I'd like to see a rectangular painting or picture instead of a round clock or perhaps a thin rectangular clock. Your kitchen is lovely.

Beautiful room...bright and airy.

Finishing touches could include a floor plant in front of the beam wall(by island), the paint you've mentioned already, a picture over the desk, a rug under the dining table, a backsplash, and maybe some small pictures on the beam wall.

Ballard Design has a lot of wall clocks (see link below).

Here is a link that might be useful: Ballard wall clocks

Since it is above desk, what about something like this with a bulletin board underneath it or a blackboard.

Love your kitchen! I like the idea of a clock above a bulletin board, as lyban suggested. As for plants or other things on top of the cabinets, my vote is no. My preference for island lighting would be thin, elongated pendants with a rod/base that matches the existing light fixtures and perhaps ivory glass. Your sage green should look lovely.

While you're looking for the rug under the table, consider getting some coordinating cushions for the chairs. You need to bring some color into the room.

I wouldn't put anything on top of the cabinets. You're somewhat limited on height between the top and the ceiling and things that fit might look dinky. But try it out.

You already have a light over the table, so if you use pendant lights over the island, they should complement the existing fixture (or change the existing one).

I have dimmable recessed lighting over my island that I like a lot because I do most of the food prep there and I can see.

Are you sure about the sage green wall paint? Have you put up a sample board to see if the color works?

It needs color -- the sage green sounds very nice. It needs more personal touches, which might be helped by plants as well as rugs, art, etc. If you like a contemporary streamlined modern look, your breakfast nook set could be changed.

Thank so much ladies, love your ideas. The kitchen table definitely needs to be changed however first I have to buy my dining room table. lol

I would love to put a rug under the table however my hubby would panic. We had a 3 yrs old and a 4yrs old boy.

Joanne

The sage green color is going to look great! I just painted my kitchen using BM Louisburg Green (HC-113) and I was amazed at how it changed the entire look of the room even though it was only around one window, door and around & behind fridge. Saybrook Sage (the next color to Louisburg) was a little too light for what I needed but it is also a great green.

Suzieca,

I looked at he colors and yes they are beautiful. Would love to see a pic of your kitchen.

You have a beautiful space with which to work!

For pendants, I shamelessly stole this from the Kitchen Forums' saramae585:

Of course, I don't know your taste but I just think that could look lovely in there .... However, looking at the fixtures you already have -- does it come in a pendant shape? If you selected those other fixtures, that might make you happiest. ???

As for putting anything atop your cabinets: I find it's a fine line between eclectic and junky.

I don't do modern but I love that light fixure rmkitchen put up above. I would go with a stainless steel clock rather than wood one. Since you have so much wood in there.

Your kitchen is very good looking.

We were looking for a piece of art or something to put over the toilet in the master bath. Finally, I realized I wanted a clock, and found this one. And I love it there, it's perfect!

Susan

Here is a link that might be useful: Bulova RIchmond

Here ya go...can't see much because there isn't much area that is painted - just around door & window but it made a BIG difference to me from the white. I'm also getting my adjoining fam rm painted this week and using the Saybrook Sage.

I have a question.....do you even use that built in desk?? It doesn't even have a chair in front of it and I suspect that when you need to do "deskwork" you use the dining room table. The little desk looks so low and claustrophobic where it is and is in a busy pathway. I would suggest removing it and replacing it with shelving going all the way to the top of the cabinets. That way you could display a few decorative items like crockery and use the space more efficiently for cookbooks or something. It would link the kitchen cabinets and dining room cabinets and make it look like one smooth wall unit going all the way across. If you do not like open shelves maybe glass doors could be added.

I think that having some recessed paneling added to the base of the island would greatly improve the view from the living area.

You have a lovely kitchen already and I can't wait to see the new color and lighting you are doing.

I like dilly dally's suggestion re:the desk~shelves would break up the 'humungous' amount of cabinetry.

I would love to see a darker, brighter color such as red! Not a lipstick red, but something that will make your cabinets have more presence. It's a beautiful kitchen, but the 'blah' color doesn't make it shine, and show it as the wonderful space it is.

Re-think the color. As for accent pieces, start collecting white ceramic pieces/white crockery. It doesn't have to be 'tchotkes', but large bowls, tureens, etc., are items that are useful as well as pretty.

rm kitchen,

The pendant looks beautiful but would something like that clash with my existing light fixtures or no??

