@Sabrina Alfin, first one is a little boring but its also a classic timeless no strings attached kind of look. You can easily keep it with the times by simply just changing the hardware to bronze, brass, ect.. Second pic will be outdated quickly. It will scream teen 2000's very shortly because that fake marble look has been done to death. It will be this generation of wood paneling lol.

Hi Terry Lee! I don't think your picture posted. Could you re-post it? Thanks! Have a nice evening, damask_rose_5 : )

@Terry Mahan One more thing has come to mind regarding the alder stain, and that is based on your builder's photograph, it looks like he may not be in the habit of paying super close attention to color matching the wood he is putting side-by-side. This is a cost-saving technique. In very expensive cabinetry, a load of wood will be delivered to the cabinet shop and then culled and placed to maximize color matching during the building process. Sometimes builders (even the more expensive ones) will use almost every stick of wood that comes off the delivery truck regardless of color matching. I expect your builder did something in between those two approaches in his example. It looks pretty good, but there are a couple of places where the colors could have matched better. Since we cannot see your cabinetry, it is up to you to evaluate the level of color match you have in the natural wood prior to finishing. Sometimes those color differences won't be as apparent until a clear top coat is put on, at which time the differences will pop out. If you feel that you have an unusually large amount of color mismatch in the unfinished cabinetry, that would be one reason to go forward with a light stain to perhaps help even things out, keeping in mind that the stain may not absorb well in all areas and possibly making the situation worse. You might want to consult with a professional refinisher to evaluate the specifics of your situation and have him or her actually look at the cabinetry before offering an opinion. In time, even with a clear coat, I think you'll become accustomed to the color differences once installed. Another tip is that as we get into summer, in various climates the temperature and humidity changes can cause warping of the doors on unfinished cabinetry. It would be to your advantage to get the cabinets indoors and coated as soon as possible for that reason. Some cabinet makers won't even warranty against warping if the cabinetry isn't coated within a span of say 3 weeks after delivery.

Thanks all for the input. I do have a fairly good sized maple out front but because I do have a septic field in the front yard I’m trying to keep that in mind when it comes to trees. I suspect the maple will need to come out but first I need to get rid a of about 10 giant oak trees. Here is the picture I was drawn to initially though I know it would need to be reconfigured a bit whether I continue the porch or move the steps