I don't have any specific color recommendations. I would suggest picking out a few possible stains and having him do up some samples. If nothing seems quite right, I would stick with the painted blue kitchen cabinets and find great uses for the wood throughout the rest of the house. Or possibly do a two toned kitchen.

Pecan is gorgeous wood; how neat that you will use that wood.

Homechef, I'm not going to have painted wood cabinets, so I'm not worried about the wood shrinking and seeing gaps like painted wood cabs can do. When we were having painted cabinets, originally, we were using MDF doors.

My sink is in the island, so I don't want a butcher block countertop. We will have heartpine floors, and I think the wood countertop will be too much.

We have over 980 board feet of the pecan and walnut (using that for our bathroom vanities). In a house planned around many antiques, we just don't have room to use the wood anywhere else except the kitchen.

How about a different thought?

Go with natural stained pecan for the cabinets and put on a blue granite or quartzite countertop.

Or do the island in a painted blue and the perimeter cabinets in the pecan in a natural stain.

Maybe you should do a combination of painted blue cabinets and stained pecan cabinets. I have nothing against colored stains but I don't know that a color would do the pecan any favors.

Blue stained wood is a bad enough idea. Blue stained pecan takes me back to the 80's with Blue Country Geese invading every surface. Horrifying.

Wood should be wood. Not something it isn't. And there is already too much wood happening in your house to add more. Painted cabinets provide relief to the eye from the overly busy clash of grains and tones.

@Sophie, so, throw it out????

Of course don't throw it out. Use it for something else. Just not in the kitchen. Maybe the ceiling in the bedroom. Unless it's already got 3 kinds of wood happening in there.

Lol! Thanks Sophie. I guess we will maybe look at other options.

Putting pecan in any other room will introduce a third wood species. We have heartpine floors throughout the house, even bedrooms. Our bedroom furniture is all antique oak (late 1800s primitive made locally).

The house is a new "old" farmhouse - not Joanna Gaines style.

Milkpaint would be another option that would let the grain show, but break up some of the wood, I think. It may be more authentic,

CP this threw me for a loop. My plan all along has been to have blue painted cabs, plain white counters (silestone) and white appliances.

What about instead of the heart pine floors, using the pecan for the floors? It would be much harder, and more durable.

We only have 980 board ft of the pecan and walnut combined. Not nearly enough for the 2200 sq ft of heart pine we are using throughout the house.

It sounds like there is no real good place for that pecan wood in your home. Why not sell it and put the money you make towards your kitchen project.

I absolutely love blue kitchens, but not so sure about stained. I had a an orangey stained kitchen, so may be biased.

Some pictures below.

This thread has a couple of light stained kitchen cabinets.

[https://www.houzz.com/magazine/8-stunning-stain-colors-for-kitchen-cabinets-stsetivw-vs~7796662[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/8-stunning-stain-colors-for-kitchen-cabinets-stsetivw-vs~7796662)

incl.

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How about a couple nice pieces of custom furniture?

Pal we have tons - up to the gills with antiques.

I talked to DH. I think we are going to leave the cabinets more natural/lighter no blue. Our floors will be a medium to darker shade. I think going that route they won't clash.

We could sell the wood, but it has sentimental value. My great great grandparents planted the tree. I'll figure out some way to make it work.

thanks everyone!

Then look for a blue granite to get your blue. If it's any solice, if I were buying and saw blue cabinets, I'd think what it would cost me to paint them a different color whereas isf I saw beautiful wood cabs, I'd be fine with them

My cabinets are blue, I love them. I posted my kitchen several months back. I can try to bump if you'd like to see them.

Could you have a blue painted island?

Nosoccermom - I'm definitely considering it. My kitchen is a galley (a 14' wall of cabs and a 9' island with sink in the island).

I may end up painting the kitchen blue to break up all the wood.

CP - Since the pecan is a "busy" wood (like rustic hickory), do you think granite would compete with the wood? Or would a more uniform white look better? (I'm looking at Silestone White Zeus which is plain white or Silestone White Storm with has tiny flecks of color) My sink will be a Kohler Whitehaven in either white or seasalt. Silestone has a very pretty bright blue countertop, too.

My cabinet maker can get a good price on Silestone... he was the first place in NC to sell it. So, I've been focusing on their colors for now.

I'd do the pecan cabinets in a natural stain. They will look beautiful. Blue paint can be pretty, but blue stain....I don't know if that would look good. Natural pecan cabinets, with a counter that is not too busy would look beautiful. You can paint the walls blue, if you want some blue in there, or if budget permits, a blue range and/or refrigerator.

If you like a blue stain then do a blue stain. We are in the process of getting custom green stained hickory cabinets. I created a color sample myself by blending General Finishes dye stain and reducer and putting it on wood chips until we had exactly the color we wanted. Don't be concerned about what other people will like or not like, please yourself.

@Mjzman77 - thank you for the encouragement - and for the name of a stain brand. The problem I was running into is online, I was only finding Minwax and Cabot... their blue is hideous looking. Do you mind sending me a pic of your sample?

I love General Finishes products. Speaking of which, they have a custom mixing chart for their milk paints.

http://designs.generalfinishes.com/color-category/color-mixing-lab

BethA-

Example of the stain sample I made and had kitchen design store send to cabinet manufacturer. It is an 8x8 inch piece from a hickory board bought at a hardwood lumber store.

And.. just arrived today after seven weeks. The sample door back from the cabinet company (DeWils in this case.) It is just a touch darker than the sample I sent. I suspect they waited longer to wipe the stain than I did. (and the colors look to me too yellow in these uploaded images, but you get the idea.)

Thats what I had in mind. More of a wash of color, not a bright blue piece of wood. Thank you!

Shiloh cabinets offers a specialty finish in a Colonial Blue. It's called the Olde World finish. It's described as a hand applied finish achieved by dry brushing and wacking the wood best as I could understand. You were looking for photos, inspiration, and I thought it looked like a pretty blue. Maybe Shiloh has some actual kitchen photos. I didn't look through their website. (PS. We have quartersawn white oak cabinets stained in Medallions Coastal Sand color. Weird, I know. ) I agree, don't give up on your vision just yet, just because others aren't enthusiastic about it.

Link to finish photos and description

Thanks Barncatz! I think maybe "stain" isn't really the look I wanted, but I don't have a good grasp of what I want. I think more of a wash or glaze(?) may be what I'm seeing in my head. I really like that colonial blue! It would be perfect if I could still see the grain of the wood.

Why not panel the powder room with the pecan? If there isn't enough, use it as wainscoting in the powder room.

Another option, and I think this is inspired, is to have your front door made from the pecan. It would be beautiful stained. Plus, it your family would be welcoming anyone who crossed the threshold.