If it were me I would get be cabinet fronts / paint what you have and be backslash. If it were me I would try to make the counters work with everything else and that's a more expensive thing to replace. But I don't know your budget and how much you care. Everything looks like it's in prefect condition and I don't know that it's really worth it to do anything at all. But that's obviously up to you

And definitely paint the walls to get away from the yellow beige feel

Update backsplash and remove cabinet above peninsula. Agree with change the wall color. Everything else looks good. Depending on how much space you have, in the longer term I'd look into swapping out the peninsula for a free-standing island.

i'd not like the cabinets over the peninsula... removing those would make a very different feel in the room. actually, i dont get the peninsula.... its just seating... no cabinets on one side?

what is your budget? do you prefer a stained wood cabinet or painted? The backsplash would be the easiest project if you wanted to do a little updating. Paint is another. There is lots that you can do so it really depends on budget and size of project you want to take on.

We have budget to paint, redo tiles/blacksplash, update light fixtures, change knobs, maybe change the cabinet doors - but probably not to completely replace the cabinets or the granite. I added one more pic with an alternate angle. We are definitely open to removing the cabinets over the peninsula. @ninigret One side of the peninsula has cabinets (the other side not captured in the pics).... no idea why they put seating on all sides. Can you restain these? Is that a pain or super-expensive? I would be open to either, but figured painting would be easier.

you might have to space to put in an island...remove peninsula and cabinet above it. Measure and post your overall dimensions. The space looks large. I like the glass cabinet above the peninsula.....but a new configuration with an island with better seating might also work with perimeter left intact. That would be a big plus ..… your style preferences, or something close, could be given their place in an island and the focus would shift to this new aspect .

@herbflavor I don’t have exact dimensions but here is a floor plan if that helps

While the glass cabs are lovely, having them over the peninsula make the kitchen look visually closed off. If you take them down, can they be repurposed somewhere else?

Have you moved into this house yet or have just recently moved into it? If you are just moving in I would wait a yr before you do anything. Live in it and find out what are the actual shortcomings are. During this time, you can do your research. put together a plan and a realistic budget. I've done this for all 7 homes I've lived in and what I found out was what I thought I wanted to do initially usually changed by the end of the 1st yr and what I ended up doing and choosing I liked better. It also gave me the opportunity to save more money so I could either up-grade the products or it allowed me to do more. In the long run it saved me money as I loved what I did and didn't have any regrets or thoughts of "when I get more money, I'll change that." Plus, the 1st yr a new house always has some surprises that take some money to take care of no matter how good the inspection. And the year does fly by. Now if you've lived in it and know all the short-comings sorry for my rambling on and on...

That said, I would leave the cabinets alone since they are in perfect condition and painting them will not give you a factory top coat which helps with the wear. And painting them is not going to make them look more contemporary as the style of the cabinet fronts lean more towards traditional and painting them will make them look more so. And your countertops are not going to work well with gray, white or blue. It looks like cabinet colors to work with the countertops would lend itself more into the cream or black family. Or the other option if you feel you can't live with the color of the cabinets is to stain them. Go a bit darker so you have more contrast with the floor but it would still work with the counters. And though you will loose the top coat, the stain will be more forgiving than paint. You ask how easy and cost? Do your research. If you want to do it yourself, search the internet for how to do it. If you want Professionals to do it, get some out to give you a quote. But before you do, it is always good to research it so that when you do talk to "professional" you'll know the right questions to ask.

Consider replacing the range with a slide-in type as the look of what you have now isn't so much dated as it is not looking as expensive as the kitchen itself. Also, as others have mentioned a new backsplash will really make a difference.

the value of the small peninsula wall is too minor. I'd take it out and redo your space. When you exit the garage thru service door..you then open another door into home? is that right....? So that ends up three doors across the front of the house? I think I'd try for a garage door that exits out the end of the house [left side area] as in a real "service" door. Then an interior garage door coming direct in to home..... and how about something like a drop zone/small mudroom/closet /cubby holes[area left of kitchen] …. then remove the peninsula partition wall and get a better kitchen that people aren't always coming thru from garage. There is a lot going on at the front of your home and I'd look at traffic flow. Kitchen is part of that. Just depends on what you wish for your goals/budget.

