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Help me get rid of my honey oak kitchen...please!

9 years ago
I have lived with shiny honey oak kitchen cabinets for 15 years and have hated them for about, um...15 years. I've finally convinced my husband that they are orange and ugly. At long last, he's on board for a kitchen cabinet reface, new backsplash, new countertops, new stainless appliances, the works! His only stipulation is that he wants stained wood, not painted. I'm happy to oblige but I'm completely paralyzed by all the choices of stained wood, countertops, backsplashes, etc. So, I'm hoping this knowledgeable group of people could look at my pictures and suggest some ideas of what could look good in my space. I just need some ideas to help get me unstuck and moving forward. Oh, one more fact about my ugly orange kitchen--It has beautiful granite floors. The floor is a major focus point and what I think I should design around (right?). Remember, I can't alter the kitchen layout because of the permanent floor and hubby hates any kind of painted wood. Please help me! I don't want to screw up my one and only chance at a beautiful kitchen.

Comments (22)

  • 9 years ago

    Black cabs, white counters, very quiet grey backsplash (just like the one you have, in fact). Paint the walls and door trim to match the backsplash.

    Sophistication & Style in Etobicoke · More Info

  • 9 years ago

    PS congratulations! :)

  • 9 years ago

    Hi Twink, this is a big moment for you! I checked to see if you had any ideabooks, and that would be a great start. What type of kitchen do you want? I know it's overwhelming, but you have to start somewhere. :)

  • 9 years ago
    Thanks Lindsey for the photo idea for my kitchen. Just the kind of input I'm looking for.
  • 9 years ago
    Thanks for responding Northpoint2. Trying to figure out how to answer your question about what I want from my kitchen. There are lots of looks I dream about, but I have a kitchen that is small and has a permanent layout. The main opportunity that I have now is to change the color of everything. Since I can't have one of those glorious beautiful gigantic kitchens that I drool over on Houzz, I would just like to have the best little kitchen I can have. One where the colors all work together. One that gives me a sense of peace while I'm cooking. One that doesn't make me feel nauseous. : /
  • 9 years ago

    It's happening! Hang in there and no more nausea!!

    If it helps, I filtered to "marble floors" (because granite wasn't an option) in the kitchen area of Houzz. I used the key words "black cabinets" but if you don't like the idea of black you could leave that out. You can also add the filter "compact" but in general I don't find the size filter to help much, as I am usually just looking for a feel, so to speak.

  • 9 years ago
    I'm going to through you a curve ball, replace the cabinets on top so they go all the way to the ceiling. Refacing is as expensive as replacing the cabinets. I'd strongly consider whether you really like the boxes as is. I had that exact same kitchen and I absolutely hate cabinet doors, so the only ones i have are above my stove and under my sink. The rest are drawers. I'm in love with drawers, so much easier to store stuff. A beautiful walnut would look great with your floors - but plan on updating the lighting to LED. Congrats on getting a new kitchen, just get what you want and don't be married to anything, including a floor. When it was all said and done, my kitchen went down to the studs and floor joists.
  • 9 years ago

    Here are a few ideas for you to think about....I also think you should hire a kitchen designer to hold your hand so you and your husband can make decisions you both agree on and even decisons where you will disagree so you both have input.....it is a very stressful undertaking and there will be glitch and a thousand questions and you sound so excited, so this should be a time where a pro can keep you both focused on the outcome. Anyway here are some pics that might work.....as a starting point.

    The cabinets below are most likely painted black, but you can stain the grain a deep dark color, it need not be black or ebony, but it is a cool look and will give your the feeling of dark stained cabinets and some ideas for you new room

    1. This is new looking with the pot lights, and the lighted glass upper cabinets and the unexpected, the beautiful wood chopping block.

