I think i must be the only one who likes the floors. Thinking european farmhouse?

It looks like dark painted trim around appliance garage too.

The brick floor will be much more appealing when the mosaic back splash is removed. That is a lot of conflicting rectangles you have going.

Please let us follow your progress.

looks like the trim is breadboard not oak so wouldn't need to strip.

We have similar/the same cabinets but with lighter flooring and counters. Both are on the eventual to do list but this is one of the listing photos from when we bought the house.

Lighting definitely needs improving. Square LED ceiling panels give even light. Take mini subway tiles right to the ceiling so their reflectiveness brightens the who space. Put an oriental runner or two on the floor.

we just checked and the light is framed into the ceiling. will leave a rectangle mark in the ceiling. would need to redo all the ceiling to match:(

when you say, 'mark', what do you mean? like this?

or is it a box like this?? look at this video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdWmFJSV9R0

ideas:

http://www.thekimsixfix.com/2016/05/removing-fluorescent-kitchen-light-box.html

Awe, Marks kinda cute;)!

I have kept my oak cabinets as well as my husband likes them and I couldn't rationale getting rid of solid wood ,up to the ceiling well built cabinets so I redid around them . We removed the light box we had in the ceiling, sheetrocked, taped and bedded and painted. We added ceiling flush canister lights. We painted all the woodwork around the doorways and windows white and added crown molding. We painted the walls 2 shades of blue, one pale and the other wall a deeper blue. We did granite countertops and ran them up the wall so as not to have a competing tile as we really like the color and movement of the granite. We did paint one small group of 3 cabinets white as they are out of the kitchen sort of like the suggestions to paint your island. The floor is the next to install. I have chosen a 12X24 white matte finishwith cream and gray variations throughime. That is to be installed in the next few weeks.I have a lot of blue and white accessories packed away I am including some pictures of what I have mentioned. Good luck. Enjoy your remodel.

Blue is also one of my main accent colors. Blues and creams look well with oak.

Bell just delete the app and go somewhere else. Maybe a man haters site. This is not the place for your ----. It's his AND her house.

Bellburgmaggie! Please stop. I'm sure you are reading too much into a perfectly innocent turn of phrase!!! It's late:(! Night all.

Hey Chris, I'm always looking for a few real "man haters sites" to read, if you know of any please do share!

...Yeah I'll see myself out in a minute though. Lol

The florescent rectangle light in the kitchen at our house wasn't one of those 80's/90's monstrosities (if the kitchen was bigger it might be a different story though) but once it was taken down we had to paint the rectangular area with the 'aged' swiss coffee color that was from the prior occupant. No big deal, still had some of the white paint left over from having the rest of the place repainted. Honestly if the mistake of painting the cabinets in the kitchen hadn't occurred already I'd have kept the wood grain, sanded and some stain - but that was there when I moved in and to fix it wasn't in the budget. I see so many people wanting to paint their cabinets...if you really want lighter colored cabinets then DON'T PAINT - WAIT. Save some money and buy new cabinets in that lighter color if that's what you still want when you have a bit of money to do things and go 'all in'.

In the meantime...Do the small stuff like lighting...Look at DIY options to lighten the look of the floor. You might actually be able to nudge your husband towards the "less oak" look, or you can wait until he goes on some guy outing and take a sledgehammer to those things while he's away. ;) Mine is just relieved to be done with painting samples onto scrap drywall and moving them to the different rooms in our in escrow almost closed new house at various times of the day (with photos taken and then sends them to me as requested. Lol). He still might come home to a mysteriously empty spot where his ugly fave chair used to be. Maybe. I think I might be able to nudge him into getting a new fave chair that is less ugly. In time. :)

If he likes the wood grain, what about gel staining them darker? Then you can use more modern finishes for the pulls,backsplash, counters, etc. and while it makes the cabinets darker, just make everything else lighter.

General finishes makes a great product lots of tutorials and reviews online

Can't believe the hubby comments. Either the oak stays or is painted/refinished. Either way, somebody's gonna win out because you can't do both. DH is allowed an opinion, and OP is allowed to decide this isn't the most important battle to win. I'm more disturbed by those that would sneak around their spouses just to get their way rather than working out a mutually compatible solution.

