keeps all the darkness low and grounded, and having a white island seems to fight with your white uppers and dark lowers idea. But as I said, my imagination's vision might not match your situation... Another thought...Something completely different like light gray on the full cabinet wall? Light gray is so rich with chocolate brown without being such a great contrast...and would let the white uppers stand out just a bit.

I'm interested in this as well, looking to door white uppers with stained lowers in my new build. I have an open floor plan, but small house overall. I agree that the lighter cabinets should be on top. I think it gets tricky when you add full length pieces, like a tall pantry or fridge surround. Here is my inspiration pic where I think the two tone look works really well And then this one which is a little more modern than I'm looking for, but gorgeous nonetheless

@lwfromny thanks for your input! yes, I can decipher it all, no worries. Trust me when I say I have done all my research on vent hood inserts and the importance of having one atleast the same size as your range, preferably one size bigger. The research recommends it being atlest the same size. Im ok with it being at 52 with a CFM of 1200. That was my thoughts exactly, keep all countertops the same to have the cohesiveness; great!

Wood for cabinetry is very much en vogue these days, and is a classic. The colors that you are planning to paint your cabinets are very taste specific, trendy, and will most likely look like the remnants of a bad trend in less than 5 years (my humble prediction:)). That being said, if this is a place where you are personally going to be residing long term, and you have no plans of selling any time soon, go for it. Just be very committed to the color palette you are choosing - because it will most likely look dated, in short order. But if you love it - and enjoy it - that is what ultimately matters. Alternatively, and if it were my space, I would start with a can of paint - for the walls. I would also change the fan to a sleeker/updated fan or to a light fixture. All dimmable. I would not do 4000k led lighting, because it is glaring, imo. If you want LED, I would suggest going softer and warmer. But of course you can try the 4000k and see how it works for you. It all comes down to personal preference. I would also change out the cabinet hardware, and might consider switching to stainless appliances (might). If that didn’t “update” and lighten the space enough for me - I’d maybe paint a few of the uppers white, and or add glass inserts on a couple of the uppers.