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blank slate kitchen remodel

7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago

We are renovating our downtown Cincinnati urban home, and am currently focusing on the kitchen. The house was built in the mid 1840's, and had a minimalist style renovation done in the early 2000's. We currently have an ikea sink base, set of drawers and one upper cabinet. It has a lovely red and black 12" vinyl floor, bold red accent wall, with other walls blah beige, with black strip at the top of the wall. It is truly a blank slate kitchen renovation.


The kitchen is decent sized, 12X14, ceiling height is 8'. The room has 3 windows, but because of the urban environment, not a lot of natural light. There are stairs that are open, with an exposed brick wall. The wall is visible in the kitchen, but does not feel like it is part of the kitchen when you are in.


It will have wide plank pine floors, and a 36" cobalt blue Blue Star range. I had initially planned on used a Blue Star hood, style bonanza, also cobalt blue. The Bonanza style hood is designed to use a cabinet above it, but realized the slope of the ceiling there is only 8" of space above the range. If I cannot figure out how to make the bonanza hood, work, I will likely go with a chimney style stainless hood instead. All other appliances will be stainless. The countertops will be Giotto quartzite, white with blue veining. For lighting, will have LED wafers, under cabinet with 2 pendants over the peninsula area.


I need to choose the cabinet color. I wanted to go with a custom yellow cabinet, but it is above the budget limit, so need to choose between white, off white or gray. I really want the cobalt blue range to pop. I think white cabinets maybe the safest choice, particularly when it comes time to choose paint and tile, but am looking for advice from the wise Houzz folks. Any help or guidance is much appreciated.

Comments (38)

  • 7 years ago

    Cobalt blue Bluestar range .... swoon. I would think a nice white, but not too stark would be great. Something more like Dove White or Swiss Coffee from BM or Farrow and Ball's Wimborne would be good companions for that cobalt blue hunk.

    CAT R thanked Rita / Bring Back Sophie 4 Real
  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Pale gray would be good with he blue too. I looked at google images and it was a cool look. th e luce stood out, but without a glaring contrast. Your quartzite is divine too.

    CAT R thanked Zalco/bring back Sophie!
  • 7 years ago

    The cabinet supplier adjusted the yellow cabinet price, making them in the running...what do you think of yellow cabinets with a cobalt blue range?


  • 7 years ago

    While I love yellow and blue, I think that could be a bit much. I Googled yellow kitchen cabinets and cobalt blue range and only found one kitchen with that combination and I did not care for it. It seemed like the yellow cabinets and the blue enamel range were competing against each other.


    CAT R thanked Rita / Bring Back Sophie 4 Real
  • 7 years ago
    Yellow & blue together will look classic French Provençal. If you love that look, go for it. It’s very warm & inviting if you do it right.
    CAT R thanked Margaret Schultz
  • 7 years ago

    I Googled "cuisines en provence" and found some yellow and blue color schemes. Though rarely was that color scheme used in hard finishes- except for a few kitchens with yellow cabinets and blue trim. Of course there are tons of provençal linens in blue and yellow, which look very fresh and inviting.

    CAT R thanked Rita / Bring Back Sophie 4 Real
  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    White cabinets.

    CAT R thanked suezbell
  • 7 years ago

    But.....I fell HARD for the yellow cabinets! And, they are a soft, buttery yellow, not the "in your face yellow!


    I will take pictures today when we are at the Stone Studio with the cabinet options. And then make an unemotional decision!

  • 7 years ago

    Post pictures and you can have more informed opinions and a lot more of them here.

    I love yellow cabinets, too, and if I were doing a gas range, wouldn't hesitate to do a blue one with them.

  • 7 years ago

    I am an idiot. I drank the Houzz Cool-Aid and thought that the only way to think about whether or not something would look good would be to see a picture of it.

    Blue and yellow, one of the most classic combinations, and I looked at what other people had done to see if it worked. How unimaginative can you be? Of course buttery yellow cabinets and a cobalt blue range will look good. In fact that combination will look amazing, and will never look dated, because it is the definition of classic.

    My apologies for the glaring lapse in judgment.

  • 7 years ago

    you're just looking for finish input, or are you still working the layout?

    also, I think blue and yellow is even better with some brick in the mix! :)

    a few favorite pics, just to help ideas gel:


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    Hope this helps! sounds like some fun possibilities brewing...

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    Look into the possibility of installing unfinished cabinets and then have a painter finish on site. Also some custom cabinet shops are comparable in cost to the major cabinet supplier and offer more of a color range.

    CAT R thanked Carpentry Consultants LLC
  • 7 years ago

    Thank you Rita for a much needed perspective in this forum. Every so often, it's great to take a step back.


    And as always, kitchen design is very subjective. If CAT loves the color scheme, they should absolutely go for it. "White" is the safe choice. It's great for flippers. But if you actually plan on living in the house, make it yours. Sounds as if this is going to be an amazing space.

  • 7 years ago

    Agree you should make your home your own and that you should choose the colors you like.

    I spent my teen years in a farm style home with an "eat in" kitchen with the walls painted a bright bold (slick) satin) (jarring) yellow. Kitchen cleanup was usually my job. That kitchen had a walk in pantry so it had only a few cabinets and very little countertop space. The wide white double sink had drainboards on each side -- all one unit. All the appliances were white, including the washing machine which was also in the kitchen and doubled as countertop space. Not my favorite kitchen (except the food smells when there were family gatherings) but kitchen tends to be what I think of when someone suggests a yellow kitchen.

