I would try to remove the very upper cabinets and the the cabinets over the peninsula. Remove the soffit trim. Then paint everything and replace the hardware--bin pulls would look great on these cabinets. Don't know what your style is, but I could see these easily going towards cottage/farmhouse stye. Good luck!

You are probably going to get a ton of ideas from here. What is your style? For me I'd love to play with your kitchen and do some rustic add ons. New hinges and pulls.

Do not know how the trim is attached, but that would be my first remove and put new at top only. It looks like the trim around the cupboards by window is actually part of the box frame and at top cupboards too. The trim is the only thing that jumps out at me. If you found a good carpenter, they could shear the trim next to the box frames. On the other hand if you are into country, painting all would certainly be fun and lighten everything up.

Agree about removing the the cupboards hanging over the extension. But I really like the rest all the way to the ceiling. Are those wood shelves or covered with paper. I'd make them wood, sort of like them there.

Many here have have painted theirs with great results. Am going to enjoy other's thoughts.

Paint them and add bin pulls or vintage glass knobs. Painted, I think they would say cottage rather than outdated.

Am I the only one that likes the cabinets?

If it were my kitchen, I'd get rid of the popcorn ceiling, get new countertops, sink and appliances. Put in a dishwasher.

Since you can't replace cabinets, the first thing I will advise is work with what you have. They appear to be well made, solid, in very good condition for that style, so make them the best they can be. Are they dated with all that little curly trim - of course they are, but make the most of it. I would not start removing anything except maybe the ones over the peninsula if it helps open up the room.

I would definitely go in the cottage/farmhouse directions as someone else mentioned. Paint and new hardware is going to be your best friend here. A nice creamy white would be nice; others may say paint them a nice soft cottagy looking color - either would be OK based on the overall look you are going for. There is lots of great information on how to CORRECTLY paint your cabinets here. If you choose that route, do your research. Prep is important!! If you google "vintage kitchen make-overs" or "country kitchen make-overs" you will get tons of inspiration.

Tile floor looks good - but monitors can be deceiving. If budget allows, a new counter will make a world of difference. If you can't afford high end, there are tons of reasonable laminates out there.

If the entire house has those popcorn ceilings, you probably don't want to "go there" with removing.

Come up with a plan for the BIG PICTURE (paint color for walls and ceilings, color for cabinets, whether you are going for a new counter, look at other accessories you may be using) and go from there.

Your kitchen has lots of potential!

Tuesday

ITA with Tuesday in every way except the popcorn ceilings . . .even if the whole house has them, I say remove them, even if it's one room at a time.

I think those cabinets are adorable!

I'd also face the sides with beadboard if you are painting them white. If you like modern and can remove the wavy moulding, you could gel stain them dark for a modern, slab door look.

I guess I should have probably mentioned I'm really wanting to lean away from the cottage look. I want a more updated modern feeling kitchen. I know it's going to be some work but it's worth it :) As for the countertops, I plan to paint them as well! I found this wonderful idea while googling painted countertops http://solovelycreations.blogspot.com/search/label/kitchen%20projects ...So that is whats going to be done w/those..I'm really excited about that! Also, eventually we definitely are going to replace appliances w/stainless. I'm kinda thinking of going dark brown on the cabinets w/ brushed nickel hardware? Suggestions?

Also how hard is it to remove molding if able to? Same for cabinets, whats the process on that? Thanks!

Another idea for your countertops is Rustoleum Countertop Transformations.

The decorative portions of the cabinets appear to be integral to the doors closing properly. Also, the cabinets over the peninsula appear to be high enough not to impede viewing the other room. I agree that you need to work with what you have unless you are going to gut the kitchen to redo to a modern appearance. The other room seems to be quite dark, so painting the kitchen cabinets to an off-white/creamy white that goes well with the floor tile and perhaps painting what you can in the other room in the same color will lighten up the entire space. Would definitely replace cabinet knobs/pulls/hinges. Also recommend removing the vertical blind over the slider.

You have the most perfect set up for a quaint cottage feel so if it were me, I'd paint the cabinets a soft cottage white and distress them just a tad around the edges. I would also change out the hinges and handles but replace the handles with something catchy and whimsical. Then I'd put either some bead board or white subway tiles in for a back splash. I'd change the counters to butcher block (which is very affordable at Ikea) bring in some pretty red cottage accents with some blues and greens thrown in. I'd also splurge on some cute gingham curtains which is my favorite print. I can see it all in my head and it is so darn cute!

