If the cabinets are relatively new or in excellent condition, do you really need to change them? Maybe they could be painted. Of course, if my husband suggested new cabinets, I would be at the store in five seconds flat, but I digress. A new counter, new backsplash, newly painted or stained cabinets, new sink and fixtures, new flooring (?), new door and drawer hardware. If you got new cabinets, you reconfigure your kitchen and get new plumbing and appliances, too. Once you start, you "may as well" a lot. I suggest you start with a budget and then decide how much needs to be done.

If they are still very functional, I would opt for refinishing or painting them. Also, I wouldn't replace the countertop and sink if you are planning on a cabinet replacement later down the road. It would be sort of a waste of money otherwise because you will have to replace the countertop again if you replace the cabinets.

This is what I would do if it were me. Replace faucet, paint/refinish cabinets, and take down valance, then see where you are. Your cabinets look like bead board, so your kitchen might look refreshed with just a cream or white paint, but that's just a personal preference. If you love the look of your newly refreshed cabinets, replace counter, change out hardware, paint walls, and maybe upgrade your sink, then done!

If you like stain, then I would look into gel staining them darker. It will be difficult to sand them enough to evenly stain them lighter, unless you use cherry stain. I would also suggest General Finishes stain or gel, if you go that route.

I also suggest not replacing cabinets that are in great shape! I like your cabinets but I also prefer stained cabinets over painted ones.

Thank you everyone for your comments. The cabinets are much nicer in person. Oddly enough, my husband would rather replace them than paint them. He does not have opinions very often so when he does I try not to dismiss them. Even though they are usually laughable. I often yes him to death and then do what I want. I think my major problem is not the cabinets but the peninsula. I don't like them. I can't imagine removing the peninsula because the floors are wide pine and I want to keep but it looks like they don't continue under the peninsula. Any suggestions?

The pictures are from along time ago. There is a woven wood shade there now and new Windows. It is a picture from a realtor that had the listing in 2009.

A current picture would help, but it seems the question about keeping your cabinets seems to be in vain, since you have already opted to getting rid of them.

If you are already leaning towards getting rid of the cabinets and changing the layout, I would hire a kitchen designer to help you. Better to get it right the first time the way you want it, than change parts later and waste time and money.

I am pretty confident I can make the cabinets work. It is that the wood of these cabinets is beautiful. My only problem is the house is post and beam and the floors are wide pine. A lot of wood. I won't paint the cabinets because the wood is gorgeous. The house is my summer home. Want a more relaxed feeling. Does not have to have the perfect layout. A new countertop and backsplash would be a huge improvement.

Sorry I thought your original question was about changing or getting rid of your current cabinets.

Too much wood, but you don't want to paint or change your cabinets, then maybe just paint all the wood trim and ceiling? I'm not sure how would just painting one room's trim would be though. More pictures of the room overall would help.

Thank you Steph. I know a more detailed photo would help but I have not passed papers yet so I do not have access to take pics. I will probably paint the trim but not the beams.

If you get rid of the peninsula, where does your range go? Once you start moving cabinets around, it's down the rabbit hole!

Agreed.

It does look like the floors stop at the cabinets. If you hire the right company they can fill in and match the floors so you can get rid of the peninsula. I agree that there is a lot of wood here. More to the point, a lot of the same color wood so it looks very heavy. Also, you can get more functional cabinets even if you opt to not get rid of the peninsula (especially where the corner cabinet is.

If this is your second home, I wouldn't do anything to the kitchen just yet. Live with it for a couple of years and see how it works for you before making any decisions. I speak from experience here, you are not going to be there all that much.

Great suggestions from everyone. I think it is a good idea to live with the kitchen for a bit to see how it works for me. I am impatient so I hope I can do it. I won't be doing a lot of cooking here so I can live with it.

You could take the cabinet doors off the top and have open shelves, will soften the look, with new countertop etc will look nice

Love that look.

Love your pics. Especially farmhouse sink.

Thanks!

It is a kohler Whitehaven short apron sink. It can be installed on a standard sink base, so great if keeping cabinets.

Thank you Jhmarie. I will def check out that Kohler sink.