I should also mention we plan on replacing the sink and faucet as well.

Have the new counter top and backsplash associated to the flooring. Get colors that are more neutral for these fixed items and accessorize with new paint and decorations, as these can be changed as often as desired. Pantry will need to have a more utility flow design. using a flow of necessity design (what you use most is kept at eye level). It should be more adjustable for this purpose. Stainless appliances will do wonders to highlight all of these other changes and lend some contemporary to the traditional...Good luck with your project...

Paint on the walls and cabinets will do wonders for updating the look. But, I would wait to choose colors until you have your counterop and floor samples so you can tie it all in better.

Wasn't planning on painting the cabintes as I'm not a fan of that look in the kitchen. We've already painted less than a year ago, so I plan on working with the existing paint color. I also think it would update the kitchen to remove the frame over the window. I also plan on getting a free standing range and removing the kickboard under the drop in. I have extra floor tiles to make this possible.

Hi---here is an inspiration photo for you... Think the color of the cabs would be perfect as well as the counter/backsplash and accessories. All would look fab with the floor too. Hope this is helpful. Good Luck!
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It's tricky without painting cabinets, these kinds of cabinets are so hard to disguise as something else....
and that you are not changing flooring, I am gravitating towards painting cabinets as Natalie suggested, but maybe a dark espresso with Kashmir White Counter tops, Simple Glass or Subway Backsplash, Stainless Pulls, clear glass pendants, a new stainless fan.. Definitely remove the wooden valance off the window, and replace all fabric valances with a very simple pleated or blinds. Paint walls a warm light beige...

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Gorgeous Aggie!!!

Good photos and clear priorities, my favorite kind of question!

The layout is spacious, the floors are nice and neutral. I like the cabinets, they are a classic style.

I suggest you bring home a few new cabinet handles to try out in whatever finishes you are considering.

You can remove the over-sink wood valance any time.

Also bring home some granite and tile samples. You can scan and make color copies to put up on the walls or put on the countertop. If you are thinking about black or very dark colors, try some black wrapping paper or construction paper on the counters first. It is much brighter in most showrooms than in the usual home kitchen.

Unscrew a rarely-used oak drawer front or cabinet door (one above the fridge is a good candidate). Keep it in the car (in a plastic bag to avoid dings) to take to granite and tile showrooms. You can also match the oak cabinet color to one of a stain brochure's illustrations (Minwax makes a great brochure), cut it out and then slip it in your wallet.

The breakfast area needs a large piece of art. It can set the color scheme for accent pieces such as towels, placemats, cookie jars, etc.

The pantry looks fine already. Maybe another higher shelf for lightweight things such as toilet paper will get stuff off the floor for easier sweeping up.

You have some items on top of the fridge that could probably go into a cabinet after decluttering the cabinets. IME, the easiest purge is plastic containers without matching lids or other storage things that aren't used.

Built-in soap dispensers in the new sink are wonderful for dish soap and hand soap.

If you plan to keep the dish dryer put away after drying dishes, a good way to store it is vertical under the sink.

From me to you,,,,,, if the kitchen works for you, do little things, get rid of the board above the sink. maybe new pulls, new light fixtures, counter tops ok, but don't spend allot of money on it. The idea of a kitchen is to Cook meals.......... if it works for that, the rest is just to impress someone. Take the money you save and go on a wonderful vacation.... You will not take the kitchen with you when you die, your soul and it's happy memories go with you...... we hope.... :) It looks like a pretty nice kitchen just as it is, and belive me paining cabinets is ALLOT OF WORK.... Just getting the doors all back in the right place is a challenge....

Apple_Pie, thank you for the suggestions. Sylvestercat, I'm a travel agent, so I take about five vacations a year! I really need new appliances as I spend my evenings in the kitchen preparing dinner for my family. I also love to bake and have wanted granite counters for as long as I can remember. The sink is very shallow and isn't functional when filling large stockpots or pasta pans. I love the layout of the kitchen...That's the main reason we bought the house was for the large kitchen. I know no matter what we do to the kitchen I will love it, but I'm also thinking about resale value later on.

Wonder how long it will be before we are saying, that house was remodled durring the recession, all those granite counter tops are filling the dumps...............kind of like green shag in the 70's. Styles come and go in order to keep the counter guys in business. . . wonder what is next in counters? I have a kitchen with quality cabinets, and am at wits end on knowing if this style has almost run its course. Suggestions and comments appreciated....... what do you guys out there think? Congrats on your job, and wonderful vacations................... I am envious.......