I am so not a fan of oak, either, but I echo others that the oak is not the biggest problem and can be worked around. The floor doesn't work for me. I would replace or do the whitewash someone else mentioned. The trim is being addressed. The backsplash is emphasizing the oak - changing the backsplash will help immensely. I echo LED lights under cabinets. Change the pulls. If a new counter is in the budget, a lighter counter would really brighten the space. I don't know what the rest of the area is like, but even changing the wall color can have a huge impact on the character of the wood. Nothing I have said is a new idea, but you can add in my votes :-)

The dark mouldings and trim aren't working.

When I built my kitchen, the installer said it would look better with larger moldings at the top of the cabinets. I was convinced and purchased larger moldings - wow - what a difference......thus Amber you might want to consider replacing the moldings with larger ones - someday.

drbarb03 - I love your comments.

That's a good idea shirlpp. It may be worth doing the larger moulding just to avoid the hassle of stripping the existing crown! A larger , matching crown would certainly update! Good call!

Sometimes the guys don't realize how much better things can look in a home, were they to be more flexible about changes. My dad always tells my mom to "Do whatever she thinks will look best as long as she stops with the endless parade of carpet samples, magazines, paint chips and fabric swatches - pick something!"

It's worked for them to do things like that since 1968 and they're in love, happy - one person's sneaky is another person's helpful decor guiding? I think I read somewhere on Houzz that you need to start with a complete home remod/reno/decor plan, then tackle the critical stuff and work your way through the rest!

Your husband must be a Chemical Engineer. I am married to one too and they just cannot will not tear out something that is working really really well. But they do have other sterling qualities. haha

Years ago I had wood cabinets that the previous owner had painted the whole kitchen Tiffany Blue including the under cabinets above the counters...no just no. I bought an antiquing kit for wood and antiqued the undercabinets to match the wood tone cabinet fronts; Rustoleum makes a refinishing kit to do cabinets and also a counter top kit for counters....this might be your answer until you decide on any major changes...my daughter redid her oak cabinets with the rustoleum kit and it was uber easy, just time consuming. But you can check it out online. I think Lowe's and Home Depot carry the kits too and there are alot of colors.

Then I would hire a kitchen designer to help you decide what things should be changed and how to change them to maximize the utmost bang for your buck.

Candice Olson, when she had her TV show on hgtv, remodeled a kitchen that was dated oak. She kept everything in the same position in the kitchen but all new finishes. She replaced the DOORS on the upper cabinets in white shaker style and did the lower cabinets DOORS and the island in a wood tone shaker style cabinet. The finishes were white trim, pale grey walls, multiple greys in backsplash, medium grey quartz on counters, stainless steel appliances and hood, and curtains over sink and on sliding doors in a yellow and white Ikat pattern. Table was wood and dining chairs and bench were white. It was amazing what replacing the door fronts only did to the kitchen.

the problem with changing the colour of the cabinets is that it matches the rest of the oak in the house.. so much oak.. my husband doesn't want me painting them cause hes worried about that all the years of oiling that it will look cheap. replacing the door is an option but im just not sure how it will look against all the oak...

Some people just can't handle change, but with all that wood, some changes are in order. You don't have to change everything, just cleverly selected spots like your kitchen island.

So true Flo. A neighbor remodeled her kitchen a few years ago, replaced the old kitchen cabinets with the same oak, has re carpeted 3 times with the exact same carpet (color, style, etc.) ... she just cannot change, just gets new versions of the same. So it's not just men.

Beth H.'s idea for fixing the light fixture is a good one and would be relatively inexpensive (no wonder she's a "pro"!). Amber, let me be #2 in saying I like your brick floors. If you paint that island white, it'll look great with those floors. Wish you luck with all this--take the good advice and ignore the bad! Whatever makes you happy is what you should do!

Amber- That's not oak, it's pine (or similar).

