I'll be interested in hearing what others think about your dilemma. I think it's totally salvageable, but you're right, picking the right paint color will be key. Right now whatever you have there on your walls is contributing to the blue "vibe" of the gray on your cabinets.

Whatever colors you think you might want on the walls, buy a test quart and paint a large 2'x3' test board and view it all around the room at different times of day to see what it does with the other elements in the room.

As far as the cabinetry, there is not enough contrast between the island and the perimeter cabinets. I would take the island cabinets to a white or to a much darker color. Is there any way that a glaze could be used on the perimeter cabinets to warm up and tone down the blue tone that you see? Then select a paint color.

The perimeter is fine. It's the reflection of the yellow against it that is making it read blue. It's the too close to the perimeter color of the island that is off in the design It needs to be significantly darker or lighter.

The current wall color is a cream/ yellow, so most definitely not helping the situation at all. Because my house is all open plan I basically need to paint the family room, dining room, formal room, halls etc the same color. That's why I need a solid light gray and not a darker gray, although a darker gray might have been more help in the kitchen. Thanks.

Part of the problem is the yellow tint to the wall above the cabinets. Paint that a crisp white or a strong blue color which will make the cabinets appear grey. Also, the lighting can affect grey perception, so consider lighting that doesn't have a yellow tint, like "natural light" bulbs.

ETA: The island looks more grey to me than the rest of it. Maybe it's the dark flooring or the shadowing it's in. Maybe some white sheer curtains over whatever windows are letting in light?

I got the impression you didn't want to repaint the cabinets, so I didn't suggest it.

I have a feeling a turquoise or teal blue in the room will offset the cabinets, bringing them right back to grey.

Thank you everyone. I'm not opposed to doing a taupe or a dove white on the walls. Anything to bring out the gray more.

oy, why is everyone gray crazy? Might have been better to paint cabinets off white and walls gray. That said, I personally like the blue-ish gray. And quite frankly, I think you should go for a deep darker gray for your walls if you want to diminish the blue tones that you don't like.

Hi mckenzil, we personally like the bluish-gray cabinets and think they would look great with the right color walls to complement them! We designed this kitchen for one of our clients that had a similar shade of cabinets. We created a custom-blue burnished Wood-Mode finish to offset the redbrick tile and caramel countertops.

I think your cabinets are gorgeous and the color is perfect. Paint your walls light gray-like your choice of light pewter. Will look amazing after your tone down the yellow walls.

Classic Coastal Colonial Renovation - the Ultimate Island · More Info

i think grey on the walls will make the cabinets more blue. i'm with trying bluer on the walls to make the cabinets look more like each other (and less blue). by the way i think the colors look nice, but not what you had in mind.

Your yellow walls are the problem. also the color of the island is too close but not close enough to the color of the rest. I would paint the island in a black or in a blue, and the walls in a soft pearly grey with no beige in it.

Here is a before shot

I think it's a vast improvement!

Like. Whatcha gonna do above the refrigerator? I can't believe anyone would put wine up there. 1) how would anyone ever reach it. 2) heat rises and wine doesn't like heat!

And not to offend, but the hood area looks a bit thin. Possible to add a hood cover, or at least some beefier cabinets to the right of it?

Above the refrigerator and around the fridge I am getting custom trim made, to make it look more built in. I'm with you on the old wine contraption, and I lived with it for 10 years:). I agree the hood looks a little thin, less so in the flesh, but I didn't want to replace the cabs as part of this Reno, as I'm not staying in the house. The original kitchen was a builders kitchen, if you will, all weird looking and bumped out.

Would you consider glazing your cabinets and maybe changing to larger cabinet pulls/knobs? Here is a photo with link credit that reminds me of your cabinets, albeit these are glazed cabinets:

http://www.beckdesignblog.blogspot.com/2011_01_01_archive.html

I made the same mistake! I chose Ellie Gray by Sherwin Williams for my lower cabinets and for some reason the light outside that comes into my kitchen makes them look blue!! I also think part of the problem is the fact that I had to keep the vanilla builders tile as I ran out of money! We are the second owners of our home in prior to us moving in the cabinets had a cherry stain. I did end up going with a half value of the Ellie gray and put it on the wall. I hired contractors to do the cabinets and we ended up having them do a half value of the Ellie Gray and put on the walls as well as the adjoining family room .

I was going for a light and airy look so I didn't want to go too dark on the gray, but now I'm thinking I should've went a little bit warmer of a gray because it definitely has a blue reflective quality about it - cost was $3200 to have cabinets repainted , below is the before pic.

Personally, I would choose a soft white tinted with grey for the walls. Then, I would consider putting a color on the ceiling, either the blue-grey paint of the cabinets or the wood flooring as ceiling planks, stained in the same dark wood tone. White frosted glass or crystal ceiling fixtures against the colored ceiling will be pretty and striking. Some white-painted crown molding around the wall/ceiling juncture will add some definition and style to the kitchen, too. For accessories, I would suggest kitchen towels in chocolate brown and medium neutral grey.

I have the exact same problem with my cabinets. I have been contemplating adding a neutral glaze to help cancel the blue. We're also replacing the countertops and adding back splash (thinking white). Anyone have thoughts?

what is the color of your cabinets?