To mry193--YW, mry. Go ahead, take the plunge! Easy for me to commit you to all this agony, eh? :-) It is hard,sometimes, but it's fun, too, and so gratifying when you get something right. But that's the thing, as in cooking or buying a blouse we think is going to be absolutely perfect with "those" slacks...no matter how much practice we have, we all make mistakes now and then. We get "it" home and it doesn't look right, even if we have years of practice and have successfully executed color schemes before. So I say, don't be intimidated, jump in and when you mess things up, you can do what I still have to do often enough (even after thirty years, two apartments, one rental, five owned homes and probably, counting renos, a couple dozen color schemes): repaint or change the shower curtain. :-D What are you picturing in your mind's eye? What kind of colors do you see in your dream scheme? To hoosiergirl: Ditto your agent; you built a beautiful home, and I love the way you put everything together. [For skeet, if you see this and look at hoosier's pics, the very first photo I saw had a good example of the visual linking. Look at the way the finish on the door on the left side relates well to the floor color on the right, even though the wall colors are different and there's a different (carpet? rug?) color between the door and the other room's floor. So, even though the two areas are different, they're tied together with the same undertones and similar finishes.] To hoosier, again--That's a lovely kitchen, and you seem to have done a much better job than I have in using what look to be almost the exact same colors/tones (as nearly as I can tell from pics) in our kitchens. Aghhhh! Help me, hoosier! LOL I agree with you. We built this house not quite four years ago. The hardest part was picking the paint. I'm happy with a lot of the house, but so far I've repainted the kitchen twice, and as I noted above, I'm having to do it again. I hope I get it "right" this time! I was happy to see your cabinet color used with black appliances. That's what I have, except for the cooktop and fan (SS). I am struggling to get some cheer/energy in this room. The main difference is that I have the wooden cabinets on the perimeter of the room and the (soft) white cabinetry on the island. Do you have decent natural light in that kitchen? Mine's okay until about 2 p.m., then it gets dreary. There's a LOT of wood in here, with the cabs, the plank floors (a little darker than your tile, but the same reddish undertone), and a farmhouse table. There's a lot of warm painted furniture (chairs, pie keep, a linen chest), but it's still a heavy room. The walls were originally some kind of off-white (maybe...BM Ballet?). I thought it would be nice, because of all the (Early American) colors in the furniture, but, no. I think the white had too grey a base. Then I hand-mixed a soft green that looks close to the same hue as yours, except a bit lighter. I thought I liked it, but it became draggy as the weather got greyer. I also used matte, and maybe that was a problem. So...now I'm going to try a warm white (something like BM Navajo or Calming Cream) in *eggshell* on the walls) and a lighter, warm gold (like Marblehead Gold or Dorset Gold) on all the doors and trim. Like your house, there's a lot of trim/millwork. The palette on this floor mostly comes off of BM Philadelphia Cream/Guilford Green/Palladian Blue/Goldfinch. That's a beautiful fan hood, btw. Maybe warmer metal finishes would help around my kitchen. Anyway, nicely done!

Sophie Wheeler, I really expected you to post your lady-with-crystal-ball pic on this one. I don't know how everyone is responding to the OP when the OP has given no information whatsoever. Is the house in the location she needs so she is willing to spend to do upgrades? Is the house the right price - what money will she have after purchase? Enough for a total kitchen reno, or, enough for just a sprucing-up of new appliances kind of thing, or, maybe just enough to paint? Without knowing this information, or even really what the OP is even asking about, how can we respond? What I see in that kitchen is a nice proportional space with good windows and light. Me, I would leave the floor as is, take down the cabinetry, island and desk, take down the flower window valences, replace the chandelier, install soft white cabinets to add to the airyness provided by the windows, move the cooktop to a wall, new neutral quartz counters that won't fight with the floor's grain. No structural work other than to add exhaust duct on the wall, which wouldn't be a big project from what we can see. We don't know where you live, but assuming Ikea cabinets (for a baseline), ~$50k. But none of that is strictly necessary if after the house purchase you don't have the funds - except the removal of those flower window valences.

Hi everyone! Thank you SO MUCH for all of the feedback - beyond helpful and appreciated. So, looking back at the photos, the color/character that comes through on the photographs aren't quite true to the real deal. While the cabinets aren't the typical honey oak, they aren't the walnut with character like the photos look to show. Either way, I'm definitely hearing that many of you think I should not paint them - well noted! We're not quite sold on painting them and have been nervous to do so - we've heard oak doesn't paint well etc. With that said, I think I could have been more thorough in my original post in what I think the kitchen is lacking - which is contrast. While the pics don't show it the best, the flooring is the exact same color as the cabinets - and the countertop and backsplash don't add any contrast. I'm liking the idea of changing the countertops and backsplash (put in by previous owner which I've wanted to change anyways) and putting in runners! Brilliant! As for the island - it is really too small and we would like to have island seating for entertaining etc. - people tend to just stand around the kitchen when we have friends or family over and it would just make it more inviting to have island seating. My thought is to have a custom island made - and paint it cream for a contrast. I then plan on adding a cozy little area in front of the fireplace with a few chairs and eating in the dining room instead of the kitchen - old school style! I like the idea of a hood over the stove - how much does this usually run... ballpark? I also like the idea of white trim - is painting trim a bad idea - would you suggest just replacing it altogether?

I agree, yours is pine, not oak, but, it is still very nicely done, and I personally wouldnt be changing any of it. I dont think stained trim, is dated. It is just a notion some have gotten in their heads. I do agree, some should be painted, because, it probably wasnt done all that well in the beginning. (like the trim, and doors in my house). Yours seems to be done well, and is in great condition. You have a darker stain, than your inlaws house, is why the color is different. These days, to get any wood trim, that doesnt have to be painted, is very expensive. You have nice quality trim from older growth lumber, and I just would not paint it. I did paint mine (definitely not white though ), but, in my house, it was necessary, since it was not in great shape. It actually should have been all replaced, but...