arcy, I can reposition the island. Funny you mentioned that because my mom hopped on the wagon to help me figure out what to do with the kitchen and she, too, suggested I reposition it. She also pointed out that the otherside of the island is much more attractive than the side that's exposed to the dining room. I will turn it next time I'm at the house and see what it's like. Thanks! Also, thanks for the wallpaper suggestion. I'll check out the collection at SW for ideas just in case. :) annkathryn, your cabinets are GORGEOUS! Thank you for the inspiration photos. They are gentle reminders of ways I can live with what I've got for now until I'm able to do what you did with transforming them. Great job! As promised, here are better photos of the kitchen: Here you can see the two green samples as well as a TINY bit of the Toasted Cashew I tried to sample peeking through Backsplash details (there is some splattering from cooking, that's not the tile) Close up of the tile in the kitchen (the grout will be cleaned when we move in so it'll lighten up a bit, the tile that will be installed in the dining room and living room will be similar in color to the lighter tile in the dividing strip shown here) Looking into the kitchen from the DR Someone requested a photo of the view from the back of the kitchen looking out to the DR -- pardon my lovely SIL, she was rinsing paint from her hands and the mini rollers, and my hand wasn't very steady here My mom suggested I take advantage of the side of the island shown in the above photo and turn it outward towards the DR. She also mentioned the idea of painting the island as some suggested here. I really like that idea! Hope this helps you all more than the previous photos did.

Most people suggest colors in the green family which is nice but I'm a big fan of sunflowers and decided to use a soft yellow instead. We put it in both our kitchen and breakfast area and like it alot! Not only does it give the kitchen and dining area a very warm and cozy feel and it also has a very pretty glow when the sun is shining in! Not to mention it matches our honey oak cabinets perfectly!

We recently bought a home with beautiful golden, honey oak floors. There is also honey oak trim (and doors) and big golden-y oak beams. We plan to eventually paint the trim white and replace the doors (later down the road), but will keep the honey oak floors and beams. My question is--which wall color do you think would go best with this warm oak color? Benjamin Moore's Edgecomb Gray, or Benjamin Moore's Balboa Mist? Those are my top two right now. Any other suggestions would be welcome! Added: I realize in the photos I attached, the two paint colors look pretty much the same, but I swear they're different! But if you know anything about either of these colors, I'd love input! First is Balboa Mist and second is Edgecomb Gray.

Many suggestions above are good - white, cream, sage green - all look good with oak. Warm grays can work - these often read green gray but cool grays can look drab with oak. A good backsplash with oak is a cream subway tile - which is what I have. This is my wood kitchens idea book - you will see a lot of cream subway tile, but there are others, and perhaps you will get some inspiration. https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/75202366/list/wood-kitchens The Kilim Beige may work for the kitchen too. If you do not have under cabinet lighting, consider getting some. It will keep the space light with the black countertops. Also, your choice of ceiling light bulb warmth / coolness can really affect the color tone of your floors and cabinets. You might want to talk to some lighting people about a good choice of light bulbs. Also - not sure if those cabinets are oak. They might be birch or another wood.