I would rather see the cabinets in a warm white, maybe with a bit of antiquing on them. I think it will keep your space feeling more open and brighter. I think all black cabinets on the bottom will make it feel awfully heavy in there. You can sort of test it out by taping black garbage bags over the fronts of the lower cabinets everywhere, and see what you think. Birch with frosted glass is pretty, but sounds kind of modern in feel - is that where you are headed?

My first thought was also to eliminate those cabinets over the sink area, but if storage is an issue, what about replacing the center panels of all the doors with seeded or textured glass? If you could change out the shelving to glass as well and install lighting in there, they could be an real asset, but still not feel as bulky as the solid cabinets do now.

Because you don't have a ton of floor space, I would not want to add a free-standing piece of closed storage - I think it will crowd the kitchen.

Countertop, I would lean more to a charcoal or other grey, rather than blue.

I would take down the little curvy piece by the window to clean up the space. Is it possible to open up the soffit area above the cabinets on the wall, and have open display/storage up there?

I agree with the suggestions Les made. Are you trying to go modern or more traditional?

I'm sure you'll get lots of responses and I'm not very good at this but I'm going to try. I also wonder if you could open up that soffit area above the cabinets. I remember seeing in some Ikea catalogue in the past where they had lots of baskets above the cabinets for extra storage (storing stuff you rarely use).

Also, how much wall space do you have where the pretty bookcase sits now? I have no idea what your opinion is on Ikea stuff but a friend of mine (also lacking storage space & $$$) used Ikea wall cabinets as a narrow buffet. That way she had extra storage (and with doors on the units so she could hide her stuff). Maybe something similar could work for you (you could perhaps do glass doors to show off your dishes).

I would also get rid of that curvy piece above the sink and get rid of the cabinets above the sink.

What about changing out the hardware to something either nickle or stainless steel?

Astrid

I think there is a lot you can do. I like the bead board in your cabs.

Taking down the cabs over the sink is a great idea. It will open up your whole kitchen plus give you a hanging our area.

I am not sure you need to change the upper cabs. If you paint the lowers black (another great idea), why not paint the uppers white and glaze them. New hardware (this includes hinges) will further update the cabs. You can have a panel cut out from some of your uppers and insert glass for a more today look.

I would add crown moldings to the ceilings. This way the soffits will get a new look too. I might even suggest you get a little creative with additonal moldings at the soffits areas.

Why not keep dishes in the blue wall cabinet?. You can also change you storage around and keep the dishes on the opposite side.

I think it would be a good idea to remove the curly molding from in front of the window. It would open up the window more. I am not sure you need a pendant

There is a company many people use on the kitchen forum called Galaxy Sinks for SS. Everyone raves about it. Very reasonable and good quality. I never used them but they were a serious consideration (until I saw a Franke Orca sink).

I really like Ceasarstone. It doesn't have to be blue. It can be black, gray, white. Actually, white would be stunning with black lower cabs.

I shopped ebay hard for the faucet I decided to get and really lucked out. I would suggest the same to you. Just find what you like and keep looking for the best price.

Definitely pendants over the sink area. They don't have to be expensive. HD and Lowes has a nice selection. Do three. To save $$ you can hang them from track which would only require one box.

These are just a few suggestions. You are thinking in the right direction.

We rennovated our brand new kitchen when we moved into our brand new TH (yep, took the whole kitchen apart on day #1) I learned a lot from the kitchen forum. I wish I would have found it sooner. None the less, we have a beautiful galley kitchen.

Personally, I love black cabinets but I agree with Les, the first thing that hit me was that your cabinets would be gorgeous in a soft creamy white with some glazing. It would look so nice with your plate shelves and blue cupboard, which I love. Maybe replace the hardware with ORB or brushed nickel bin pulls and knobs (I have a great online resource for high quality but inexpensive pulls if you need one.) The counters would look great in a slate gray or black.

If you can handle the loss of storage, removing the cabinets over the sink would really open up the space, but I really like the beadboard detailing on your upper cabinets so if it were my kitchen, I wouldn't replace all of them.