    With a different kind of kitchen and a different yellow color , I might even be able to like it. The rest of us have opinions that may be based on our own prior experiences that wouldn't .

    Follow your own instincts.


  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago





    Well, here are pictures taken outside at the Stone Studio of the quartzite, cobalt blue range sample and the cabinets. The white and off white cabinet did not work. It made the beautiful quartzite look gray. The yellow looked ok, the gray a bit better. However, when I got the cabinet samples inside at the house, the yellow looked much better. I am going to go to the BM decorating center on Monday to see if the designer has a better color option than these 2.

  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Are you only looking for aesthetic comments and not overall layout, etc.? I'm asking b/c you said "blank slate" and that usually means layout, not aesthetics (and nothing chosen/decided yet). (You seem to have settled on several items, so it's not a "blank slate"!)

    That's OK, I'm just checking to be sure you aren't asking for more technical help as well.

  • 7 years ago

    I am settled on the blue star, pine floors, layout and as of today, the quartzite. Got to start somewhere! If I choose the stock cabinets, the gray is the color. If I choose the yellow, they are custom and color options are nearly endless. I fell in love with the yellow at the cabinet store, but just because I am in love, it doesn't mean it is right for me now.


    I have made errors in color selection in the past. Lead time for the custom is 6 weeks, so have about 6 weeks to make the best choice.


  • PRO
    7 years ago

    Both colors are really beautiful... I fell like the gray cabinets will have a more contemporary feeling and should be decorated as such and the yellow feels a little more traditional...

    Love the blue stove!!!

  • 7 years ago

    Thank you!

  • 7 years ago

    Beautiful kitchen! Her space is larger than ours. I was counseled by our realtor to keep it "urban and trendy", based on the location of the home. Everything is saying, do the gray. I hope I can find a yellow solution.


  • 7 years ago

    Are you planning to leave in a year or two? Because "trendy" may be something totally different five years from now, you know.

    CAT R thanked writersblock (9b/10a)
  • 7 years ago

    I think the gray feels a bit chilly with your other finishes, so I like the yellow in your sample cluster. This is going to be a very personal kitchen with the stove anyway, so I'd do the color you really like. You can keep it urban without its being cold.


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    We need to involve the flooring with these choices, though!! Could really swing the decision.

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    I love the quartzite and the blue range, but the yellow looks off. If you don't want gray, what about green? That might work great with the gray/blue.

  • 7 years ago

    They are some veins of yellow in the biatto quartzite. Lots of dark blue veins. Green might work!


  • 7 years ago

    Floors will be wide plank pine. In the living room and dining room are the original pine floors from the 1840's. The new floor in the kitchen will compliment them, but luckily will not be immediate to the original floors.


  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    there are so many great color combos.

    what if you did the black range, and chose butter yellow cabinets, or gray cabinets, or the white cabinets w/a cobalt blue island?




    blue and white cabs



    or more of a french blue?









    CAT R thanked Beth H. :
  • PRO
    7 years ago

    With all due respect I'm confused as to what look you're going for. The color choices are cool tones with grey

    & cool grey tones with warm yellow

    & a blue stove

    By any chance, have you found any photos of kitchens you adore yet?

    If so, please post. It may help other Houzzers understand,so we can help you reach your dream kitchen goals.

    Another question, do you want a warm color toned kitchen or a cool toned kitchen?

  • 7 years ago

    I want to warm up the space.

  • 7 years ago

    That slab is gorgeous! I am not a fan of that particular yellow paint color with the slab. Since you are open to possibilities, take a paint deck and the range sample to the slab yard and play with different color combos. Maybe yellow is too warm...did you try light greiges?

  • 7 years ago

    I am not a greige fan, but will look at all colors tomorrow with the decorator. Thanks.

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    Some warm yellow kitchen examples

    CAT R thanked Business_Name_Placeholder
  • 7 years ago

    These give me hope. Thanks

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    I love those yellow kitchens. Most of the yellows are much more saturated than the one you were considering, which gives more contrast and impact.

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    I grew up in a house with yellow kitchen cabinets, and brown wallpaper with flowers on it. It was the 1950's and my mother was heavily into the "early American" look. The yellow was a mid-range one.

    I have a good friend on Martha's Vineyard who has light buttery yellow cabinets like your sample. She has used them with soft greens. That color does NOT work well with gray marble or a bright blue range.

    Yes, you could paint your cabinets a bright provencal yellow, but does that really go with the rest of your house? I don't think so. I have a friend in Chicago who bought a blue range and she painted her old cabinets a Farrow & Ball color that is sort of a gray - Cornforth White - and she put in soapstone countertops and integrated sink. It looks terrific. Her house is an old Victorian in an old suburb - very in keeping with the age of the house.

  • 7 years ago

    Adjusted plan - I am looking at cesari gray quartzite for the counters. The slabs are have veins of gold and blue-gray, with the background taupe, rather than stark grayish-white. This quartzite is warmer, and provides more of a contrast. Thoughts?


  • 7 years ago


    Not the greatest light for a photo

  • 7 years ago

    I have abandoned the lighter color quartzite. I have looked at a variety of quartzite slabs, cesari gray, sea pearl, and think soapstone maybe the best option with a creamy wall color and matte cream 3x9 back splash. Sound better than the whitish-gray Giotto quartzite?