I like your cabinets! The thing that really dates your kitchen is that phone on the wall with the curly cord. Yikes. Seriously, I think paint and a new backsplash would go a long, long way. Maybe a pretty new faucet and light fixture for the sink as well. I wouldn't go through the pain and expense of majorly renovating that kitchen.

Assuming you have lived in the house for a while and know that a whole gut isn't in your near future, this is what I would do.

Remove the peninsula. There's no storage there and to me it's kind of strange to have seating on both sides. I would also remove the cabinets above it.

We would need measurements, but it looks like there could be enough room for an island. There's plenty of threads on proper clearances needed so I won't rehash the details.

I would paint the trim around the kitchen window white since it looks like the window trim in the eat in area is already white. I would also replace the lights above the kitchen window.

The countertops aren't terrible, but I'd replace them with either a dark brown or black quartz or granite. A new backsplash would then be a given but it would depend on what counters were chosen.

Your kitchen has a lot going for it. Some fairly easy changes would be: remove upper cabinets over peninsula; replace hardware with all pulls instead of knobs; retile backsplash with a more simple design; replace light over sink; add a rug in front of the sink; remove the chatchkey on the upper cabinets over the stove; lighten the look of the dark wood beams. Good luck!

The only thing that needs to be done ...to modernize your kitchen ....is to remove the wall and peninsula and convert to a big island...

Thanks everyone, these are all really great ideas to consider. We haven't moved in yet so we are going to consider all of these ideas as we figure out a long term plan!!

Backsplash and countertops to be replaced. Do not touch the cabinets. Change the bathroom looking light fixture over the sink and paint the walls. Start there and you will be amazed at the transformation. Just take a cabinet door with you everywhere so when something catches your eye you have it with you!

Your kitchen is beautiful! I would not paint or stain the cabinets, but that is just me. I would paint and redo the backsplash.

For the people suggesting an island, if the kitchen is truly 10’ wide it would be tight unless you are open to taking down the wall between the kitchen and living room. At 10‘ you have a 2‘ wide Island, no seating or seating on each end only, and the bare minimum 3’ clearance, which is tight on the “working” side of the kitchen. (2’ perimeter cabinet + 3’ aisle + 2’ Island + 3’ aisle = 10’).

Thanks again everyone! After some thinking, I’m realizing that I didn’t really articulate what my issue with the kitchen very well.Everything in there is pretty new or in excellent condition, however the colors drastically clash with all of our current furniture. Also, it is a small kitchen with a sorta awkward layout (the pics make it look bigger). We may eventually, years down the line, try to take down the wall and open it up/add an island but we have to do some more pressing updates to the house right now (bathroom, some landscaping) and we can’t swing everything at once. Our plan is to try to do some quicker cheaper fixes to the kitchen for now and we will revisit structural things in a few years. We probably have about $5k to put into the kitchen.FYI - all of the decor and furniture that you are seeing in these pics are not ours. We haven’t moved in yet. Here are some pics of our furniture and our chandelier which will go into the adjacent dining room... most of it is brand new since we purchased it when we just moved this year... but after some really annoying issues with our landlord we decided to purchase our own home. Now, less than a year later, the house we fell in love with has a very different design style than ours... sigh. I’d describe our style somewhere between Modern Farmhouse and Mid-Centuty Modern... but honestly we like some things about a lot of different styles.So, with that info and these pics. Some more questions...