I can't wait to see the after pictures!

Here's what we did in our small kitchen (I'll try to get some pictures taken and posted later -- I'm making soup right now .....)

We added a tile floor in that old-worlde tumbled marble look (neutral colors)

We painted the basic suburban medium-brown cabinets in high gloss white (no hardware on cabinets but thats fine for now)

Added under-cabinet hockey-puck-style lighting.

We left the original white tile countertops and white tile backsplash. ((funny thing is that I just read that white tile counters on their way back -- reminds me of very old worlde shop counters ......))

Took down the hanging overhead cabinet -- and added pendant lamps.

Added plain old white appliances. Nothing fancy.

Added black accents like painted bar stools, painted kitchen island and my black china cabinet.

Walls are done in a washed treatment that mimics an old stone wall (and matched the tones on the tile floor for a cohesive look)

DH cut out a portion of the breakfast bar and created wine storage -- and thats a whole story in itself! LOL!

Soooooooo -- thats the whole story -- not even a re-do worth posting about compared to the gorgeous kitchens here -- but somehow its worked out for us ......

DH says he would take down those hanging cabinets (the same thing he did here) right away to open up the space ..... and add the hanging pendant lamps .....

Like the idea of the cabinets in the creamy white .... I do like the idea of the black island or china cabinet along the wall. Yes -- take down that curvy piece over the sink .....

OS, is that a window next to the backdoor? Does it open to your mudroom? Could you eliminate it and use the space to create a built-in pantry?

I love your idea of getting rid of the cabinets above the sink.

Wonderful ideas, everybody--thank you SO much!!!!

Okay, I could go with warm white lower cabinets--for sure. Not sure about the glazing part--especially since it would be me doing it. For the upper cabinets, les--I like the idea of seeded glass MUCH better. I said birch because I really like it, but you might be right that it would be too modern-looking, and I would really like to stay within the "feel" of the house--which is older and has an older decor--so maybe white upper cabinets, too? And a blue-grey countertop sounds like a winner, as well. I, too, want to remove the curvy part--yuck--and open up those soffits. I do have some nice baskets, bristlingacres, that would look nice up there. :) About IKEA--no, I'm not a fan, in general--but, like you, I have a friend who did the buffet thing with IKEA cabinets and it looks fantastic! The only concern on my part would be that it might be too modern-looking. If I go with all white cabinetry, maybe replacing the bookcase with a white panty with seeded doors, to match the upper cabinets? I can't really use the bookcase for dishes since it get too dusty too quickly in our kitchen--you know how old houses are. :) Teacats: the idea of under-cabinet lighting is grand: I think that's a "go." I also like the idea of crown molding, especially since there is crown molding in every other room in the house.

We won't be able to do this for a year or so, but we are DEFINITELY going to do it. Thank you so much again for all the ideas. I will be back, at the appointed time, for a little hand-holding. :)

natal: yes, it's a casement window. I love that window, because it helps give a more open feel to the kitchen, but I also like your idea--that might really work--my only concern would be that there's not much space between that window and the island.

natal: oops--I forgot--there's a radiator beneath that window--so I guess that idea is out. :(

We took out some cabinets similiar to yours when we took out half a wall between our kitchen and dining room and created a large eat in kitchen.

To live with less space I moved things that I don't use all the time to a cabinet in the dining room or to a storage room in the basement.

We also store a lot of food in the storage room in the basement since we tend to buy at Costco.

Ikea has some products for storing your dishes in lower cabinets which might be handy.

