Ooops, sorry. I see from the top photo your hood vent is housed in those cabinets.

Yes to the white cabinets. I hope the paint under the cabinets and above now match. SS is neither here nor there in "looking better" it will look more industrial. Not sure that is the same vibe as white cabinets. Deal with the hardware after you paint.

I would remove upper cabinets above the island, ( get a nice island hood) remove the appliance garage under the microwave and the divider piece next to the door. I had my cabinets painted white several years ago, and loved it, but I do think that trend is a bit over done now.

dishwasher and fridge appear to be older models. I would go and shop and look at those two items.....the French door fridges now are close to drool-worthy …...establish what you would spend for new[good] dishwasher and fridge....and see what is left in budget. You mention avoiding major remodel. If money permits I would add a great backsplash..... I would leave the cabinets and venting hood as is, until further down the road and a bigger remodel occurs. I see the wall where microwave is located as a good place for a range and hood....and that's what I would do....but that is a remodel of your space.

Removal of the cabinets over the peninsula is a huge change in how the kitchen will look and I for one think the finish on the cabinets is a very dated look so I would paint them for sure, I am glad all the appliances will be stainless. The bonus will be a much better venting system for the cooktop with an island hood.

unless you are replacing your cooktop as well, i'd not replace *working* appliances with stainless. you can transition as they die.

as far as removing the over peninsula cabinets, you'll have an issue with where they hit the upper wall cabinets. you could remove those also... the ones to the left of the sink window... and have an amazingly open look compared to now.

Thank you for all of the great advice! This kitchen hasn't been remodeled since 1994. The appliances are still working (well one of the two wall ovens is working and the cooktop keeps clicking to ignite after the gas is lit but I turn the igniter on and off with a smart plug and Alexa for now). But they are 24 years old and I am researching to replace them since they will likely break any day now. The fridge is built-in so that will be the most expensive thing to replace. We are likely going to go with the LG Studio stainless steel line, it's mid-range price for built-ins. It looks like there is a consensus to paint the cabinets and remove the cabinets above the cooktop. I don't think that should cost that much to do and my husband wanted to do that, I was just concerned about losing cabinet space and what the hood would look like. I would need to find an island hood that we would like. I like the idea of pendant lights too, maybe one would fit next to the island hood with the cabinets gone.

off topic -- are your counter stools bar height (as opposed to counter-height stools)? They look a little tall for the counter they are at. Maybe it is just the photo.

The counter stools were the previous owners. We don't have them. The pics are from when the house was for sale but the only things we have done in the kitchen since buying the house are repainting the walls, refreshing the ceiling paint and updating the ceiling lights.

Got it. They maybe were used for staging the photos.

"...there is a consensus to... remove the cabinets above the cooktop... I was just concerned about losing cabinet space..."

To make up for lost storage, you could fill in the seating overhang space at the aisle end of the peninsula (not a good spot for a counter seat) with a base cabinet constructed with the same wood and door/drawer profile. Once the cabinets are painted, no one will ever know.

Do you have ROTs (roll out trays) in any of your base cabinets? There are a number of aftermarket options in wood or metal that would improve storage capacity and utility.

For the best results, hire a cabinet painting professional and request that they use catalytic conversion varnish. This will cost more but the finish will wear much better than a cheap paint job.

"I like the idea of pendant lights too, maybe one would fit next to the island hood with the cabinets gone."

I'm not sure that you have enough room to mount an island hood *and* pendants over the peninsula. I think it will end up looking crowded and cluttered, especially if you follow recommended guidelines and install an island hood that is 6" wider than the cook top for best grease and odor capture.

i don't think you have room for pendants either. here is our island hood.

We have the electricals for pendants and then decided there was no space for them, so have two covered boxes on the ceiling and a switch-to-nowhere on the wall.

Thank you lisa_a and ninigret for the pictures! They help me visualize what the change may look like. The idea of adding cabinets underneath at the end of the peninsula is a good one. We do have four large roll out trays in the base cabinets so that helps. Good to know about the hood size recommendation too, I didn't know it should be 6" larger than the cooktop. Would the island hood extend lower than the current hood/cabinet level or be at the same height? I would rather have it as much out of the way as possible.

You're welcome!

"Would the island hood extend lower than the current hood/cabinet level or be at the same height?"

Depends on hood specs. I looked at 2 different Zephyr island hoods (Milano and Duo) for you. One's height range was 26"-34" above the counter, the other was 24"-36". But I've also seen hoods that limit mounting height to 28" above the counter.

If you decide to paint your cabinets white and replace your appliances with stainless steel ones you could consider using a stainless steel mosaic tile for your backsplash to bring together your cabinets, appliances and dark granite countertops. Here are some ideas:

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Random Mix Steel - Glass II Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Cobble Stainless Steel With White Glass Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Stainless Steel And Crackled Glass Mix Tile · More Info

Here is an idea if you decide to stay with your oak cabinets:

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: River Rock Pattern Mosaic Stainless Steel Tile · More Info

We are a premium online supplier of metal mosaic tiles for backsplash and other wall applications. If you are looking for ideas, feel free to browse our customer installations for metal backsplash ideas:

http://www.houzz.com/projects/72838/eden-mosaic-tile-installations

You can also check out our Houzz store at:

https://www.houzz.com/pro/edenmosaictile/eden-mosaic-tile

We offer the possibility to receive samples.

Good luck with your kitchen design!

If you’re not replacing the countertops, then I would leave the backsplash as is. If you remove the granite backsplash, there may be a gap which the tile wouldn’t cover.

thanks for the comments, I was wondering if backsplash would work with the granite backsplash. We are going to hold off on changes to that since I eventually may want to switch out the countertops in the future.

if you need additional storage when you remove the upper cabinets can you get rid of the small counter space next to the door and make it a floor to ceiling cabinet? I think it would make that wall look better too.

You may install our backsplashes above a baseboard if this is what you meant. Please see below some of our customers' installations to give you some examples:

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Penny Round Pattern Mosaic Stainless Steel Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Cobble Stainless Steel With White Glass Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Brick And Square Pattern Stainless Steel Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Random Mix Steel - Glass II Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: River Rock Pattern Mosaic Stainless Steel Tile · More Info

Eden Mosaic Tile Installations: Black/Silver River Rock Stainless Steel Tile · More Info

Putting tile above the kind of backsplash you have is a dated look and generally not recommended from a design perspective...make it one or the other. If new counters are something you are considering in the future, I would not waste $ on backsplash tile even if you take out the existing pieces of backsplash. Put up tile if and when you change your counters so you can coordinate them and not be limited in either choice. If you do decide to put up tile, a busy mosaic look is also somewhat dated.

Hey S S,

i definitely think that changing out the hardware would help in updating the kitchens look! You should check out Century hardware! Century has a large collection of Stainless and Satin Nickel hardware that i think would look great in your kitchen! Best Wishes!

Gallery · More Info

Belvedere 4" c.c. Pull - Matte Satin Nickel · More Info