I did have the matching pendant with the other fixtures but it looked cheap. I did not like it.

Suzieca

Love your kitchen and the green looks real nice. I also love your backsplash. Thank you for sharing.

Lyban,

I do like the idea of the clock sign and will start looking around.

Ande,

Not positive about the color yet. I will put a swatch in the kitchen. Thank you for your helpful advice.

Thanks to all, very much appreciated.

If I decide to go with a framed pic, what kind of pic would look good in my kitchen?

Because your existing fixtures are lovely, subtle and restrained, I think you can afford to let your pendants "pop." And the reason I like those pendants is because while do they have some zing they are also in a v. natural color / pattern (reminds me of tiger's eye), so it wouldn't be as if you were introducing purple and yellow polka-dots, which would make no sense at all in your sophisticated space.

So to answer your question, No, I don't think they would clash.

You're going to have so much fun!

A nice kitchen, ready for some detailing!

I agree that a paint job is in order, and a warm green would be very nice. I would stay away from any greens that have a lot of grey in them, as the pix you posted suggests that the light in the space tends to be cool already.

I would love to see a round pedestal table (after you get your DR table, of course!). A nice grouping of four or six smaller framed art pieces above the desk, an upholstered stool tucked underneath.

I would also be intrigued by the idea of enclosing that post in the same woodtone panels as the cabinetry, so that it appears to link to the island and be one cohesive piece.

Look into a painted floorcloth for under the table. Wipes off, so no worry about kid spills (or adult spills, if we are honest!), but it would bring some great color to the floor.

Love your lights!

IF you intend to keep the table and chairs, are you against painting it?

The suggestion I had to add some sort of paneling to the base of the cabinet would include the lower portion of the pole. Then paint the top portion the same color as the walls and hopefully it would "disappear". I am wondering why the builders did not make that pole match the other one? It looks like they ran out of time or the order came in short for one turned pole, so they just drywalled it all the way to the top. This looks like a new construction home. Are the builders still around in the area that could change this if you complained?

I also had had another crazy shelving idea. Since it looks like you have decided not to use the island counter for seating with stools, you could put shelving under it. The shelving would attach at the pole on one side and could be attached with brackets on the other and keeping the look airy and open or have the other side closed giving whole thing a solid furniture look. I hesitated to post this before because I know that so many people do not like to customize their living spaces to something that is out of the norm, thinking it would affect resale value in the future if prospective buyers would prefer to use the island counter for seating. The shelves could be ripped out later if this is a concern.

dilly dally -- good eye -- I didn't notice the nice column to the left.

which makes me think crown moulding would look great in the kitchen -- would fill in that narrow space above cabinets.

I think that what happened during the building is that the original builder's design was tweaked to open up the kitchen wall so that you could walk through past the fridge. That looks like an archway that was an addendum added to the work contract. Maybe there was even a wall separating the kitchen from the dining area too that was removed to really 'open the space up'. The island looks like it was just the original cabinets that were to be installed along a wall that they then added a larger countertop to. That is why the island looks so plain from the LR view. A cheap solution is maybe put some large, square, decorative wicker baskets with lids, under the counter overhang. They would become "part of" the pole and island by eliminating the empty space under the overhang. And they could be useful too for tossing recyclables or storing pet food!

I am wondering if extra lighting is really needed over the island? I might put a large, flat, wrought iron rack up there to hang pots. It would help define the area and help the pole not look so obvious. If lighting is really needed in the area, I would NOT do little itty-bitty, pendant lights. Having long hanging strings of tiny pendant lighting on such a vast expanse of ceiling would not look right. I would get something large and substantial with the smaller lights as part of it. This style is called 'billiard lighting' or 'island lighting' sometimes. Something like this maybe:

Here is a link that might be useful: Island Lighting

I was Googleing 'pot racks with lights' and found them to all be either very utilitarian looking (think hospital kitchen) or way over the top in design and Gothic looking (think Dracula's castle). There must be some out there somewhere that would conform to the design of the other lighting shown though.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pot Rack with Lights

I just got all your helpful advice. I will read through it carefully and respond tonight.. thank you thank you thank you

Joanne

Can you stand another opinion?
I would put a big mirror, with an off-white or distressed ivory frame, the same proportion as your upper cabinets, over the desk to reflect light, and to open the wall and add sparkle and interest (it will give the effect of another window, and of another space beyond). I'd put the clock suggested by lyban, or something like it, above that.