Huh. I know my friend's IKEA kitchen cabinets had a more old-fashioned beadboard look to them (hers were white) which looked nice and not too modern. I can't find them online though.
Astrid

Ditto the white cabinets, but put some actual color on the walls so you don't just have a white-on-white-on-white hospitalish-looking room! (Doesn't need to be a strong color - I think that same yellow you used in your bedroom would look downright fabulous with the blue-gray lino. I love yellow for kitchens, especially ones that get morning light, because it's so cheery when you drag yourself in to make your coffee at oh-dark-thirty in the morning!) I have a thing about glazing though, too often it makes the cabinets look dirty IMO, and I think black would be too heavy for the small kitchen as well as blending your appliances in a bit too much. You paid for stainless, would be pointless to have it fade away! Having had both soffits above the cabinetry and open space, I would actually rather have soffits - it's a PITA to keep all the stuff displayed up on top the cabinets clean, it accumulates such sticky, nasty gunky dust and is just one more d@mn thing to clean! (We have highish ceilings in this house and we plan to go double-decker with little cabs above the main ones to take up that danged space.) Crown molding on the soffit itself looks just fine, of course it's not like I can find a picture when I want one. :-)

Do you have objections to laminate for counters? They're much less expensive than solid surface like Caesarstone, and there are some soapstone looks that I think would be just wonderful. I wish I could find the box with all my samples in it so I could give you specific names!

How about checking the BMRC downtown for some upper cabinets that you could put where the little bookcase currently is? I think it would look great to have those painted black, perhaps with white porcelain or glass knobs (and black ones on the white cabs). IMO they wouldn't need to match the existing ones, just be stylistically compatible, and if they're ones where you could remove the center panels to replace with something else like an obscured glass, so much the better. Since you clearly ;-) need a good bit more storage space even if you didn't take down the hanging cabs and it goes double if you do, I wouldn't necessarily go with the buffet look - more counterspace to accumulate clutter! - but more of the pantry idea. To make a more unfitted look you could raise the cabinets on a plinth and place halved bun feet on the front bottom. If you did want to go Ikea, folks over on Ikeafans say that the Fagerland door paints up very nicely. The current Ikea style with the beadboard doors is the Stat, which looks a little peculiar to me because the beadboard is not recessed, the "boards" are actually molded onto the surface and raised up. (They changed the design several years ago, it used to be a proper recessed panel but I guess that was too expensive to build.)

Pendants over the island would be great for adding additional interest. I'm not sure I agree that the island is big enough for three, I think two schoolhouse-style (example) would look snazzy. Replace the counter stools with vintage-style chrome ones for a bit of extra zip and to give a little reference to the age of your house.

Ok girl, the way you were talking I expected to scroll down and see this horrible, awful kitchen that was going to make me lay down and vomit. It is not bad at all!!!! It's good!!! Lots of good points! You have great appliances to start! The doors and trim and window casings are all fresh and new! I agree with Les on the warm white cabinets with some glazing. Do you already have ORB hinges in there? It sort of looks so. I think if you paint the cabinets and get some new lighting you'd be shocked at what an update you have! I think that maybe some fancier bar stools would be nice too with pretty backs. I cannot tell what the counters look like, but if you have any money left my Mom recently replaced her with laminate counter from lowes in a sort of faux granite that actually look really nice. You can also add some corbels to the underhang of the counter with the barstools for less than 50$ and make it look more custom.

Ok go get to work!

Okay, I have to go against the grain here and say that black bottom cabs would not make the kitchen look smaller and would look great with your appliances. The lighter cabs on top would make the room look larger. The Black will make the room look warmer. You would have a great combo going.

Check out the kitchen forum before you do anything especially Organic Donna's Kitchen in her Condo. It's modern but you will get a pretty clear picture of what black looks like in a smaller space. The kitchen forum has so much information. The more you see the more ideas you will get.

If you can afford Ceasarstone, go for it.

There is so much potential in what you already have.

This looks waayyy to complicated for me! but please check my response to you on the other thread. That is not what I said.

Have you thought about taking down the wall between the dining room & kitchen? If you're handy, and it isn't a load-bearing wall, it isn't all that difficult, and it isn't all that expensive...more messy than anything. We did it and it makes a world of difference.

Here is how I picture your kitchen (see link below). I have my lower cabs stained black (and I love it) but if I was doing another kitchen it would be this one.