    KitchenDesigns.com - Kitchen Designs by Ken Kelly - Rockville Center, NY CA1302 · More Info

    2. Doors removed for an open feel two tones on island and perimeter counter

    Morrison Supply - Fort Worth · More Info

    3. Deep cherry with black accents white walls or in your case the lightest tone in the granite flooring, uber chic lighting.....oh, and you might want to raise the ceiling?

    Renaissance Solid Bronze Windows & Doors www.solidbronzewindows.com · More Info

    Traditional cabinets with modern pulls and contrast granite on island with live edge I think it is called.

    Marchvale Kitchen · More Info

    Pots and glass front cabinets and custom hood.

    Marble - White Carrara · More Info

    Big open glass cabinets, and possibly a faux stone on the walls?

    Spring Branch Kitchen · More Info

  • 9 years ago
    Thanks Susan for taking the time to find pictures for me. I'm definitely seeing a dark wood/black theme emerging. It seemed to me that darker cabinet colors would coordinate very nicely with the floor, but I was worried that I'd be breaking some "small kitchen rule" if I choose a dark color instead of a lighter color?
  • 9 years ago

    I am seeing a lot of light white oak - rift sawn, so not with a lot of grain, in newer designs.

    Here it is on the island done in the 2016 season of This Old House:


    Here it is in a 2017 show home:


    I often see it combined with white cabinets, but I have also seen it used for all the cabinets - including in a Parade Home I viewed a few weeks ago. This is not the Parade Home, but is similar:


    I believe this warm tone is coming back in part because marketers have to keep changing things up but also, some just aren't liking the cool gray / white kitchens, especially in cooler climates and prefer warm tones.

    Here it is again in a new design pic:


    I'll be back with something different.

  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    love the idea of the black, and walnut. couple of issues:

    if you are refacing, that means the boxes will all have to be stripped, sanded and stained to match the new oak. Since hub wants stained wood, and you have oak boxes, then getting walnut doors isn't going to jive. So perhaps getting all new uppers (that way you could go to the ceiling) . The other option if you went with, say walnut, you could have the existing boxes done with a walnut veneer. they'll just glue a veneer piece on the upper sides and frames to match your doors/drawers. Again, get a pricing on this as opposed to new cabs altogether.

    If you want to stay w/the oak, this what an ebony or Java would look like (I like the wood grain) and what it would like in a smaller kitchen. And it's fine as long as you have plenty of light and do a lighter countertop.

    Replacing all of the uppers w/new cabs and refacing the lowers and doing a veneer to match, on the end panels and inner framing, may be the way to go.

    so if you decide to get all new uppers but stay with oak, a gray stain would also look great w/the granite floor. I actually love the looks of these and would try and talk hub into replacing everything. you'll still be able to keep the floor if demo is done carefully.

    adding onto the tops of the uppers is pretty simple for any carpenter. Since everything will be re-stained, he could do these in a white oak.

    you can do it like this and make additional cabinets, open cabinets, or close it off so it's added molding and crown


  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Someone a few week ago posted a black island and said it showed a lot of dust and scratches - sort of the same problem people are having with dark floors, so do some research before going very dark.

    Maple is a pretty wood, but it yellows over time and can stain poorly - depends on who is doing the staining. Cherry can be beautiful, though it does have red undertones. Alder wood is popular especially for more rustic kitchens - it has knots like pine, and like pine can be difficult to stain without splotchiness. Hickory has lots of tone variation and also is a good choice if you like a rustic look.

    One type of wood kitchen I personally like a lot is the craftsman style. It doesn't tend to look dated because it already evokes a style from the past. Here are some I really like:

    This one may be too close in color to what you have now - but it looks browner to me. I would have used a lighter countertop:)

    This is a kitchen that I have wanted to copy myself. I like its craftsman / vintage appeal:

    If you want to go dark, but maybe not black, here is a darker wood cabinet - a bit of a farmhouse like look:

    My own kitchen looks similar to your present kitchen - I played up the vintage style:

    [https://www.houzz.com/photos/my-pics-work-in-progress-phvw-vp~93784356[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/my-pics-work-in-progress-phvw-vp~93784356)

    If I changed the doors, I would look to see if I could do something like the second craftsman style pic I posted. I do have the Kohler Whitehaven "short apron" style farm house sink, which can be installed on a standard sink base cabinet. It is cast iron, but the Kohler Vault, which is stainless, also comes in a "short apron" style and can also be installed on a standard sink base cabinet.