1. I’m not sure how to make the cabinet color work with our stuff. But maybe I’m just not being creative enough? I was thinking painting the cabinets to a white or cream-Ish color and changing the knobs. We will definitely update the backsplash... not sure what color.
2. We don’t really have the room to change the peninsula for an island. The side closest to the kitchen has cabinets so we can use that storage space but we’d remove the seating from that side.
3. We are REALLY on the fence about the cabinets above the peninsula! We’d rather lose them, but the ceiling kind of juts down/hangs low above it so we weren’t sure if it would look weird. Maybe we can add hanging lights there? I’ll reply again with pics from another angle so you can see what i am saying. What do you think?
4. The 1990s phones are going lol! Also, we are definitely painting the beams (i wish it was more of a rustic wood) and the wood window trimmings. Also, we are also definitely changing that light above the sink!

Thanks thanks thanks, while i can appreciate when something looks great, figuring out how to make it that way is not my strong point lol. All of your ideas have been fantastic.P.S. LOVE the idea of the garage/mud room/garage area too @herbflavor, it will just be some time before we can do that. Thanks for the suggestion though, we’ve added it to our list.

Current dining and living room furniture:

Another angle of the new house’s peninsula:

Inspiration photo of a small kitchen with similar granite color:

The low ceiling above the peninsula may look odd without the cabinets. I like the peninsula and the cabinets. Walking around an island all the time can be a pain and not every kitchen needs to be wide open. White paint, new brighter backslash, some white dishes to decorate inside the glass cabinet. Framed art with nice white mat. Call it and enjoy your new place.

Or, given current furniture - replace cabinet with a hanging metal and wood shelving unit or wine and glass rack.

I agree with Benjesbride to leave the cabinets as is, no painting them. New backsplash, cabinet hardware and wall paint will help a lot. I was pleasantly surprised how simply changing the hardware improved our kitchen. You could do something black to match the metal in your furniture.

Remove the glass doors of peninsula cabinet, paint the remaining cabinet black, using it as a display for fun pieces. Black iron pulls for cabinets. Stain beams very dark, blackish & replace counters (if budget permits) & backsplash with product that is black or has black in it. I would not paint cabinets.

It looks like it would be easier to change the furniture than the kitchen...re -finishing the table set to match the cabinets looks like a relatively easy option compared to tackling the kitchen that is in “perfect condition”

It would even be easier and cheaper to change the dining set to match the kitchen ....as your present furniture does not seem to fall into the design preferences you propose in any case...giving yourself some time to see what changes are needed and how to incorporate them with what you have....

Hmmm, a bit of a head scratcher. I'm not sure I'd be in a hurry to try to cool all that down just as things are trending toward warmer colors again. But the light over the sink is... what is that?

I think part of the issue is that what we're seeing isn't terribly cohesive to start with. The window grills are soft of Craftsman-y, the light fixture and the beam are "it came from the 70's," the cabinet doors seem more 90's looking, and the backsplash is going to fight with a lot of attempts to change colors. How yellow IS the tone of that wood vs. how much is the lighting? Could you push it a little in a Scandinavian blonde wood direction, with a different backsplash and cabinet hardware?

The one change that would make sense would be converting the kitchen side of the peninsula to drawer storage...adding more useable counter space ...and much more accessible and convenient storage than lower cabinets with doors offer....

I would not paint because a proper paint job will cost you between $5,000-$7,000 unless you plan to DIY and that will take lots and lots of time and effort to get right. Otherwise you'll be ruining what are nice looking cabinets.

I personally wouldn't do a thing until you've lived in the house for at least 6 months and assess what you really want to do.

I agree with others on removing cabs above peninsula. I think it would really open the area and make it feel less dated to you. It is a lot of beige with cabinets and flooring so I can see why you’d be tempted to reface them. But I also think new backsplash and wall paint could go a long way.

You could do 2 sided glass on the upper cabinets to make it feel more open.

After reviewing your floor plan...I wouldn’t eliminate any cabinets...the kitchen (at 10x12 )really is small and very short on counter space as well......so the peninsula should definitely be available as counter space .....also the fact that you have more cabinets matching the kitchen on the other side of the dining table...reinforces the need to have a dining set that goes with the cabinets ....at least.... in style or color...

