Also if you have a favourite warm white paint you would recommend, I'd love to hear your suggestions!

Smart idea to paint the wall, ceiling, and uppers the same warm white. I'd also do the lowers. In a smaller sized kitchen I think it helps to have uppers and lowers the same. I'm a fan of linen white BM as a warm white.

Can you post a close up of the counter? It looks warm but the tiles you posted look cool.

Thanks so much Kendrah! That's a great point and super helpful. Beautiful warm white suggestion too; thank you!

I do! I have one on my husband's phone -- I'll ask him to send it to me so I can post it. Definitely warm; it's biege in some lights, slightly green in others, with darker flecks. We would want to find a warmer off-white tile to go with the warmth of the walls and counters.. something almost creamy/ biege.

Keep uppers and lowers the same color. The style of different colors for uppers and lowers appears to be waning or gone.

Wood cabinets do seem to be making a come back. If you like the wood, perhaps just a new back splash, painting the island the same color as your walls, and new counter stools would be enough of a makeover of the space for your needs?

I would startbwith a new wall color and backsplash. Your wood cabinets appear to be beautiful. The backsplash is making the room too dark and the gray walls are not the right color.

I’d keep the wood - it looks lovely and is moretimeless than mixing wood/painted. backsplash is busy i’d replace - make sure what you pick matches the counter. on here doesn’t look like that zellige pairs with the tan but maybe it does in person.

I wouldn't paint the cabinets. Just paint the walls and put in the new backsplash.

Thanks so much everyone for your comments and suggestions! Very much appreciated!

Kendrah, here's a close up photo of the counters:

on your ceiling, ( i before e except after c) why not just go w/the standard white?

a few things to consider.

1. that zellige tile. have you gotten any samples? that weathered white is a very cool white. I think you want more of a creamy white? Have you looked at Cloe tile in the cream?

https://www.bedrosians.com/en/product/detail/cloe-tile/?itemNo=DECCLOCRE28G

scroll down a bit and look at the pics in the gallery. you'll get an idea of how it looks

or maybe the Portmore tile? similar to zellige but cheaper.

Here is the cloe w/some color options. if you must use a tinted white on the ceiling, try Simply White. it's a warmer neutral, not as yellow as alabaster

This might be nice on the walls, but use Simply White (or a similar white) on the ceiling and trim

2. Keep your ceiling white a bit brighter. It's always going to look darker once up, so you want something in a brighter, neutral white. Most paints have a 'ready-to-go' ceiling paint. no added tint is needed. (I used to use the white straight from the can w/no addition at all. You could always have them add a few squirts of plain white tint to the base 1 color)

I Did Simply White on my walls and my trim (eggshell/semi gloss). It's not a super bright white, nor is it too yellow.

I don't think you have to paint these cabs. the wood is very nice. (Youre keeping the same backsplash? if so, the wood works well with it)

What you could do is opt to paint the island the alabaster (after doing a sample to see how it looks next to the countertop) If you do paint the island, I'd think about trimming it out a bit to give it more of a finished look.

if you're painting it, it wouldn't take much more to trim it out. It's a fairly simply DIY project if you're up for that.

see how much nicer it looks?

doesn't have to been anything fancy. get some simple MDF trim pieces measure your spacing and cut to fit.

lots of ways to do it. board/batten, beadboard, shiplap, nickel gap, etc.

Super helpful Beth, thanks so much! Love the look of adding the trim to the island; I wouldn't have thought of that! I was thinking of adding trim to some of the walls around the home, but that's a project for another time. It's just so beautiful and adds so much character.

These are great white paint suggestions, and tips for the ceiling ** too. :)

Thanks so much again for your time and help!!

If you are certain about replacing the backsplash, take down the current one and just prime the wall in the meantime. Order your samples.

try the zellige if you like, but also get the cloe, kingston, look on bedrosians at the makoto, or other similar styles

(BTW, I meant to mention your under cabinet lighting. right now it's very warm/yellow. you need to change out the bulbs to a 4000K temp in an LED if you can. let me show you the difference in how the light looks

see? nice bright white.

ditto your ceiling or pendant bulbs

Ok, back to backsplash:

Here are two tiles in an off white color that might work w/the countertop. you can order samples of these if you like them

Or, You mentioned dark.

what do you think of the wood cabs w/black tile splash?

Or this one w/the white grout and ceramic tile?

What if you did this Amagansett tile in the black, herringbone pattern for your backsplash? switch out to brass hardware(if you like, see that pic right above) and paint the island in a dark charcoal/black color (along w/the trim/batten accents)

I gave you some diff pendants as well as counter stools. you don't want dark chairs against a dark island.

here's that tile in any of those colors

https://www.wayfair.com/home-improvement/pdp/ivy-hill-tile-amagansett-2-x-8-ceramic-satin-subway-wall-tile-w003024376.html

slightly diff counter chair, Iron Ore on the island (Iron Ore has a bit more brown to it than straight black) and a few diff pendant options.

Or, if you like the lighter backsplash options, maybe do some textured/woven pendants and counter chairs. And, take down the HomeSweetHome and do an accent wall w/cutting boards!

Behind the stove or in that far end, decorate the countertop w/something like this:

Here's a dark island w/the camel color woven chairs. That backsplash is either the white cloe 5" tile or the Amagansett in the square. just want to show you what it would look like

partial wood cabs, dark island, natural text chairs/pendants, dark backsplash tile (cat optional)

just by changing the tile/paint/chairs/lights and redoing that island to jazz it up, you'd get a whole new kitchen!

dont forget a runner to pull in the colors

here's that accent wall of cutting boards I photoshopped in that one photo. lots of ways to do this

I think a dark wall color w/something like this would take it up a notch

here's your wood cabs w/a soft white island

wood w/white uppers,

and wood w/grayish green island. these are to give you an idea of what yours would look like

@Beth H. That one grout line kills me. I know someone who did it. Not sure how they feel now.