I would paint them white as well, but does anyone here have a link to the beautiful refinishing work that a poster did a couple years ago? What was her name - girlwithaspirin or something like that?

Beautiful black cabinets. Her style may be more what you had in mind.

If you remove any upper cabinets you will expose the ceiling and I suspect it won't look like the rest of the ceiling.

I'd say embrace the cabinets for what they are. Paint them a color you like that goes with the decorating scheme for the rest of the space.

You *could* spend the time carefully removing every bit of trim and sanding the edges down and carefully cutting off the lower shelves and their supports. But in the end, you are still going to have wood cabinets that speak to country style.

And the more I look at that trim, removing all of it is going to be a chore. Look closely at it and if there are some pieces that are easy to remove without damaging the cabinets, remove those pieces. But it looks as if the doors overlap the trim in a lot of places--I'm not sure how that would look if the trim is completely removed.

It sounds to me as if a full kitchen re-do is in the works in a few years, as soon as you get the money saved up to do it. How much time and effort and money to you want to put into making this kitchen look modern? Time and effort and money that will all be thrown out the door when you do the big remodel? Every cent you spend trying to make this kitchen look modern is a penny you won't be able to spend on the big re-do.

Same with removing the cabinets over the breakfast bar. That was my first thought, until I looked at the ceiling. Chances are, if you remove the cabinets there, you will either have to remove the popcorn on the entire ceiling or try to match the texture, which can be a nightmare.

I'm just thinking, if you just moved in, there's a ton of work to do. How much effort/time/money do you want to spend on the kitchen, with the very real chance that you won't end up with a modern look at the end?

Make a few changes, like painting the cabinets and counters, that will let you live with what you have for a few years. Then rip it all out and get the kitchen you really want.

For a more modern look, any chance you would take out all the uppers and replace with open shelving? It would open up that space a lot, lighten up the room, etc.

The uppers look like they will just get more country/cottage-y with paint, which you said you don't want.

Ok, I didn't see your post saying you want modern, sorry bout that. Ikea sells floating shelves, maybe you can remove the uppers and put in floating stainless shelves, then paint the bottoms black. Graywings is right though, any change to the uppers that include removing the boxes will entail a ceiling change as well.

That said, going modern may look really out of place in that space as it is now. If you're going to redo it in a couple of years anyways, you may want to embrace what you have now, make some tiny changes so it's liveable for you and wait to change it to a more modern feel when the budget is bigger. Otherwise you're basically spending money for the same thing twice.

If a kitchen reno is in your future, even 5-10 years away, do as little as possible so as not to waste money and effort on things that will be replaced. You'll be much less likely to do the reno if you've gone to too much trouble now and it's less money for what you really want down the line.

I think all the hinges and handles are what really overwhelms. I'd paint all the cabinets & trim, then remove the upper/upper handles for a small wooden knob painted to match the cabinet paint and use nice new handles (that you can reuse after the reno) on the lower/upper and the lowers.

A friend of mine painted my copper colored hinges satin nickel to match my new handles. I'd try painting the upper/upper hinges to match the cabinets so they disappear a bit by blending in.

My painted hinges have held up beautifully for 11 years, on cabinets that get used daily, but only half of my hinge shows.

A dark gel stain on the cabinets would be easier to do than painting (much less prep) and would look more modern (and not cost very much at all). I'd change out the hardware and hinges, gel stain and live with it while saving up for when you can redo the whole room.

Pick whatever you're going to do with the cabinets before selecting the paint colors for the counters so they'll have a relationship with each other.

Why not paint them and wallpaper the door fronts with a modern, graphic print? I did a little mock up on PS (not enough time to 'paint' the wood, but you can get an idea of what it would look like).

{{!gwi}}

You are not going to make those cabinets look modern, but you could possibly take the country edge off them by painting them a black or charcoal and replacing the knobs with something modern looking. I would take the hinges off and paint them to match the cabs so they disappear.

I second the vote for a dark stain (very modern). I would also remove some of the curvy molding. Finally, I would make the top row of cabinets have wavy glass insets. This would really change the balance of the top row and allow you to keep that storage.

I saw someone else on the kitchen forum cut the center out of the door and put a glass panel there instead. - This may take a little more work, but they looked great.

