Clyft, yes, the Smoky Mountain is on the fireplace wall, as well as through the living room, the foyer, the upstairs hall, and the kitchen. It really does well with the natural woodwork and the neutral-with-green-undertones carpet that we had to work with. When we first sampled it I was afraid it looked rather stodgy and dated, but once it was on the walls it has enough of a grayed-out cast to it to look contemporary. In some lights it looks much more blue, and in some it looks green. Meghnjosh, good luck with your blues! I actually didn't want to go with blue, but this was definitely the choice that worked the best with the other requirements we were working around. And it has enough gray and green in it that it works for me. The Wedgewood Gray that we did in the mudroom (no pictures) is too blue for me; we'll be changing that when we have time. At least it is still better than the dingy white it was before!

Thank you for the great comments and we think it turned out beautiful. Putting the island opened up the kitchen and made it look much bigger and more functional. Also, now we can seat 4 comfortably at the island. Love the sink and where it is too. Waiting on my cream colored loveseat which will open up the TV area. Getting rid of burgundy leather sofa, which I liked, but finally getting something lighter. That area will open up too. Thanks again for the positive feedback. Thank

Chris, I did to my custom cabs exactly what you want to do. They were solid wood, great shape, but after 15 years I couldn't stand the overall dark feel. I had them refaced and everything painted. new countertops, vent hood, splash, window, everything. The company I hired to paint also deals w/refacing. for an additional 2K, I got all new doors, drawer fronts. (I prob have twice the cabs you do, including a 4X7 island) The new doors are all solid maple w/center panels made from MDF. when painting, MDF is a better choice for the panels than solid wood. To answer your questions about getting new doors that aren't painted, yes, they would then have to use a veneer material to skin your base cabinets so that they would match. something else you should change over is the lower doors to drawers. a good refinishing company can also do this for you. I had them make two large drawers in my island where open shelving used to be. so much better for storing large pans have you had any estimates? If going the painting route, make sure you get all of the steps they take in priming. if getting them refaced, those should come raw, so all they have to do is prime and paint. you can also get soft closing hinges. You're prob looking at well over 6-7K for just painting, and then whatever extra they charge for refacing. as for the gap to the ceiling, there are diff ways to tackle that. since your current cabs have a large wood edge (the part above your doors) , it might be difficult to add on boxes to that. you see how the doors immediately transition into the added boxes? You have that 3-4" of wood above your doors. what you might be able to do is get taller doors to cover that, remove the crown, and then build the boxes above that. or, you could add on a decorative molding or large crown This one might work for you. another poster on here had these, but notice how her doors almost touched her crown molding. They removed that Built boxes and then added doors. I believe she told me this cost her 2K to have that gap closed like this these are mine, before. I'm sure people thought I was crazy for changing it. I didn't care. I lived w/it for 15 years, the finish was wearing and I was tired of dark. notice my drawer/door design. see how the top drawers are slab and the others shaker style? This is why I refaced so they would all match. all of the fluted / rope trim and corbels were removed. micro was moved. vent hood made. drawers in island made. doors added to desk area. We did the window ourselves. new marble/quartz, lighting, flooring, appliances. I did Wrought Iron on my island, bright white on the others. there's a double pantry to the left you can't see. You say you don't want white, which is fine, there are plenty of other colors. Revere Pewter edgecomb gray Navy Kendall Charcoal This just gives you an idea. what is your budget? If you say 10K, that may get you countertops and new tile backsplash.

Glad you took advantage of the time to focus on yourself. Sounds like the divorce and dropping of toxic people freed up a lot of energy in your life for some exciting pursuits!! I have been there with the job stress. When a toxic person leaves the workplace or your life, or when you get a less toxic job, it can seem like you have dropped 100 lbs. without even dieting!! You look great. Hope you have even more fun the rest of the year!