You are all so wonderful! I'm kind of having a bad day, and coming here to 28 responses made my day!! :) Some background I should have included: I am having reconstructive surgery on my knee next week. I tore my ACL skiing this winter...the only trip my husband and I have had together for about 8 years, and look what happens. Oh well! But for the past month, I've been in total cleaning and re-decorating mode. I know i'm going to not be able to do a lot of things for a few months, and so I'm trying to get things done now. Every spring brings lots of projects inside and out, and I'm trying to get done now what I can. Plus, I'm addicted to HGTV, and watching it every day will definitely make you want to get working! By the way, I've had lots of help. I'm able to do a lot by myself, but I don't push it. :) Those light fixtures are from Rejuvenation and were pretty expensive (for me! I saved for all three!), so I don't think it's anything I could replace just yet. I had a chandelier here when I moved in, and I just felt like my house wasn't big enough for one. My house is really small. Well, maybe 1500 square feet with a finished basement, but it's a common 20's foursquare. I have no entryway, for example. Just a big front porch and a door that opens straight into my living room. I will consider moving the table sideways - thanks! And the pics of my babies, I will consider that, too. I will find a pic of the rug and post it tonight. Why I got a dark-colored area rug with two kids is beyond me! :) But it's pretty. Hopefully, this fall, I'll be able to return to part-time work and have some extra cash for accessories. I love this room, but I just felt like something was missing. Granite would be awesome, in my dreams! I never thought I'd forget the details of my kitchen remodel, but I have! I will try to remember the name of my laminate. It really was a good choice, I think. Lots of people think it's something other than laminate, and it's held up pretty well. Some scratches, but nothing major. Here are some more pics of the kitchen until I can get more of the rug. Thanks for making me feel like my kitchen isn't outdated yet! I would love interior shutters on this window. As you can see, I have a lovely view of the AC unit next door. :)

Once brick is painted, there is no turning back, ever, ever, ever. Not even just a small section. It is not like wall paint that can just be returned to a former palette. Please do as many have advised, and wait before jumping on the paint bandwagon. I would say even wait a year, to give yourself time to truly become settled in your new place and go through different seasons of decorating. Don’t be swayed by the current decorating trends as they will change many times over the life of a house. I live in a 1880’s home that has a brick wall in the kitchen to which previous owners glued linoleum -fake tile in the 1950’s, no doubt, because it was the decorating trend of the day. That glue seems to be there to stay for eternity. So we really have no choice but to paint, but would have loved to keep the original brick if it had been in better shape.

Wood beams are supposed to be wood, pretend the trusses are showing through, so I would just take them down. You could matchy match your kitchen but #1 you just eliminated that by painting the built ins and #2 Kitchen's are high use areas and white paint will show wear very fast. The mantle looks gray the beams look black. Maybe just paint your island the same as the mantle? It looks like you already did, however. The fireplace is your only color in the room. I would keep it as is.