To make life a little easier and if you have a budget I would convert the office to a guest bath

I would remove the cabinet above the peninsula, new backsplash (similar to Holly's picture-it looks like it should match your granite), dark hardware for the cabinets (to match the furniture that you are bringing), and paint the walls (any color without a yellow tone). Then live in your new home for awhile to plan out what you want long term while your saving for it.

I think your furniture and cabinets will be fine together as long as you change the hardware. Darker hardware will help tie in the furniture. I agree that a proper paint job will be 5K or so and you're shortening the life of the cabinets by doing so as the paint will never hold up as well as the factory finish. I also agree with changing the light to something like this

and changing the backsplash as well as adding a pretty runner to break up the wood on wood look between the floors and cabinets. You could also add a roman shade to the window to bring in more color and bring in some color with countertop accessories. I like the idea of making the upper cabinets over the peninsula see-through. It would give you the opportunity to display some pretty bowls and pitchers or whatever else suits your style. Good luck with your new home!

This looks like a beautiful kitchen with timeless features. Your current furnishings are very trendy, thus there is a disconnect. I would scour Craigslist until I found a dining set that will suit your space.

I second Holly’s recommendation to work with the wood and go towards a Scandinavian look, which should blend with your own design preferences. I would check out Schoolhouse Electric for light fixtures and Fireclay tile or similar for a pretty, warm-white backsplash up the whole wall over the sink in a pretty pattern, maybe their picket or Star and cross, or glazed brick; new cab hardware and warm white paint like BM’s Navaho white with White Dove trim. I think you will like having those glass cabinets for the next few years, given the size of the kitchen. When we priced professional painting of our 1970s cabinets, the estimate was crazy and we ended up replacing them instead. But our cabinets weren’t worth keeping and had had a 40 year run, so that was the right choice for our space. We did wait two years after moving in before doing anything, and only then when everything was breaking. Congrats on your new home!

Thanks so much everyone for the feedback! This is extremely helpful. I think we are going to take a lot of your advice and keep the cabinets as is and will paint (the walls and window border/trim), do a new backsplash, update the light and hardware, and we are still on the fence about whether to keep the cabinet above the peninsula but we will wait until we move in to figure that out... if we remove it we might explore hanging pendant light(s) there.

@holly stockley - yes, the kitchen is yellowish but the current lighting does not help.

@ritasj - We like the ideas of adding drawers on the fridge side of the peninsula. I has cabinets but they aren't that deep (to accommodate seating which we don't need on that side). Can you do that without completely replacing the peninsula?

You would have to replace the peninsula in order to add a drawer base. You could add after market roll out shelves that will give you the same effect. They're not quite as nice as drawers but they do make it easier to access things in the back, especially under an overhang.

After market pull out shelves sounds easy ...good option... the glass cabinets above also look like a quality addition...I wouldn’t rush to remove them...you never have too many cabinets in a small kitchen! ...

I'd paint the walls and put down a rug. New backsplash if budget allows.

If it were my kitchen I would do as you plan to install a new backsplash, paint walls, and leave the main area of the kitchen cabinets in the wood tone. I would then spend some money to reconfigure the peninsula to have no overhang on the kitchen side (other than standard) and remove the cabinets above it and put some pendants instead of the cabinets. To remove the overhang this could be as easy as just shifting the granite on top of the cabinets to hang over more on the dining side. Not sure how much space you have there and add supports for the extra overhang there. At the worst it could mean you'd need to remove the granite and the cabinets and shift them more into the kitchen and then put the granite back on with supports for a deeper overhang on the dining side without encroaching on that space.

If you remove the peninsula, be ready to re-do the wood floor. If you’re lucky there is wood beneath it, but chances are it won’t match the rest of the floor. Often times people will put the wood floor around the cabinets (not underneath) then you’ll have to have it re-done and the whole floor re-finished...

Thanks everyone for the ideas, we ended up making quite a few changes to fit our style... still not 100% complete but here it is!