We had one in the hall/kids' bath when I was a child. My mother loved it. That bathroom had a vanity that consisted of a 36" tilt-out hamper directly under the sink, with a bank of drawers to either side. It was very convenient for our clothes and towels and for sheets when changing the beds. Nothing smelled, and this was in FL back when A/C was used only in July and August, not all the time the way people do now. (There was an annual argument and whinefest about when it was hot and humid enough to turn on the A/C.) The whole hamper assembly could be lifted out if they needed to get to the plumbing, but IIRC, it took two people to do that. EDIT for typo on hamper width--it was 36", not 48". Still pretty big, given the depth of it. This post was edited by writersblock on Mon, Jul 1, 13 at 11:20

Solid wood paneling is a classic, very valuable and cannot be replaced. I'd do something to keep that. I agree that the original aesthetic of the wood was to add warmth with all the natural hard materials like stone, slate, iron, etc. Depends on how much of a purist you want to be with the aesthetic. The original design is flexible as to what colors and stains would work. You could paint too. The only real crime would be to tear out something that is as valuable as real wood paneling. It was even expensive back in the day when it was installed. It has value because it is high quality and beautiful. I would seek to do something that retains the pluses. If you want to maintain your house as an homage to the middle of the last century, then obviously "restore" rather than "redo." Oh, and just a ponder, is that two story fireplace material original? Or was it originally brick too? Love your house BTW! Very elegant.

The cabinets are definitely nice looking but maple cabinets always seem to turn that yellowish orange color which so many are not a fan of. You can do things to help that but painting them would be beautiful too and give you the opportunity to not have so much wood. White may not always be the trend but it is classic. Painting would also give you a chance to update the handles to something a little bigger and contemporary. Either way keeping or painting you’ll have a nice kitchen.

Here is a photo of it. We are keeping the floors.