I don't think that part of those stairs are oak - they look pine - oak does not have all those knots. Would you consider lightening up all the walls? Some people do like those darker tones and I like people to live in the style that suits them, but if this was my home I would start by painting the walls a cream or very light creamy beige and possibly the trim work only white - window and door casings, crown and baseboards. I would not paint nice paneled wood interior doors. They have more value than white MDF doors and are much easier to upkeep.

I am seeing a lot more mid-tone woods in newer designs, and less of the gray / white that has been so popular. If you consider staining cabinets darker with gel stain, think about how it will look with other wood surfaces like beams and interior doors.

Here is the front hall in last season's 2016 This Old House - notice all the mid tone wood:

I have the mix of wood and white in my own home. The white gives brightness while the wood gives warmth. I have wood kitchen cabinets, wood paneled interior doors, three wood bath vanities and the fireplace mantels are wood, but white trim, white built in bookcase, white cabinets in the laundry, one white bath vanity and white beadboard wainscot in various places. I got some of my inspiration from Nantucket type older homes which often have both white and wood and beadboard.

Here are some Houzz photos of mixed white and wood:

This is a bit of my kitchen looking into the family room - shows the white trim with the wood doors. This does look a bit better when the doors are paneled rather than hollow core:

This is my upstairs hall - with the wainscot:

https://www.houzz.com/photos/my-pics-work-in-progress-phvw-vp~88642832

beth h. does it look like they do 2 chair rail boxes? thats genius!!

jhmarie thats a very nice contrast. its all so overwhelming:( we did just have the upper part of the wall painted. it used to be peachy. my hubby really liked the brown bottom so we comprimised.

jhmarie - I LOVED that season of TOH. And I agree, I think it's well-placed inspiration here. Oak in itself doesn't have to be dated, but the yellow-glazed very 80s honey-oak-and-brass finish just isn't coming back, and is very 'of its time.'

The kitchen in that season is one of my favorites because it blends a white painted cabinet with a natural oak cabinet effect to break up the large expanses of cabinetry (and an island so big I could set an ice rink on it) that end up working together beautifully. It's absolutely worth checking out.

And I agree with Flo: with so much grain happening in your home it's a lot of visual texture to take in. Many guys have an unacknowledged wood-grain-means-quality bias, and - God bless 'em - they just want theirs to have the best. I'm sure it all comes from a good place, but compromise will eventually be in order. Cheers!

I've noticed lately that people are updating spaces that have wood trim with white (not cream!) walls and it does seem more modern.

Yes - the yellow tint is not returning, nor the arched doors - which is why I went for a vintage look- and also since I have an older home. The yellowing is partly due to the ambering / yellowing of older oil based finishes. Refinishing the cabinet frame and new doors might be a thought. I love this kitchen below and have considered changing my doors out for this style, but I don't dislike mine, so it presently isn't worth the time or money.

yes the yellow hue of the cabinets is what i hate. they have had many years of oiling. so to redo them might turn out poorly.

i like this look as it would transition well into the rest of the house

Ps a good white with that color wood (for the walls or the island) is SW White Duck. Also SW Incredible White (which is not as white as it sounds). Both soft whites but not creamy.

I notice you have black by your front door. Why not echo that in the kitchen? Either black counters or a black backsplash with whiter more uniform counters.

Check your lighting - the curly Q fluorescents throw out a lot of yellow light. Experiment with some LEDs, move a little away from the "warm" towards the "daylight" - and give it a few days if you change bulbs to get used to the new light. It might seem a bit harsh at first. If it remains harsh feeling, move back towards "warm". I am not an expert in LED - you might talk with someone at a lighting store, but the type of bulb can affect the color tones. The brown is also possibly reflecting golden tones. I noticed when I had dark brown trim that it reflected a gold hue into the room.

so maybe just changing that ugly brown trim could work??

its painted all throughout the cabinets. im thinking of finding a similar colour to the cabibets to make it less noticeable like suggested

truey its the same brown that is on the trim.

