I think that you need to decide the mood/style you want to create and then your colors will be easier to choose. Do you want a lighter, more casual look or do you prefer more drama? Modern or rustic? Your floors seem to have strong red/orange tones in them. Are you wanting to play that up or down? Do you expect to move in the next 5-10 years?

My inclination would also be the dark granite but then I love black and white together in a kitchen. Also, I think the dark granite would be easier to work with if you decide to change up your walls a few years from now. The light one seems to have lots of blue and gray and won't play as well with as many colors as the dark.

As to paint color, I'd probably choose the backsplash first and then pull from that. Again, the backsplash is going to depend on what look you're trying to achieve and how adventurous you are. Many people will suggest white subway tiles but I like things with more pizzazz and color.

Hopefully, answering some of these questions will get you started and make your choices easier to make. Good luck and keep posting.

# counter. Do you want to match wall with backsplash? Then top. Or go bold! Green, red.

I like the lighter granite but am partial as that's almost exactly what I picked out for my kitchen. Also agree on the top blue color

I like the black countertop
I like the grey for the wall

I am leaning towards the black countertop. And am between the blue or gray paint. We are kind of going for a transitional/industrial look (our furniture and lamps/accessories are stained reclaimed wood and steel -see pic). We are just a little concerned the black will clash with the wood furniture. Anyone with more design experience have any advice regarding that? Also. We plan on being in this house 5-10 years, not our forever home so we don't want to be too out of the box so it still has good resale potential.

I think the black will be much better with an industrial look than the lighter grey pictured. The pattern is too busy to me for that style. Also, the black will be better with the wood. Copper is a great metal to go with wood and that could be really nice as a backdrop. Lowe's has a line of thermoplastic backsplashes in copper that might be worth a look. Some have a tin tile look that may be a bit Victorian but there are others that could work in well with your industrial style. Here's a link that you might want to look over. http://www.lowes.com/Search=copper+fantasy+thermoplastic?storeId=10151&langId=-1&catalogId=10051&N=0&newSearch=true&Ntt=copper+fantasy+thermoplastic#!

We just did dark granite...and while it looks good with our golden oak (don't shudder, I know, we kept the golden oak cabinets)....dark granite shows every streak or bread crumb which falls on it. Just an FYI about dark granite.

I do not like dark counters. I picked them for my kitchen. Are these the only 2 choices you have? I hate mine as it makes it dark in the kitchen & they are hard to see anything on them to know if they are clean. Mine are a multicolored dark granite-like which you cannot even place hot pans on. I would try to go with a marble-look quartz if you have that choice. It does not look like you have a huge kitchen so anything to lighten it you will appreciate. For hardware you can bring in the dark, such as oil rubbed bronze. I have that & I love it. I don't care what anyone says, you cannot go wrong using subway tiles for backsplash. You can change the look by using a side by side horizontal or an end to end vertical application. You can even get fancy & go chevron. Go with either white, creamy white or a similar color as the countertops. You will never regret it. Be sure to install good under counter lighting & use LED as it is cooler. lasts 20,000 hours & will soon be what everyone is using. You can even use it at the toe kick, above the crown of the cabinets and in your pendant lights. See Ikea.com for details & choices. Definitely go with the blue, you'll love it & can accessorize with almost anything you want. Have fun & enjoy your new kitchen. Profit from some of my mistaken choices.

The black is fine with wood any shade.

I think if you want the kitchen to seem bigger and airy I would go with the lighter granite and paint color of your choice, just make sure the paint color and the granite won't clash!

lighter granite may absorb darker spills like red wine, so i would go with darker one
as for wall lighter color in the middle looks good

Gray ,gray ,gray !!! No on the blue...not industrial

Finally have some updated pictures. We are still trying to decide on a backsplash for the wall above the sink/stove. Any suggestions?

Gray glass tile

Very nice choice! I'm usually in favor of lots of contrast, but I like the calm effect you have going on. I'd go neutral on the backsplash, and then pop everything with orange accessories to play up the blue and tie in the floors.

I always laugh when I see pics of a half dozen color patches on walls and then the word "HELP"! Been there, done that!

First of all, consider the lighting in the room and the size of it--those are key to color. For example: a small dark room will look like a dungeon if you paint it a dark color. A larger room with adequate natural and fixture lighting can usually take a darker color.

Second, look at all the colors on the wall, which do you hate the most? Cross that one off the list immediately. Which one do you absolutely love the most out of all the colors? That goes at the top of the list.

I like your kitchen updates, see what I like for your glass tile.

Light granite