Here is a link that might be useful: my fave kitchen

Hi organic, I swear you're on every forum, girl! You have the *perfect* makings for a rustic cottage kitchen! Before starting the time consuming, tedious, not to mention, maybe-not-happy, task of painting the cabinets, do a wash over them. With the most pale shade of acrylic gray, use 3/4 paint to 1/4 water~apply with a brush to cabinets. Work in a lengthwise fashion, and do a section about 3' x 3' and immediately wipe off with a cloth. If it looks too heavy for you, wipe off more with a damp cloth. What the paint will do is fill in the grain of the wood, and take away some of the sheen, and give a more rustic look.

Take off all cabinet hardware, including the hinges, and spray paint in a gloss white.

Paint the blue bookcase a French blue, or very pale sage green, and ALSO the island the same shade. Add a couple of baskets to the bottom shelf of the bookcase, and purchase all the cream/white dishes it can hold from thrift stores. On the top, lean a floral picture(about 11" x 14"/from a thrift store)against the wall and next to it, a couple of white decorative pieces,like 2 birds, and maybe a candle on a pretty crystal dish or saucer.

You can probably paint the stools too, and decoupage the seat part with wallpaper or fabric~easy!

Find a floral wallpaper in a color of your choice, and paper the area between the two shelves on the wall, and the backsplash. You'll probably only need one double roll.

Buy one window panel in a pattern, check, or stripe that looks good with the wallpaper, and sheer it on a tension rod, lengthwise(in the side hem). After it's up, gather up the center and tie with a ribbon that matches the fabric. Don't bunch it too tightly, as you want the ends to cover the window. Leave about 8"s unbunched at the top, and retie the ribbon around the rod.

While you're at the thrift store looking for dishes, look for small floral pictures, small floral plates, or any small decorative item that can be hung on the flat soffit above the cabs. If you find something that has 'possibilities', but not the right color, you can repaint.

Look for a runner or a couple of small braided rugs, too. Your floors are good because you don't want perfect for cottage!

I'm sure I have more ideas, but will let you think on these for awhile. LOL

FWIW, I see a lot of white and wonder what white cabinets would do to the room. I'm not sure about black either

* Posted by budge1 (My Page) on Sun, Jan 20, 08 at 23:01

Here is how I picture your kitchen (see link below). I have my lower cabs stained black (and I love it) but if I was doing another kitchen it would be this one.

Here is a link that might be useful: my fave kitchen

I think something like that would work nice, the color (from what I see) is light & soft.

It looks like the person that did that kitchen is Susan Serra.. I'm almost positive she used to be on the rose forum. company info, yup. It even includes a blurb about her garden, which is beautiful.

Before starting the time consuming, tedious, not to mention, maybe-not-happy, task of painting the cabinets, do a wash over them. With the most pale shade of acrylic gray, use 3/4 paint to 1/4 water~apply with a brush to cabinets. Work in a lengthwise fashion, and do a section about 3' x 3' and immediately wipe off with a cloth. If it looks too heavy for you, wipe off more with a damp cloth. What the paint will do is fill in the grain of the wood, and take away some of the sheen, and give a more rustic look.

Love your ideas Patty!

Not my kitchen but I could see your cabinets done in a French gray, or a very soft pastel taupe. You can always do your bar stools in a darker gray, maybe a charcoal with blue undertones. I have mentioned this many times before but the prettiest smaller kitchen I have seen was done in taupe, a very pastel taupe and no glaze needed if you use that color, just paint. It looks very classy and gives it a look of aged elegance rather than a glaring white. I also think the soft gray kitchen cabinets are very elegant looking. I think I have looked at white cabinets so long in my own kitchen that I am becoming economic in my lust for white cabinets.

Forgot to mention this...

For baskets, Marshalls has a great selection, well my store anyway. I'm finishing up our laundry / mud room & kitchen. Over the washer / dryer I added a lot of lined baskets. I also found wicker "trunks" for the mud room, the larger so far is great to hold cases of water.

Target also has baskets, some on clearance; but they were way more expensive then Marshall's. I paid $12.99 for a basket at Marshall's that went for $35 at Target.

You got some great ideas, Organic! I do think that some black would look nice in the kitchen, especially with the color of the floor, but agree that it might close things in. I think an all white kitchen would be very suiting to the style of your home, but if you do a cupboard/pantry on the wall with the plates, I would consider a really distressed black, then do some black accents elsewhere in the kitchen.