We've found that the best way to deal with "eh" cabinets is to make sure the granite countertops are much more interesting. Anytime you walk into a room, your eye is going to be drawn to the natural elements (right now the wood cabinets) before the artificial (right now the plastic countertops). If you add a stone that has some movement and that you really find beautiful to look at, then the stone will take center stage and your cabinets won't be nearly as prominent in the first impression of the room. Stay away from static, small patterned stones like St. Cecelia, Uba Tuba, or the Giallos. Perhaps think about something like a Madura Gold (first image) or a River White (second image). They are well priced and will add some energy and movement to the kitchen, which is a little flat right now. Good luck!

I heartily support your plan of not painting the cabinets. The updates that you propose will go a long way. Although I am not a fan of granite because in my mind it is too busy and trendy, but it's your kitchen, so do what you want. The one thing that I would try to change is the cabinet between the refrigerator and the wall. It would be great if that could be made deeper, to match the depth of the refrigerator.

Removing the wood valence and updating the hardware and appliances will make a big difference. I found reasonably priced hardware at Ikea.

Sylvestercat: I agree with you. There are one-year flash fads, five-year fads and ten year trends. If it was very fashionable once, it will certainly look dated in ten years. Most cabinet styles are not faddish but some are. Remember white pickled oak from the late 1980's with mauve-taupe countertops?

I do think that granite countertops are here to stay because they are very practical. Perhaps brushed nickel will continue its drop in popularity, or maybe it will stay on as a new classic. The tumbled travertine and Tuscan look will look pretty dated in five or ten years. Formica is still the best selling countertop in the US. Polished brass is still the best selling finish for cabinet hardware.

Apple pie...that's fabulous information to know...especially the polished brass detail.
If one spends any amount of time on houzz, one may begin to feel totally "square" if their house isn't overrun with gray and granite! When I lived in California (where we shall return once we get out of our current "predicament" or I mean, house) I put in granite and gray walls during my kitchen redo in the 80s because it seemed so new and cool. (People didn't even know how to cut granite correctly.) Then on my next trip to Hong Kong I paid more attention to my surroundings and saw that my granite was used everywhere in building banks, retail malls and corporate headquarters! In 1990 I replaced all of the aluminum sliders with wood French doors in my new home and had incredibly expensive Baldwin polished brass hardware put on all of the doors, as well as all interior doors that had been changed out for solid core doors. My husband and I spent tons of money on homes and upgrades and due to the vagaries of the market and the recessions over the years, as well as buying and selling at not always the right time, have not much to show for it. (I sold an ocean view home in southern California to move to FL to help my Mother and stepfather retire here. We all are terribly unhappy here but for many reasons too horrendous to go into have been stuck here since 1999). I have forbid myself to tote up the total dollars spent and lost or "invested" now in other people's homes but if and when we get out of this house in Florida relatively unscathed you can be sure we will be very careful about what gets spent on our next "move-in" condition home.

apple_pie_order loves polished brass for cabinet hardware

Consider quart as an alternative to granite, it's clean & goes with any cabinetry. Soft white subway tiles are inexpensive for a backsplash. Update the hardware on the cabinets, change the lighting, purchase the sink & faucet you want & change the lighting. Set a budget then shop the big box stores for ideas. Keep in mind to take your time when choosing the most expensive items i.e. granite/quart counters as these can be a nightmare to replace if you don't love them. Good luck.

The cabinets are definitely dated. Paint them dove white Benjamin Moore semi or high gloss. Add chrome handles/pulls on cabinets. Try Caesarstone in cement and paint walls Winds Breath Ben Moore.

Your cabinets definitely stand out the most in terms of needed updates. It looks like they're in great condition, but just need a little bit of a facelift, so our cabinet refacing services sound like your perfect solution. We often complete the project in 2-4 days and you still have access to your kitchen. We can also help you out with your countertops and backsplash! Let us know if you have any questions.

http://www.granitetransformations.com/products/cabinet-refacing/

I saw a similar transformation on HGTV a while back and countertops and hardware totally made a difference..... The oak stained cabinets looked so much richer. Just go with a countertop that incorporates the cabinet color to tie the two together. I think you will love it!

Consider something like this.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=557017717795839&set=gm.552259198284399&type=3