By cabinets, above, I do mean cabinets and doors: all visible surfaces.

@livesmall that's part of the decision process I'm trying to solve. I've thought painting because I can do that but staining a darker wood would be nice too! Either way, I will be refacing the cabinets and replacing the hardware. I'm excited to move forward and hope to make progress before deploying. Thank you everyone for your help! I'll post pictures of the finished product.

Does anyone think that a warm toned, lighter gray would look nice and provide enough of a contrast? Here's a close up of the granite and I've gone pretty neutral in decor, still adding pieces that haven't been finished but I think I'm wanting contrast without staining.

I was going to also suggest a warm gray :) Some ideas are SW Repose gray, Mindful gray, Useful Gray, and Agreeable gray.

My house was built in 1984 and had custom cabinets. The prior owners must not have used the kitchen because the cabinets are still in wonderful shape and they are made of real wood, not composites and laminates. I love my cabinets (Notice the small cabinets where there are normally just backsplash) and they will have to fall apart before I replace them. My husband has talked about having them painted but I'm really hesitant to do anything to something that is good quality and still works so well. We've been here 9+years and they are still going strong. If you are blessed with good quality cabinets think twice about replacing them. The stuff they sell today, especially in the big box stores are not going to last and hold up as well.

Your kitchen is very nice, except those knobs.... sorry! :)
Cabs are not so old gold......ok.

I would only change the knobs- to something more modern & add pulls also. I would get rid of the beige paint & curved wood. I think the only thing detracting from the kitchen are all those knobs!

I'm assuming that your current appliances are in good shape and you don't wish to replace them. If this is the case, your refrigerator should also be black. I would have the cabinets painted a light cream color and change out the hardware to match your faucet, which looks to be an oiled bronze. The only molding I would remove are the curved detail above the sink and frige opening. I would then place a large low pile area rug in an abstract pattern in the center of your kitchen floor........maybe in neutrals, browns and a bright blue. Don't worry about the up keep of a rug in the kitchen. I've always used them and they make a wonderful unexpected statement and are very easy to care for.

Your kitchen has good bones to work with. Can you replace the black microwave and black oven? I like the idea of lighter cabinets and new hardware.

Here is where I would head. A softened cream, perhaps with a pewter-glazed paint job on the cabinets would freshen up the space. Granted, you have black appliances in the mix. But the oiled-bronze finish on the faucet fixture and hardware on the laundry door is lovely. Repeat the finish on your cabinet hardware, tying in the appliances by repeating the contrast throughout the space. It seems the window frames in the dining area are of a similar contrasting finish as well! The valance moldings date the space a bit. Maybe splurge at some point by incorporate a lighting fixture in that area. A tip--be sure to "test" the perspective cabinet color next to the trim color. Take care that it does not appear "dingy" next to the bright white trim!

The first pic (with red sink) is the kitchen in the home I bought 2 1/2 yrs ago. The listing said the kitchen was updated. HA! I didn't take the doors off OR prime/sand them! I pitched the outdated hardware...white-washed the cabinets...washed over lightly with the pale gray-blue...rubbed just a hint of Martha Stewart Vintage Gold Metallic Paint (10oz jar at Home Depot), and put a coat of low-sheen polyurethane over the top of it. Add new hardware from MyKnobs.com (I suggest for you the Schaub Select-Olde Kent Collection Dome Pull). For your kitchen...White wash with a cream color first...then wash with a coppery tan. Finish with the Martha Stewart rub around the door pull areas and hinges. Finish with your poly. My inspiration came from a picture of a dresser in a magazine. NOTE: I textured (texture paint from Home Depot) the walls and painted a dark gray. Small Kitchen...Warm Space! I also painted all 'sides' of the cabinets to match the wall, to give them a 'built-in' (faux, of course!) look. I'm on a budget, and have to do things myself. I bought the floor tile and saved to have someone install it. I did save a LOT of money by ripping out the old 4x4 white tiles (really?!?) and subfloor myself. 2 days of a crowbar and hammer...5 days body recovery!

please get rid of the cucina plaque over your stove and faux finish a tile as a back splash since you are on a buget. tape in some 1/8 wide grout lines then go other it with a motled glase in a color that works then pull of tape it will look really good, remeber pull off the tape while the paint is wet this way it will give you a clean line.

You are fortunate to have a wonderful large kitchen which still has great counter tops and (from what I can see) appliances. The one thing that sticks out--cabinets. Don't tear them out, instead, simply paint them. If you aren't a DIYer, you can hire someone to do it. Pick a color which will complement the counter tops, appliances and flooring. Add warmth with pops of color on the counters and in artwork.

