Please help. How come no one is commenting? it's been 12 hours. Are i doing this wrong?

You might get more attention if you post in Kitchens with a specific subject line like, "Help me add more storage and counter to my kitchen."

I have a few thoughts:

-I think $1000 to just paint those countertops is ridiculous.

-The double oven and peninsula cooktop is a very bad design

-I'd try moving the fridge to the old pantry wall in the corner area where the depth changes. You could add a 3 ft wide cart or even a new base cabinet to get more counter top where you really need it.

-What is your budget?

I don't understand. I can't even edit my discussion. I thought i put it under kitchens? I may have to do it all over again. Anyways, thank you for replying. I know the layout is pathetic in my kitchen, but it will have to do. If i can just add more counter space it will be okay for the time being. If i purchased boxes, should it be dark or light?

It might be within budget to swap out that weird oven and cooktop think for a range. Don't assume it's not. That's why I asked about budget.

I'm a low-budget person, so please keep this in mind for my post. If you have the budget to swap appliances and move them around and buy a range, etc., go for the great suggestions.

Instead of paying for someone to paint the counter top for $1,000, I recommend using Giani Counter top painting kit for your counter tops. $79.00 plus tax. One kit should do the whole kitchen. You can easily do this yourself. I used this kit to paint some old laminate counter tops in a rental I own. I used the Sicilian Sand color, which came out to look like granite with white, beige, and black, which is a nice neutral look. I even added a veining effect with a small artist paint brush. The counter top came out so well that the property manager was convinced that I had new counter tops installed. The counter top has been in use for three years in a vacation rental that is rented 42 weeks out of the year and I've only had to do one touch-up session on a few spots. This will buy you time to save for a new counter top at some point. At that time, you can change the cooktop or go with a range, etc.

In my rental, I also used General Finishes Gel Stain to stain various tones of wood on picture frames and some furniture pieces to a match some furniture that came with the condo when I bought it. The gel stain is easy to use and looks wonderful. Don't use any other product, this brand is the best and a little goes a long way. For you, I would consider this product in a walnut or mahogany tone for your cabinets to update them, something in a medium brown (there are other colors). Or, you can use one of the products designed to clean and reseal existing stain colors, which would be a lot less work.

I would pick a counter top paint color that you like and then look at Houzz for kitchens with this general counter top color that have wood cabinets and similar-toned flooring. You won't find painted counter tops on Houzz, but you will find granite counter tops that have the same tones and this is what to look at for cabinet color. This might give you an idea of what color of cabinets stain to use. Houzz was invaluable to me to figure out a general color theme for my rentals and now I'm using Houzz to get ideas for my home.

Adding new hardware to your cabinets will also really update your kitchen. That's a cheap improvement too. To me, the black or dark cabinet handles on your cabinets kind of "disappear" and maybe you may want to consider going with a brushed nickle. If so, these are the cheapest handles I've found: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D0KWBJ4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1. These are thick and heavy and really update any cabinet.

For adding counter top space/storage, I'm not sure what you are asking. If it were me, I'd keep that ceiling-height wall oak cabinet in the same spot where it was in the first photo. It already matches the kitchen cabinets. Turn it to face out into the center of the kitchen and maybe add additional base cabinetry to the left of it with a counter top. Try to find a door pattern that is as close as possible to your existing cabinets and if you stain them a similar color, most people won't notice. I found this on Homedepot's website: https://www.homedepot.com/p/American-Woodmark-14-9-16x14-1-2-in-Cabinet-Door-Sample-in-Shorebrook-Painted-Linen-95025/204612629. Maybe this pattern is close enough?

Otherwise, I would texture and paint the new drywall, add a nice piece of artwork and do some sorting and purging of kitchen items to not need the extra storage. Put a small garage can under the sink for trash. I bring my recycling out to the garage.

I hope my suggestions give you some ideas. In my properties, I have used paint and stain to update kitchens enough to give them a new look and a longer life for the time it will take me to save to do a more expensive kitchen remodel. In one case, it took 10 years for me to finally deside to demo an old kitchen and in the current case, the paint/stain method will last about five years before I gut that kitchen.