We struggled with it also, beautiful large travertine, installed by a really good tile setter...just perfect. But we still chose to update it last year...we were worried that it would be the thing that would hold back the whole space.

These are nice, but they'll dictate all your choices. Right now your kitchen looks very cohesive, even though one can say when it was built. Would be harder to change color scheme etc with the tile.

Does the kitchen look like it flows well with the rest of the house or not?

what are the adjacent floors?

Refacing-which stain/color/shape you envisioned? (I happen to like your cabinets. unless they're worn, and I can't see it on the pictures). Refacing is not cheap either.

Countertops-what did you want to change these for?

Need to know your master plan to see whether it'll work. Maybe you can do some tweaks, and skip on others.

Maybe your aestetics is so different right now it's already better to do what lucky did.

You definitely don't want an effect of "new on top of the old", it should contiue to be cohesive.

Thank you! The kitchen flows well and there are original hardwood floors (den stained darker than dining rm) on either side (there is also a guest bathroom off the kitchen, also with the travertine floor and the half wall).

A few challenges. The floors go under the cabinets and there is a bathroom off the kitchen with the travertine floors, shower and half wall. So an additional expense/demo situation.I like slate but would also consider hardwood. I know travertine might be considered an upgrade from porcelain but I'm not selling my house anytime soon.

The cabinets feel dated and they are worn. We thought we would do new doors without the shaker (?) trim. We wanted to do something in dove gray, maybe white oak but I'm open to ideas. I used Cesarstone raw concrete in master bath counter and like that or any of the warm whites (blizzard, nougat) and I might use tile instead of the stone for the backsplash.

We were also concerned about the number of different types of flooring in the house. We have different flooring in 2 bathrooms (porcelain).

The cabinets might feel dated to you, but the wood is back:) So, even on this forum, where people are supposedly more sensitive to "when and how it was done" -if several years ago, let's say, 80% would tell you to paint, and 20%, to leave wood and work with it-now it's roughly the opposite numbers.

That all doesn't matter much though-what matters is that you want a different feel, and we need to think how to get it, with less sacrifices, if possible.

First, i wonder what wood is it(I can guess, but prefer you tell me)) and whether can be restored/refinished lighter stain successfully.

But I hear you on preferring slab. White oak slab woud indeed be fabulous with warm white counters and tile backsplash. Fabulous.

I can't see the whole kitchen, but seems like it's a lot of refacing and it might be that it will cost same/almost same as new cabinets (also California here. I can see more that 10K refacing-and I see just one side of the kitchen. )

But say, you go for it.

In order for it to really be great, you'll need to change the floors.

(You can leave the ones that are under the cabinets, just mind the height of the new ones. Even better-if you change for hardwood, and you are worried about leaks, at least you know that cabinets are on stone)

You can work with the travertine staying of course, you can try and tie things together-bring a bit of gold in accessories, put a rug with a bit of white on the floors-but it will bug you. You'll always know you made a compromise.

Another way to go about it-leave your granite, which is a pretty one, on the counters, go with tile backsplash, where you take cues for tiles from granite, change cabinets for white oak, leave the floors. You give up on the whole big change of the vibe thing -but don't deal with a very messy demo and new floors expense.

Yet another way-you just redo everything to your current liking. That's already close to full-blown remodel .

Would need to see more of the kitchen for that, and other floors, because you mentioned you'd like to minimize different floorings in the house. It seems since your hardwood isa real deal one and original, so is easier to find a hardwood and finish on site so it'll match the other one.

Or: you can go with slate/other tile-but then you'll have more types of flooring, not less, given you have travertine in guest bathroom. Also might bug you, unless you change floors everywhere including the guest bathroom. Is there a bath/shower there, and that's where the half-wall is? Or it's just a powder room situation? Asking because if bath is there and half wall is there-that's also change of waterproof barrier..short story becomes real long.

It's a question of how much money. time, and effort you want to spend-and as much as it's nice for me to spend others' money, lol, and tell you how great it will be when you change X, Y, and Z -nobody knows that but you.

For now I can tell you-out of many "Tuscan" kichens I saw, this is one of the best ones, subdued, pleasant, not overwrought, so that's great. Really gives one time to consider things and plan accordingly.

Sorry for the long post, and all the typos I didn't catch yet!

..was doing some more thinking, here's another idea that might work:

-you change the cabinets, put in very warm white/cream counters, bring in backsplash that has a hint of this gold to it..either in glaze itself, or in a pattern, pattern can be very subtle too. Some glazes are nothing short of amazing. Would probably work with travertine, and-will work if later you decide to change your floors. You're a little bit locked in with a color scheme this way, again, but it might be the refresh you'll like enough, and it hopefully allows for more flexibility in the future.

I really like your kitchen-I understand I can't see everything from the pictures, and you're there everyday-but probably that's the reason I continued to think about it.

I hope you get more ideas and comments.