Here's a Sherwin Williams 'read' on the countertop for color reference.

I like the oak cabinets. The only thing I would change is the hardware. I would replace the white knobs with some the color of the kitchen faucet.

I agree with Sharon Harris. I also have custom built oak cabinets that are now 27 years old. They are as strong today as when built and will last many many more years. Do not paint or replace them! The cheap cabinets made today will never replace these! KEEP your cabinets but replace the hardware. New hardware and decor can change the look of this kitchen.

We had very similar issues with our 1980's kitchen. We ended up painting the oak cabinets dove white from Benjamin Moore and replaced hardware. Also added new floor and lighting. Extremely pleased with final look.

Have you considered removing the cabinets above the dishwasher? It would give the whole area a much more open look, and give you more oversight as to what's happening in the family room...

As an avid reader of Houzz and other similar e-zines, I am of the opinion that those oak cabinets will be back in style sooner than you think. The colors of your kitchen currently harmonize very well. I would replace the knobs with oil-rubbed bronze. and leave things alone for a year. "Warm" metals are coming back in and that means wood finishes aren't far behind. Unless you intend to flip your house immediately, do less rather than more for the time being and see what you can live with.

joseunique, I think you're commenting on the wrong kitchen......your comment seems to be on somebody's "after". The kitchen all are giving suggestions to is the kitchen that is highlighted at the top of the page.

Hi,
I recently purchased a condo with the same 80's style cabinets and made it my first priority to get rid of them.
What I did was I removed all the doors and stripped the cabinets painting them extra white. Then had shaker doors made some with glass and refaced cabinets leaving the bottom shelf for art glass etc. This opened up the kitchen completely but as you can see I went even further by installing glass backsplash and black Quartz counter tops.
Hope my upgrade inspired you in someway....just think of your upgrade as a canvas painting and your going to look at it everyday.
Bernie Antonio
Canyon Country, Calif.

You could easily paint or stain the cabinets. If it was me doing the work, I'd either paint them a nice creamy white, or would stain them to a dark/rich mahogany color. Either would looks really nicel with the neutral floors and backsplash.

Both kitchens you've saved to your idea book have white painted cabinets. Paint your cabinets the same color white as the doors and trim in your kitchen. Unless you're planning on painting all the doors and moldings in your house, you want the cabinets to match the rest of the trim in your house. Otherwise the color of the cabinets or the color of your trim will look like a mistake. You can't have true white doors and trim everywhere in your house, and have creamy white cabinets... It just will look wrong, and you'll never like it.

If you want to add some interest to the upper cabinets, remove the centers of some of the doors and replace them with glass inserts--don't forget to paint the insides of the cabinets if you add glass doors. I'm not a fan of just removing doors for open cabinets. They always look like the doors were removed rather than looking planned.

Depending on your budget, you could replace all the doors with a style that matches the gorgeous door in one of your pictures. If budget is tight, you could get the same effect using beadboard wallpaper in the centers of the doors before you paint. I did that three years ago, and they still look great.

Change the hardware on your cabinets to match the rest of hardware.

Then accessorize. You will honestly like the way it looks a lot more once you've added your personality to it.

Good luck! Can't wait to see what you do.

phoebe3, I completely agree with you! Oak cabinets are coming back (and so is shiny brass!) A hardware change will make a huge difference in this lovely kitchen. The bones are terrific!

I love all the cabinet space in your new kitchen. If it were my kitchen I would add some moulding along the soffit at the top of the cabinets. I would paint the upper cabinets and new moulding a creamy vanilla color. (Oh yeah...those pulls must go.) Then I would add a brownish glaze to the upper cabinets. The bottom cabinets would be a blue/gray color and also glazed with the same glaze as the upper. Perhaps some corbels (painted vanilla ) to make the cabinets above the dishwasher look like a separate piece of furniture. If you go that way I would cut out the fronts of the upper cabinet doors and add in beveled diamond glass. I would paint remaining space on the soffit between the current moulding and new moulding to add some color. Good luck and looking forward to seeing your before and after pictures!

Unless you absolutely hate the wood, leave the cabinets. Definitely change the hardware. Bring the kitchen to life by painting it a color that you love, THAN if you are still not satisfied, change the cabinet color. Remember, once you stain or paint, you cannot go back.

we just had our maple kitchen cabinets painted sherwin williams antique white with a chocolate glaze.