Under the desk area, I would put a little bookcase pushed back to the wall for your cookbooks, which would furnish the space visually and still give you knee-hole room.

Over the island, I would put two or three pendants like the one over your table, but about 1/3 the size, and at the same height. And I would put an inexpensive patterned indoor-outdoor rug in the area under the table...making sure to make it big enough so the chairs all sit fully on it when you are seated at the table. Lots of the better catalogs have them. We have used ones from the Home Decorator's catalog for our kitchens, and they are a breeze to live with, and attractive.

I wouldn't put anything on top of the cabinets...once you have painted, the paint color will furnish that space. If you can get to an outlet and run an unobtrusive cord up there, a string of fairy lights just jumbled in behind the molding gives a lovely up-glow at night.

A back splash with some "Pop"

rm kitchen,

Thank you for your wise advice. Deninetely something I will be considering.

Les 917.. hmm I am loving all the posibilities over the desk. Here I was thinking only of a brown blah clock. lol.. You were saying to stay away from grey tones. I don't quite understand the cool color explanation. Where can I find those floor cloths?

dilly dally

I thought about shelves in that area before but we decided on a desk for the kids to do their homework. Right now, they are only 3 and 4. I will need a nice chair or stool for there. You have many great decorative ideas. re: posts. I will post pics of the attached rooms to the kitchen and the posts match. (to give you a better idea).. I still have so much work to do in this kitchen. lol

My original idea was to put a hanging pot rack over the island but then I was afraid it would become the main focus and take away from everything else. I also didn't want to make it look cluttered. I guess you would also need brand new pots and pans just for decorating? Thanks so much for your advice and details. Very useful..

To me, it looks like something is missing. I would add matching cabinetry above the desk. I would not have it go as high as the other cabinetry so you dont have to change the existing crown on the top of the other cabinets. The top of the new cabinets would have crown too, but it would be a straight piece to each side. The cabinets in our home have staggered heights and depths and it looks great. You can do the same here. I would add a typical "above the desk cabinet" that has the vertical slots for things or even a wine rack. Even another set of smaller glass doors.

As for above the cabinets...I have the same type of space...its almost too small for most things. I have a few things ontop of mine, but I found just a few ivy was all I could do. By the time I propped things above the crown, there wasnt much room.

I like the idea of pendants over your island.

Also prefer a stone/tile backsplash.

Here is one source for floor cloths, tho there are many, and you can also make your own.

floor cloths

Hmm, as for the cool tones discussion. When I look at the pix you posted, the room reads kind of cool and grey already. Adding a paint on the walls that has a lot of grey undertones, such as a grey-green, will make the space feel even cooler than it does now. I would like to see a warmer green, that will really make the space feel friendly and enrich your cabinetry color.

Compare, if you can, SW 6164 Svelte Sage (grey green) with SW 6423 Ryegrass (warm green), and I think you will see the difference. I am not suggesting those particular colors, but just to make the point about color undertones.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that light fixture that Dilly Dilly suggested for over your bar. It has the black wrought iron look of your other two lights and the drum shade look. I really think it's most attractive and would give you plenty of light for working there. A nice rug with some color under your table I think you need, it's dreary there. Ofcourse you're thinking backsplash of some kind with a little color in it, you need to bring color around the room. I think you have to pull color in from you dining room or foyer or family room whichever rooms lead to the kitchen. Color under the table (and I do like the table in there, nice style and it's light) and backsplash behind all of the counter and then pull out one of the colors for accessories, maybe green if that is the color you will paint the kitchen. Color, Color, Color.....all I see now from this end is cream and brown...a good start and good luck on the job ahead. It is a nice big room!

Should I stick with a brown rimmed clock or something else?

I like the idea of shelves over the desk, but you still have room for a clock. I would keep looking for your original idea of a modern clock - maybe a silver retro starburst? No to the brown clock. And by all means, keep the desk. It may never be used as a desk, but it can be the place for cell phones and other stuff that ends up on the counter.

Also, what kind of lighting should I put over the island?

If I had two pendant lights in the same space, I would want them to match. How about recessed lights?

Would you put stuff on top of the cabinets ie: plants

No stuff on top of the cabinets.