these are photos from the listing Theresa, first, let me say-I'm in love with all the cacti! Incredibly cool. many great things about the house. I'll try to answer the question about white cabinets. There will be many who'll say white kitchens are classic, and they'll be right, in a sense that there'll always be houses where white kitchens would look great and appropriate. Whether it's white glossy contemporary kitchens in some urban apartments, or white beaded doors in a cottage, or many others. Then there'll be many who'll say a white kitchen is at the end of its cycle, and they ill be right too, because too many people install same kitchen everywhere, and in 7-10 years another trend comes, and the other new trend is already here, and it's stained wood again. (especially certain woods in certain stains) There are also painted (or colorful) kitchens that are not white, and they can be also very nice, and fit a house like a glove. There's not one color that will make a place modern, or traditional, or whatever, all by ttself, because every color is a part of the bigger context. And our associations with it will depend on our own traditions, our own likes and dislikes, and how it correlates with the rest of the place. So I'd take the "whether white is here to stay" out of equation, and my questions to myself would be: -how white will work in my house, its style, where it stands, etc? how it will work with all the other elements, and what these elements are/will be? and -do I love white enough to look at it every morning and evening for years to come? Second question, only you can answer. In terms of the first question. Your house is transitional (whatever it means because it's not a very exact term) already. The legs on the island are the most traditional thing about our kitchen from what I can see. White itself wouldn't make it more contemporary kitchen. It might make you personally happier, but it won't be significant change in the feel of the kitchen. It will stay a transitional kitchen, pretty nice at that, just in different color. Now, I can't see the backsplash-but changing backsplash can give it more modern feel. Or changing legs on the island and refacing, say, to slab doors will give it more modern feel. But I need to understand whether that's what you want-or you just want departure from dark wood because you don't like darker wood. which is totally fine. For example you want just the departure from stain because your preference is painted. And your preferred color is white (which it doesn't have to be. My kitchen is taupe for example, and another colors I seriously considered were purple and, to the less extent, green) Then you need to decide-you keep your counter which is softer taupe..you take very clean bright white out of equation. But look for a softer "muddier" version of white. The one that'll work the best with your countertop..and the backsplash if backsplash stays. Maybe it's an off white, and you'll have to try several(ask for samples done on wood if you enlisting a pro) and look at them in your kitchen with your countertops etc, to make a decision. For us to give the best advice it'll be best to see the countertop and the backsplash up close. When you say "taupe" I guarantee you, well almost, that my brain pictures one color, and you mean slightly another one. There are hundreds of neutrals that we call white, gray, taupe, off white, etc, etc-and while it gives general description, it's not enough to then say "in your kitchen, with its light and all the unique things it has, color X by brand Y will work". All these colors change with light. and also in presence of other colors, and you need to narrow onto several and try them there. And it might be that while looking for that white you'll see another color you'll like more. Or you'll decide to go not for paint but for a different stain. That you like more. Or melamine (which means refacing. But maybe that what you actually want when you say "contemporary") Now don't forget that you'll decorate differently than previous owners did. It seems like too much dark wood because there are many elements in same stain. Most of them seem built in, but maybe not all of them are? You can also go with different materials when you pick tables, and chairs, and whatnot. You can introduce different lighting. (Layers of it too-very important) You can layer textures and add colors. You'll bring in your own art. Plants. Etcetera. In short, you won't see just the kitchen. The kitchen will be a part of a whole. Look at many pictures if you haven't yet. and see how they make you feel, to choose the general pallette for the house first. A start. Can be interiors but many images can be inspiration for colors, from fashion to cinematography. And also nature. Especially landscape surrounding your house(they did a great job with it)-whatever you see from your window is still your space)) Part of it. So let it inform you too and inspire you, when you choose. Most choices that look great throuout years and never bore us are these that go with the house and its surroundings. I quite like the bathroom, and it doesn't feel dragged down to me. It's just largely empty because they staged for resale. As they did with other places. Add but a flowerpot-and it'll feel differently. I really tried to make this post short, but didn't quite succeed))) Bottom line: I can see why you like the house. The previous owners didn't do anything majorly irritating. They neutralized for resale and had quite a lot of one-note things, certain stain, stacked stone that adds a bit of heaviness etc. But it's a nice house. I know that feeling of being in a hurry-but try not to be, give yourself sometime to figure out the pallette that works for both you and the house, maybe start with furnishings even as fabrics give us inspiration and ideas too..don't worry, you'll get to that paint thing, but you'll be happier with whatever choice you make when you make it not in a hurry. I personally would be inclined to yes, use sage green..or some other soft grayed green, yes..but would it be kitchen itself, or walls, or fabrics, or accents? Or maybe tonal shades in several of these? I don't know. I'd need to be in the house and think. Same goes for every other choice. It's a puzzle that you put together. And as with puzzles-there's fun in it. Enjoy the process. Enjoy your new house.