I'm really wondering about that wall with the window on it? What's behind the wall? Is there a door on that wall also? You mentioned that you're hesitant to close up the window. How about installing a series of small transom size windows high up on the wall? It would look really nice and let let in. Another thought is using antique leaded glass. I have a powder room on my main floor. According to the plans it would have been windowless. But right behind it was a small passageway between the FR and LR with a patio door out to a sunporch. I had the builder install a frosted/leaded glass window high up on the wall in the powder room. No privacy issues, but it provides lovely filtered light from the sunporch. I had looked around for an antique but due to builder time pressures ended up using a new piece (actually the inset for an exterior door). It really looks great and we are so glad we did it. I think that wall could really add some storage space options for you. Could you get some better pictures of it?

Ooh, I like that kitchen budge 1 posted.

You have a dear house, OG. I would fancy the following:

1. paint the cabs white or a warm pale gray as in the posted kitchen

2. agree a little color on the walls would be pretty. Made a big difference in my white-cabinets kitchen.

3. add touches of black but not the cabinets (too massive for that small space)

4. very much agree with taking down the upper cabs above the island and adding pendants, adding storage elsewhere.

5. I'd go for a marble-y type of countertop vs blue

6. I love glass uppers and they make a room more open.

7. I think that wood soffit would be lovely painted.

Looks like you have a lot of options here.

I like Budge 1 pics and Demerons ideas. I am personally tired of seeing white kitchens. There are some lovely gray kitchens on the Finished Kitchen Forum Blog. A taupey gray would be pretty too. I've also recently seen a creamy sagey green. Very pretty and clean. There are other options besides white that are timeless.

Wood soffit can be made to look chic with added molding and paint.

I still stand by my views on black. I have used a lot of it in my last TH which was a lot smaller then my current home It's an elegant color.

Here is a link that might be useful: finished kitchen blog

Look at a color, Balboa Mist. I believe it is BM.

organic, what year was your home built? If it's pre-WWII, then I highly recommend the book "Bungalow Kitchens" by Jane Powell. Even if you're not doing a period kitchen, I think you will find it helpful. (And the title is a bit misleading, all kitchens before then looked pretty much the same, regardless of the style of house.)

This is Balboa Mist, the only picture of the wood trim I have that is that pastel taupe color. I apologize that it is a "people picture."

budge 1,(your favorite kitchen picture) Susan Serra, the kitchen designer, is a regular poster at GW Antique/Roses forums.

Patricia, that is a beautiful sandy color! I'm glad you were able to show us as I have read several times of this color you speak so highly of. I want to paint the maple cabs in our basement and this is going on the list! Very pretty! Just curious, what wall color is paired with your friends cabinets?

Good heavens--you people have the most amazing ideas!

johnmari: I love yellow, too, but I want this kitchen to be serene rather than retro (I think). Thank you for the link--we will definitely take a trip there when the time is right. And no, I'm not against laminate at all! If I can find a good one, it will definitely be in the running!

summiebee: I hadn't even thought of corbels for the overhang on the island. That is a stupendous idea!

jerseygirl: Thanks for the reference to Organic Donna's kitchen: super-nice. I will also check out the grey/taupe cabinets in the Finished Kitchens blog: thank you. :)

determined sammie: I like the idea of a kitchen opened up to an eating area, but that would eliminate the number of rooms in our house--which, in this area, would not be good for resale--especially in a tiny house like ours. :(

budge1: Thanks for the link. I really like the color of the cabinets--it's an adorable kitchen. Open-shelving probably wouldn't work for us because we have such little useable wall space. :(

patty_cakes: I'm on every forum??? Silly girl--just this one and the "SmallerHomes." :) Thank you so much for all of your well thought out ideas. Glazing the cabinets as they are won't work because there is some stain missing in sections. Gloss white, I think, won't work, either, because our dogs have a habit of wiping their faces on corners and I think they would be constantly dirty. The bookcase won't be there any more, because we'll be replacing it with a pantry cabinet, but I like the idea of both the cabinet and the island being in a French Blue. Perfect.

