Are you putting laminate wood throughout the space? If it is a condo are there other units above or below? My husband and I are huge fans of cork (and some of it has a wood look) for its warmth and sound absorption. We put laminate wood in our current second floor bedrooms and it definitely carries sound much worse than the cork with have in our main living area. If you are in a store you can tap your keys on different flooring displayed and hear the hallow sound from many laminates.

Laminate is plastic and particle board , not wood. I would suggest actual wood. Something in a natural oak.

If you are in a condo check first to see what the requirements are for flooring underlay etc. Every condo has rules

Just a reminder, floating floors ( laminates) do need to move and expand so installers usually leave them a bit short of the trim. You may have to put in a shoe molding. We usually put in a 1/4 round. You can also get a shoe molding made from the same laminate. Flooring installers can do this or a carpenter.

Correct we are putting laminate in the entire space and we chose it over hardwood due to cost.

Good point - we will verify with the HOA first as well.

Does anyone think a gray laminate would look good? We like that color but not sure if it will complement the cabinets/countertops.

I worry that gray is going to have a heavy clash with the cabinets. They are a strong beech colour and the counters "read" as a taupe/beige.

Personally I would look at a very light wood tone that is in the same family as the beech cabinets (just lighter in colour). This will keep the unity of the space as well as keeping it looking light and airy.

Gray will clash HEAVILY with the cabinets...and with the taupe/beige counter top. Once you get a colour clash in your home, you will have this intense urge to change "something". You will spend thousands trying to get rid of the "clash" when in fact the floor is what is doing in the first place.

Work with light, complimentary colours in very light wood tones. Grays will be VERY hard to get right. So hard, it could take you years to find the right gray for the cabinets.

Okay thanks for the suggestion. I am worried that a light brown might match everything else in the unit too much. Shouldn't there be some contrast?

There should be "contrast" but not a clash. Contrast can be several steps lighter or several steps darker in the same colour family. Notice the yellow paint on the walls? That is several steps LIGHTER than the cabs...but same undertones. That rates as "contrast".

Technically the counter tops are clashing with the cabinets and it is not a nice look. It makes it very hard to work around....and many people would have a hard time figuring out a space that has a clash such as the counter tops and cabinets.

For small spaces (like your condo) that have open spaces (like your condo), getting things to work HARMONIOUSLY is the key. The biggest statement in this room = cabinets. Therefore you want to work with colours that will work with the cabinets.

Sadly, whomsoever put in the counter tops didn't understand how they would read beige/taupe rather than brown/yellow. Sigh. A crisp white or (preferably) a strong dark counter top (to match the kitchen flooring) would have been a MUCH better choice. That teeny-tiny bit of contrast would have been perfect.

So: small space = harmony = continuous flow = same colour family with cabs. The problem = the counter tops are "wrong" for the cabinets. This is causing problems deciding on what to choose for flooring.

Do you think we could paint the cabinets to resolve the issue? If so, what color would you recommend? I was thinking a dark brown. Let me know what other solutions there are to help correct this clash between the cabinets and countertops.