    One thing that can make a small kitchen pretty is a pretty hood. If you can live with a smaller countertop microwave, or have it retrofitted into a different cabinet, you can get a stained wood hood with insert, or for a more contemporary style, a stainless hood.

  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    The color isn't bad, I think its the arch and the counter tops that look bad. Those white commercial looking doors look hideous for a kitchen. Change them with oak doors that have privacy glass. Unless they go outside then get proper entry doors.

    Its funny you say the floors are beautiful cause many on this site would consider them "dated" as well. I love them though. A little to busy for my liking but they are quality and REAL. Which to me is more important. Not this cheap fake modern garbage.

    Its hard to see but the door trim doesn't look like oak. It looks like cheap pine stained to look like oak. So either change it to real oak or go the cheap route and paint it white.

  • 9 years ago

    I vote for walnut cabinets. Enjoy the process!

  • PRO
    9 years ago

    I love those black looks posted earlier. With great lighting and brushed gold drawer handles and other gold accessories it would be stunning! But great lighting is a must. That floor is really quite wonderful. Embrace it and make it your own. It can be really fabulous!

  • 9 years ago
    I would do dark cabinets that match the accent on your floor, but not black. Choose a granite to match your floor, Saint Cecilia would be perfect. A lighter color backsplash. Then add undercabinet lighting and recessed lighting in the ceiling, because if you are going with dark cabinets, new lighting will be a must, and worth the investment

    I know everyone here is anti soffit, but in many instances, like with mine, there's stuff up there, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and removal is not possible. And it's ok if you don't remove them
  • 9 years ago

    I agree recessed lighting with a dimmer switch would help immensely if you choose darker cabinetry. Also, if you decide to replace the upper cabinets, I agree with the previous commenter that taking them to the ceiling is a great option. When our designer first suggested it, I thought it would be ominous and overkill, but it actually made the ceiling feel higher. You can put glass doors on some of the cabinets to keep the kitchen from feeling closed in. And, I was wrong about overkill, too. We use every square inch of it. : )

  • 9 years ago

    This is a natural walnut cabinet. I think it would look wonderful with your granite floors.

  • 9 years ago
    Thanks for the suggestion Katinparadise. There have been several votes for walnut. It certainly is a beautiful wood. If I went with natural walnut cabinets, what countertop and backsplash do you think would coordinate well with the floors?
  • 9 years ago

    I would stay very neutral with countertop and backsplash since your floors are the star. Either a solid quartz if it's in the budget or another solid surface like Corian possibly in one of the lighter colors of your granite. Then you could add the same backsplash in quartz or something clean and simple. I'm sure you have a budget for the project (there aren't too many of us that don't!) so I would wait to see what cabinets are going to cost before you decide on anything else. Your kitchen is very similar to mine in size and layout and when I redid mine last year, my level 2 granite cost $2500 fabricated and installed. Quartz would have been double that. My cabinets were just under $10K and they are 36" stained maple with solid slab doors and lots of drawer bases and pullouts with soft close, full extension drawers. I didn't change my floors either and all said and done with everything, including stainless appliances, new sink, garbage disposal, faucet, and backsplash, I ended up just under 19K. I live in Southwest Florida in a MCOL area just to give you a reference.

  • 9 years ago

    Have you considered a bigger window, a closet pantry to minimize cabinets?. Love your granite floors.. One suggestion is to go to a granite showroom, they are really helpful when pairing cabinet, counter and floor colours..