Beth, you are a life saver! Thank you for all of this! Good point about the lighting!! Love your tile and paint recs, and I think you and I have the same decor style... I really like those light fixtures and chairs.

These are a a couple images I was playing with earlier, with the light backsplash, walls, different lighting fixtures, some decor, and with/without white uppers. If you blur your eyes you can kind of get an idea lol.

I think we'll keep the cabinets as they are for now, and just paint the walls, change the backsplash and light fixures, and of course have a lot of fun picking out decor....

There's a butler's pantry too, which I think would be the perfect spot for that accent wall of cutting boards! We were actually thinking of painting the island and entire butler's pantry in Iron Ore for a little moodiness. It's a gorgeous dark colour.

Thank you again!!

The cabinets are in good shape and are lovely. Painting them is expensive to have done well and even when it is done very well, it will never be as durable a finish as the wood.

I would not paint the cabinets.

The counter top is not a bad color with the current wall color and backsplash, but when you change those colors to a cleaner white I fear that the counter tops will no longer look as good.

I would go to the expense of changing the countertops.

Ceiling white is cool and the walls are angled. I think the color change at the vault line will break the flow.

Here are some bad visualizations (White is hard to get right when trying to cover over another color on a visualization.

Just walls, trim and backsplash recolored to a warmer white - Ceiling a cooler white.

walls, trim, backsplash and ceiling recolored.

Add new counters

Add some art and new counter stools to bring in your favorite color.

If I were developing the color palette for this home I would start with the colors that are going to stay. (My choice would be the floors and cabinets, but I won't be the one living there).

Then I would determine the colors that the owner loves. You will be happier surrounded by the colors you love than the colors someone else loves. (I randomly selected a blue/green/gray)

Then I would decide on the neutral color family and the aesthetic the homeowner is leaning toward. You have already stated that you like the warm white aesthetic.

Once I knew which direction I was going I would pick countertops first, then backsplash then paint color. The reason I would do it in this order is that there are fewer countertop selections than there are backsplash selections and the countertop is the most expensive of the three.

Backsplash is the second because it is more expensive than paint and has fewer options.

Last is paint. It is the least expensive and easiest to alter. If Simply White is a bit too yellow you can pick a color that is just a bit more neutral. If Dove White feels to gray you can add warmth. If you want something between Dove White and Simply White you can ask the paint store to mix a can of 50/50 Dove White and Simply White.

BTW - you do not have to buy Quartz or Granite countertops. Corian or Formica are perfectly acceptable choices if you are stretching your budget.

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/modern-laminate-design

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/most-popular-countertops-2017-formica

Wow thank you so much Jennifer for your time and these suggestions!

I think you're right about the counters... I'll look into these options. Thanks again!

I agree with NOT painting the cabinets. Jennifer gave you great ideas and Beth gave you specifics and good photos. Keeping your cabinets the dark wood lets you use the money towards the other elements - tile for backsplash, paint for walls (and possibly the island) and new countertops.

The best way to decide is to price out new countertops (take measurements with you) and see if you can afford to change them. That would be a real game changer. Don’t rule out materials you haven’t seen in a while - today’s Formica is not your grandmother’s. Scour the stone yards and other stone sellers. (Keep one door in your car so you can stop and look if you unexpectedly find a place that does countertops. )

A professional cabinet paint job is thousands of dollars. A DIY seems cheaper but won’t last. Get all your information for each item and use your budget towards the best outcome without changing the cabinets.

I love the above examples of dark, matte tiles without contrasting grout. Here’s an option that would look very handsome with the dark wood cabinets.

I would paint the upper and lower cabinets the same and your Island have that the same color if you're picking the iron color you could paint that too that color that will look stunning

Lisa, I like this one. (with diff island chairs! )

You could just paint the island (and do the batten trim) and look for a remnant piece to go on top. Shouldn't cost you much to tackle all of that.

and since the cabs are so tall, use pulls instead of knobs. look at the Knurled brass handles

You can find these on AliExpress for 80% cheaper! I've ordered plenty of times from that site and it's amazing the money you save.

Are these the pendants you like? (they come in diff colors too) I like it.

have you priced out painting? it's not a DIY project unless you have lots of time to do it correctly. I'm actually a pro at refinishing wood pieces and have done kitchen cabs for 3 other people. For my own kitchenI paid a company to do it. it's so much work I swore I'd never do it myself again.

I had a lot of work done on this space. Some I did myself (like the word work on the hood/window and a coffee bar you can't see)

If you have any questions, let me know!

Thank you all so much, I really appreciate the feedback and suggestions!

Beth, definitely new island chairs -- I love ones you chose. The ones in the photo are the current owner's, so they'll be gone! Thank you so much again for these points and suggestions. The kitchen reno you did is INCREDIBLE. I can't even believe that's the same kitchen!!

May I ask, what was your process of renovating the space above your stove? It looks like in your before photo you had a microwave over the stove, I'm guessing with a fan and filter underneath; that's what we have in our new home too. Did you install a range hood that funnels cooking fumes outside instead?

Lisa,

the OTR micro was vented to outside. i bought a new vent insert and had the hood built around it. the guys who did the painting made it. I trimmed it out w/walnut.

for a built in micro, read the specs for rough in. This one needeed a 24" depth. I tried a spot in the island, but it wasn't quite deep enough. this lower drawer area was perfect

the carpenter finished the opening after removing those two drawers. it's the GE Profile w/the trim kit. fits perfectly. I thought about going above, but I use that upper for cereal and stuff.

bending down doesn't bother me. we don't use it that often.