That should have been addressed before you installed your cabinetry not after. What are you looking to do now?

The only thing you can really do is put up crown molding on the ceiling that will add some detail, or remove existing molding and order additional material and build up your cabinets to the ceiling.

I had a similar issue in my old house and ended up stapling painted plywood to connect the space. However, your cabinets are all aligned, so if you try to have the pantry and fridge parts go to the ceiling and keep the rest the way it is it would look weird. You also have the little moulding at the tops of your cabinet which would make it look weirder if you tried to fix it. With the way all the cabinets look, I'd say your best bet would be to get those box containers you can get from the dollar store and use the space as extra storage. It's not ideal but it makes the area look less "hollow" (if that makes any sense) and is probably the cheapest way to cover it. Probably not the answer you were looking for but with the way the cabinets are laid out, I can't think of anything else that might work and still be cheap.

I don't know what I was thinking to be honest....For some reason when I looked at the drawing I thought it would go up to the ceiling. I told my husband to extend the bulkhead above the fridge and pantry. Will that look weird?

Because your cabinets are all aligned and have moulding it would look weird to do it only on two parts but if it really bothers you that is still a solution you could try. Use an app to see how it would look before you invest anything so you know how it looks this time.

What is the best app?

You could extend the bulkead above fridge and pantry and it would probably work....but what if you paint your walls and then evaluate the situation. Right now you have the gold color (on my monitor) and the white color. May look altogether different after you paint.

I use photoshop because I do a lot of design work but with what you are doing you can honestly just use Houzz. Use the create a sketch portion and upload the photos you posted. Just looking at the difference will give you an idea of if you like it more or not.

My contractor made a bulkhead with MDF.....millwork that fit perfectly .....then we took it to the kitchen guy and had it sprayed white to match the cabinets. I went for a more clean feel so did not add any molding. It is a more contemporary look, which I like. IMO - it made the kitchen look more custom. It was not overly expensive...cannot remember the exact amount.

It is noticeable because it is white. Texture it like the wall and paint it beige.

Paint the bulkhead to match the wall instead of emphasizing it with the white.

Emmarene and jbtanyderi have your answer!

Either paint the bulkhead to match the wall or, if it bothers you, get a good carpenter to come in and create a soffit/wall/bulkhead above your cabinets to fill in the space. It's more expensive, but I think it will look better.

the suggestion has already been made and i agree that the best way to acheive the finished look you want without breaking the bank would be to install crown molding to the ceiling then balance that by capping off the top of the cabinets with a crown piece. a good carpenter should be able to show you trim moldings which compliment the style of the room and new cabnitry.

imagine adding a trim piece where the top of your cabnitry ends. the trim and crown should be proportional to the space between the top of the existing cabinet and ceiling. the trim pieces you use should also balance one another in terms of weight and heft.

the picture below (not my kitchen so i can't say for sure if the trim piece capping off the cabinet shows so large because of the angle of the camera or if it is in fact that hefty) illustrates installed crown molding and capped of cabinetry.

Too late to do anything now . I would put decorative things up there looks like quite a bit a space . Like fake plants/baskets/
something like that .

I think it looks perfect. I like that the top of the cupboards, pantry and storage above the fridge are on the same plane. I say no to crown molding on the top to busy.

My previous home had this; my current one too, including your size molding. I displayed a collection of beautiful, unique cookie tins from Germany. It was so perfect, actually! Yours will be too, I am sure!

I wouldn't put anything up there as it would only draw more attention to it, and also emphasize the bulkhead because nothing could be placed there.

I agree....I wouldn't put too much above the cabinets. Besides drawing attention to the bulkhead it looks messy and cluttered.

It doesn't cost anything to consult with a carpenter. Find a good one in your area. He/she can either design a good, visually interesting molding for on top, or possibly create additional storage - finding a way to complement what currently exists. I'm amazed who ever did the cabinets didn't bring this to your attention, but, there was a time when cabinets were done like that: leaving space above it that owners would put decorative items on.

Consider also painting the walls the same color as the cabinets and it will be less obvious.... White walls hide a lot of imperfection.

Team paint the bulkhead to match the walls.

You don't need to add over-sized molding to the top of the Shaker Cabinets. That will look weird.

You should paint to match the walls as everyone is telling you.

Off the subject but the picture above the sofa in the living room is way too high.

When possible take the cabinets to the ceiling for extra storage of seasonal or seldom used items.

If you want display space then use glass door on the very top cabinets. That way you avoid the dust collecting.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I will paint and have my counters installed and see how it goes from there. Many people have said to paint it the same colour of the wall which is going to be painted a light colour (Dover white or something similar), but if I paint the bulkhead white then it wouldn't be as noticeable, right? Won't it blend with the ceiling?

@leelee the pic is coming down ;)

Before jumping in with the Dover white or similar, please try some samples on the walls esp. near the cabinets. You don't want your whites to fight.

To answer your question about what colour to paint the bulkhead: you don't want it to blend in with the ceiling. It is part of the wall and should blend with the wall :)

Ok thanks

Careful what you block in - that looks like a ventilation outlet above the right hand cabinets. Block that and you could have problems all over the place...

Yes it's some sort of vent, when I took the white cover off there's an aluminum duct. I'll have to check if there's a better looking one I could replace that with

Paint the bulkhead the same color as the wall, for sure. You will scarcely know it is there. As others have said, either use the space above the cabinets to display collectibles, or just leave the space open if you prefer. Either way, it will look nice. If it were my kitchen, I would definitely not paint the wall white. Even if you want to keep it light, at least get some contrast with the cabinets.

Definitely paint bulkhead AND vent cover to match walls. Put some decorative items up (not too many)& you could put a decorative plate or picture (or something that goes with your other items) on front of bulkhead as if it were the wall once it's painted. Here's a pic of stuff above my cupboards. Don't over do it.

My suggestion is for you to put the same tile as your backsplash above the cabinets too. The tile would add both sparkle and a finished modern look.

I think that's a great idea. Makes things less chopped up looking. The area over my cupboards (in pic above) matches my "backsplash" too, but just happens to be grey bead board rather than tile.

Please excuse me. I am confused about what is best under "advice" and what is best under "design dilemma" and how to post in one or the other. Yes, I am a bit of a rube with the Houzz app, but see so much kindness and savvy in the replies, answers, and suggestions.

LYNN G for the win. Best answer in the whole thread.

@elaynemharris the good news is that Design Dilemma is a subset of Advice. There are other topics under advice as well, but this is where you want to be with design type questions. So when you post here in Design Dilemma you are already in Advice. Hope that makes sense!

I agree with leelee. Put some glass cabinets along the top. You'll get the look you want plus some extra storage for decorative items or rarely used items. Personally, I think part of the issue is your trim at the top id a little too small so your eye doesn't stop at the top of the cabinet but goes right to the ceiling accentuating the empty space in between.

Btw - my current and last place I painted Benjamin Moore "Chantilly Lace". It's a wonderful White that is quite neutral - not too blue/stark or to warm/Yellow. Last place I painted the walls, ceiling and cabinets- never tired of it so did it again. Just saying - you're fine matching your wall and ceiling paint to your cabinets - I think it blends well - less choppy and beginnings and endings aren't as noticeable....

Thanks I will look into that colour