teeda: That wall has two casement windows and a door. I like the transom idea, but then we'd be talking money--lol--and we really have to keep the budget as small as possible on this kitchen re-do. Here's a better pic of that wall:

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Patricia: You know, I never even thought of a pale taupe or grey--which is strange, because one kitchen I found in a magazine did that and I decided--three years ago--that that's what I really wanted--and then promptly forgot about it. Thank you for reminding me: I think you're right that this would really be the best way to go for color on the cabinets. Are the mantel and wall painted the same color in your pic? Very nice. Do you think that color would go well with the floor pattern/colors?

{{gwi:1565480}}

bungalow_house: It's a 1938 cape. Thank you so much for the book title: I'll probably find a lot of cool ideas in there--most of which I probably won't be able to afford--lol--but maybe there will be some I can. :)

KMCG, she has a very pretty color which blends very well but I don't know what it is, it has the same color look but is a bit darker, more toward milked down cocoa. I hope that makes sense. LOL.

Organic, if your colors are showing true on my monitor, your countertops look a lot like hers and hers are not granite, but some formica that she found at one of those kitchen shows. She could well afford granite but because she likes to "redecorate" as far as color, she opted for formica that has a very similar look to what your countertop looks.

Patricia, that's my floor--lol!

I meant to say her countertops are very near what your picture is. I typed and did not proof. Her walls are very near the same color as her cabinets. The picture is in my house. I did copy her cabinet colors for my trim in the great room. My walls are a wheat color but they will be changed in spring when I repaint to a similar color to hers.

Organic, I could definately see the Balboa Mist with your floor. I did a search and it falls into the sand color category, which I can see in the swirls on your floor! As Patricia's friend has, a darker version of the same color on the walls would look smashing!

patricia: Do you happen to have a photo of her kitchen, by any chance???

kmcg85: I agree! You guys are being incredibly helpful, and I truly appreciate it. :)

Organic, aren't you on the 'conversations' side of HD also? Okay,so maybe 3 forums, which is about where i'm at...or 4. LOL

IMO, one thing to keep in mind is not to update to the point where the kitchen competes with the rest of the home. Try to keep the look of the same era, or as close as possible, so the spirit of the house itself is not lost. The kitchen budge1 posted would certianly work in your cape. A subway tile(white)would also fit in. LOVE your floor, and if it's in good condition, I would consider leaving it, and saving some money.

Patricia, i'm planing to paint the trim/walls in my new house a tan/taupe color. What color are your walls? I've been 'advised' they be either lighter or darker than the trim. As much as I love white trim in others homes, I just couldn't envision it in mine.

1- don't get rid of those pretty cabinets on top. I was admiring them and I pictured them in white. I think black on the bottom would be too much with the black appliances. You can cut out the background in the doors with a rotozip and replace with glass doors. that might look pretty. if you don't like that idea or the painting idea them how about changing the doors instead of replacing the whole cabinet? I just ordered doors and drawer fronts for my kitchen and the total was only $279, much better than new cabinets.

2- Organic and I have the same floor.

3- Did I read you were considering blue corian countertops? That sounds good to me. I did my countertops in tile, which admitendly some people don't like and it cost me less than $50.

I love your plate rails on the wall and that blue storage shelf. soooo cool!

Patty, they are toasted wheat now but I plan to paint them a sort of very light chocolate milk in spring. :) I like to paint! LOL

Organic, I don't have one. I wish I did. I will see if she will let me take one. Her house is really pretty, all really great antiques.

Organic, I could definately also see the Balboa Mist with your floor. Thank you Patricia for posting such a nice picture and the boy in it is adorable.

Budge, I so love that kitchen too. I have a snapshot of it or a similar one from a while back. Love the open shelving, but I'm just not sure how practical that is dust-wise ???

Organic, I can so picture that style and serene color or one like Patricia has posted. Very nice with your flooring, too.

I also love the open kitchen to look at but not for me to live in since I like closed cabinets in case I do not have time to make them real neat and they are good to keep out dust.