Unless you want to embrace the countryish vibe of these cabinets I agree that you should do the minimum for now and save up your money for your remodel. Those cabinets aren't going to look modern no matter what you do. The proportion and decoration all speak country. It's a little like asking to turn Robin Williams into Fabio if you get the analogy. There is nothing one can do to turn something from what it inherently is and change it altogether into a completely different style. Best just to embrace them for what they are, or wait until the remodel. and most of all, have fun with the process!

Girlwithaspirin's kitchen:

http://finishedkitchens.blogspot.com/2009/03/girlwithaspirins-kitchen.html

The Finished Kitchen Blog may give you some ideas.

If I were you, I'd spend time and not money right now. Since you want to go in an entirely different direction, use this time to collect samples of what you want to see in the kitchen . . .from scratch. Like others said, it will take a ton of effort to change those cabinets, and there is a lot more you'd want to change, too.

Get on Pinterest or Houzz and get your ideas flowing!

I can't open girlwithaspirins photos on that blog on my ipad...lit must use flash :(

Take out all of the wall cabinets and replace with open shelves in either stainless or white and then paint the lowers black or dark gray. You wouldn't even have to change the counters if you did that and the only "wasted" effort would be the painting of the lowers and the hanging of shelves, which can be reused elsewhere. To renovate later you would have to rip out the uppers and deal with the ceilings, so that won't be duplicated work.

Clean them really well. Paint everything one color - cabinets, doors and hardware. I'm thinking something dark, so you have a blank, but dark canvas. Paint a design over the top of it. It can be color blocks, a vine design, Marilyn Monroe's lips, a sombrero, or similar graphic. It can even be asymmetrical. You're actually respecting the kitschy cabinets that are there by not hacking at them to make them something they're not. Instead, you're just going to look at them through a modern "screen".

By what I know about cabinet construction it looks as though all but the upper most scallops are part of the frame of the cabinets. That said the only way you could get rid of it would be to carefully cut away the curvy parts. Not an easy task. I like the idea of using a very dark stain and adding simple wood trim over the scallops. Possibly a piece meant for use as a base board only attached upside down over the scallops.

Her is Girlwithaspirin's kitchen. She used Bittersweet chocolate paint.

There are two problems:

1 - the quaint 'country hardware'
2 - that wavy stuff on the cabinet facings.

#1 is just a matter of painting or replacing the hardware.

#2 ... ??? That's part of the face frame of the cabinets.

I would carefully use a small router with a guide to slice it straight across and then add a straight strip to the bottom to square it off, then paint.

Couple of things I immediately bought of:
-Using a router and guide, like lazy gardens also suggested, and cutting off the wavy trim.
-Painting the cabinets a bright, modern color. Maybe a mix of colors.

These cabinets even have your hardware and countertop.

Coincidentally, this has a similar orange-y color but mixed with white cabinets. You could also go tourquoise or yellow or green, etc. just something bright and bold and in a slightly unexpected color.

If you are going to remodel, this is your chance to have one of those fun kitchens we see but might not want to spend our 30K budget to have!

Oh my, those are my mother's cabinets, minus the scalloped trim. House built in 1949.

On the positive side, those cabinets and hinges are indestructible. Sixty-three years old. No falling doors, no sticking drawers. Wipes clean. My mother had some of the doors refinished once.

Any chance you want to embrace the era, boomerang formica counters with metal edging, linoleum flooring?

Here is a link that might be useful:

Many people are paying lots of $$ to get cabinets to the ceiling. Yours do look like solid wood, so painting them would make a huge difference. Maybe the scallop molding won't be as much of an issue as the room is changed in other ways. This link to Green Acres kitchen may be of help.

Here is a link that might be useful: Green Acres Kitchen

Wow -- I love those cabinets. I'm with everyone who said paint them white, replace the knobs, and embrace the style until you're ready for a complete remodel.

You said you just moved in, do you plan on re doing the kitchen down the line, or is this update going to last you a long time? The amount of time you spend using this kitchen should dictate how much work/time/ and money you spend on it. The countertop paint is a great idea. Painting the cabinets a color you can live with, weather it's white, black or red is up to your taste. The idea of wallpapering the doors was great, since you want a modern looking kitchen you can get one with that idea. There are so many things you can do, take a deep breath and don't jump into anything, look on line and at all the pictures you can find, and I'm sure you will see something that will work for you.

ilene