Amber, I just saw the pic of your staircase and that is a lot of wood! I can see why you are craving a bit of visual relief! Sigh... are men born with a wood gene? It's not like it's a precious commodity after all... I'm not sure if you are ever planning on remodeling your home in the future but I think some changes in your kitchen were you spend so much time may be a good place to start. That dark taupe color you have on the walls in you house doesn't work for me either. With all that wood I would want more white to brighten my outlook! I don't think I would want the same color wood table either. Try fresher, lighter furnishings to counter all that wood! Maybe a white parsons type table instead of a picnic table. As far as your kitchen goes, i can see that you were trying to match your countertops with that paint color on the island. I don't think your countertop color works that well in here either though so changing both would be a plus! Then you carried that same color onto the trim:(! Beth gave you some good ideas for your lighting so I would do that. You like the beadboard idea so you can do that, I would change the countertops, redo the cabinet crown and get new hardware. Then see how hubby feels about the new, brighter outlook.

If you are not wanting to strip the moulding and staining it you can paint it. It won't look as nice though and the match may not be spot on here are a few ideas.

A light travertine stacked stone would be a nice break from the wood on the back of the island, too. You could continue that look on the backsplash. I would put new larger oak trim stained to match the cabinets, and remove the appliance garage totally - it just looks wrong with the paint on the frame. I, too am a fan of your brick floors, and I can relate to your problem. We just bought a condo that has overkill on oak everywhere, but it is immaculate, so won't be painting or changing it anytime soon. I just have to rethink the "dream kitchen" that I had in mind, and work around it!

Similar to this - or lighter color!

This is what I would like to see for the crown molding.

This color would help to lighten up the island

Men may have a wood gene, but sometimes it is also a practicality gene - and interestingly, in the midwest where I live, there is much less of a feeling that oak cabinets are a problem. I know several people who could afford to change out their similar cabinets, but chose not to - it just isn't important to them to be in the current kitchen style. Men in general are less style conscious and don't see why one should spend money to be current. On the other hand, there can be things about a home which actually cause one to physically feel uncomfortable. I ripped out the plaid wallpaper in the family room before the moving van arrived - I couldn't even sit in the room and be comfortable with it. Same with the old smelly carpet in our first home, and I have difficulty with mosaic backsplash, even when they are quite lovely.

You have been given lots of great ideas. One free idea is turn off HGTV if you watch it a lot. It is a marketing tool designed to make you not like your home and go out and buy stuff. Start with small steps to lighten your space. If your husband likes the wood cabinets, perhaps he would agree to lighter paint for you. If this is a "new to you" home - the business of life will kick in and the cabinet color will be much less important in time.

Amber all that wood around the staircase is knotty pine - NOT oak. I would paint that in a heartbeat. Hubby should really see the benefit in getting rid of that look if he is not into the country look, because that is the effect of knotty pine.

If you can accept the cabinets hubby should accept changing the brown walls. Compromise is a two way street.

drbarb,

"I'm more disturbed by those that would sneak around their spouses just to get their way rather than working out a mutually compatible solution."

Seriously? You have no sense of humor? Now, that disturbs me.

Thanks everyone i have so many ideas now. i think i might be getting somewhere on the husband. he thinks if i paint it it will wear and look horrible in a couple years. and yes he does love the country feel of all the oak. we have agreed to at least talk to an expert about painting. i explained that there is no way to stain the molding to match the cabinets without changing the cabinets. moving in the right direction:) i think i could move his back easily to staining ..

JudyG Designs, I have a fine sense of humor. Your comment was obviously a joke. There were others, clearly not intended as jokes, that appear to have been deleted since I made my comment. That said, the reason my kitchen has skylights is because the couple who previously owned the house disagreed about installing them - the kitchen is in the middle of the house with no windows (light feeds from dining room) so she wanted them, while the husband didn't because of the risk of leaks - so she had them installed without his knowledge while he was out of town on business. They laugh about it now but said it was not so funny at the time. (The skylights have never leaked, by the way!) So I am fine with joking about it but stand by my comment that it should not be a serious idea. Communication is always the best solution. It sounds as though OP and her hubby are doing just that and hopefully will embrace some of the great ideas that have been shared.

good thing they never leaked or she would never hear the end of that one;)