Our house was built in 1986 with similar oak wood cabinets. We sprayed the cabinets a creamy white and added new hardware. The paint is super durable and washes much easier now. If you want to paint your cabinets spraying at least the doors is an affordable option.

mix a glase thats close to the floor color and go over the cabinets, this way the floor will blend and work with the granite and give the cabinets a fresh look. also change the hardware to a handle rather than a konb. you can use an elngated back plate on the drawers to give you that elongated look, and still use a knob. as far as the hardware on the doors use the knob hole as your first hole than go up and drill a second one for a handle. lets paint the ceiling in a darker color to bring it down a bit and let us focus on the cabinets.

sgoody17,
How did you get inside our house to take those photos?! :-) Seriously, it looks like my kitchen, down to the appliance placement and the shiny pulls, except that we still have cream-colored Formica countertops.
I (and others, I am sure) would love to see an "after" picture!!
My husband loves oak and brass (I know, the horror!), but I think I can convince him that new pulls (oil-rubbed bronze) and another countertop make sense. ;-)
I was also thinking of mimicking the door pattern on the ends of the island and the sides of the cabinets that are in view. Has anyone tried that? Any advice?

Another photo depicting cream cabinets with white trim, just in case you're uneasy. Might help you decide if it's for you! Great space to work with :)

To keep things as cheap as possible, i would just paint the uppers a cream colour and restain the lowers a dark brown, and change the pulls to oil rubbed as suggested earlier.... Try finding used pulls at architectural clearing store. You may find the paint and stain at the store too. My local habitat for humanity is fantastic for that.

We were faced with the same issue. We decided to paint the cabinets, which entailed deglossing, putting on a primer and then went with a slightly off-white color called Falling Snow. We also have a sofit and painted it the same color. It pulled things together.

This kitchen really isn't bad at all. Everything is neutral. I think if you change the knobs and drawer pulls it would have have a big impact already. Second most important thing would be the appliances. If you had stainless steel appliances and new knobs this kitchen would look pretty darn good already.

Pretty good looking kitchen overall. Change out the hardware- that will make it look so much better. If the appliances are in good working order just leave them- I don't know why everyone seems to hate black appliances so much? The only thing I don't really like all that much is the backsplash....not exactly sure why? I think some pops of color needs to be added as well for some interest.

Paint the cabinets a medium gray. Really want to spice it up how about in a gloss? I would love to see a backsplash change but sometimes an accent tile can be adhered to the surface of an existing tile. Add a great carpet and maybe the purchase of an island on wheels.

Oh yes and change the hardware!

If I you could afford to I'd purchase new cabinet doors from someplace like Cabinetsnow.com. You can purchase new doors for $30-50 each. A shaker style door painted a creamy white or grey would look great with the granite.

Actually the doors will look very updated with just a nice coat of paint.

Just add 2 doors glass for pretty display & can add lights.

My comments reflect a lot of people before me: I would paint the top cabinets cream, take down the cabinets over the dishwasher and put up shelves. You will be able to put things away easily and add texture and color. I'd also add glass to the uppers on either side of the refrigerator and light them. Since this is an interior space, it will add depth and light. I could not/would not keep the black appliances. I'd have to go stainless with all the appliances, even if I had to do it on Craigslist. This photo isn't exactly what I was thinking about, but they've added a crown, as well. They have a ton of texture.

3boysmom2013:
LOVE what you did with your kitchen! Great transformation.

Jennifermcarson, we suggest you consider wire mesh or perforated cabinet insets. They could transform the kitchen while allowing you to retain the floors, countertops and backsplash. Please visit our Houzz Ideabooks for examples and our website, www.mcnichols.com, for product information.

What great ideas. Thanks to you Jennifermcarson!!!!! I am virtually redesigning my 1950's kitchen! Maybe 2015-2016! My husband would agree with phoebe3!! :) Can't wait to see what your decisions will be made. Best of Luck!

We love restoration and revamp stories like these! Our grilles and fretwork offers a beautiful, lightweight solution if you're interested in see-through cabinet doors. We've provided a few photos for inspiration. Learn more about our cabinetry work and get more ideas by visiting http://residential.tableaux.com/cabinetry/ Looking forward to seeing your final upgrade!

make some of the cabinet frosted glass ...by She She Kouture

We started with the dated kitchen on the left. Purchased RTA cabinets and put them together ourselves to save big $$$$. We chose a lighter look since our kitchen had to remain small.

Shaker cabinets with nickel handles.

In the process right now with my client...old oak cabinets updated...we added extra wood trim above all cabinets and moved microwave onto a shelf in the island..if no island you can purchase a smaller microwave add put it into a upper cabinet. You will need an electrician to add a plug inside the cabinet. Added a hood over range and had a carpenter in case it with decorative wood and molding. They have now all been painted with Benjamin Moore color CALM....next step Quartz counter and subway glass backsplash. We used Benjamin Moore ASHLEY GRAY on the walls.