Will any of these options be enough to satisfy you for 10 years? If so, great. If not, I wouldn't even bother with painting them... it's a lot of work for a not-so-great layout. I'd channel that money straight into starting a kitchen reno fund... the uglier the kitchen stays in the interim, the easier it is to save the money. :)

Having said that, I prefer 2, or 5 if you swap the lowers to the navy color from 2.

If it were me, I'd change out the microwave for a better hood and made sure it vented outside. Locate a countertop microwave somewhere out of the main work zones to minimize bumping into each other. Change out the light fixtures for better/more attractive lighting.

Are you wanting to paint the cabinets yourself? I did that and it's a big, time-consuming job. Lots of sanding, wiping, coats of primer and paint. You'll see brush marks, if that's something that bothers you. Also, plan on touching up the often used doors/drawers because they'll get dirty and the paint will wear off with use and cleaning. If you're going to hire a professional, I'd wait and live there a while before implementing that. They're pretty expensive and your money would be better spent putting in new cabinets with more drawer bases and uppers that take advantage of the ceiling height. Once you've worked in the kitchen, you'll identify what needs to change for better function.

The floor is what I dislike most about the kitchen. It's busy and bossy. Of all the mock-ups, I think the java gel stain looks best with the floors.

I agree with beth about the lighting. That change will help you now and also work down the road. Consider under cabinet lighting too - it is very functional, will make your kitchen look prettier and will be already wired in if you ever renovate. A friend of mine is refreshing a similar kitchen and has only done under cabinet lighting, a new floor, and a dedicated stainless hood vent - it already looks so much fresher - and she has no plans to paint her cabinets.

I agree not to paint the doors. Wood doors have more value (and in my opinion a classier look) then the ubiquitous white MDF doors. If you wish to paint the trim - that's fine. Wood doors with white trim is a good look. I would avoid attempts at the gray /white theme - looks like the previous owner tried with the floor and you see how that wasn't the best choice with the warm tones of the home. Warm tones are returning.

I don't think I would do the java dark stain - you would have to do all the interior doors too, and it is impossible to keep up with the current trend in wood tone, which presently is natural as the dark wood trend has given way to the natural - which will give way to something else as marketers work to get people trapped on the never ending renovation merry go round.

Here is my wood kitchens idea book - lots of different ideas should you decide not to paint:

https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/75202366/list/wood-kitchens

It's a FIRST house. It's not a law that it should be house beautiful n a week. Start a piggy bank. The cabinets are not worth a pro paint job, or even the elbow grease involved in a decent DIY job.

If bound and determined, upper and lower in navy blue. At least it won't be gray. Please skip the two tone. The uppers hardly need a highlight.

Fix the lighting , go with LED bulbs in the 3500-5000K range which mimics bright daylight then think about choosing a color for the walls, I do not love the 2 tone uppers and lowers but a lot of that depends on your style. Make sure your new fridge is counter depth so it will work when you get around to doing an actual kitchen reno. It is always best to live in a space for a while to see how it functions before making big changes. Painting cabinets is best left to the pros and is expensive so wait to see how you like the kitchen and how it functions for you.

Congrats on your 1st home!

Regarding changes, I agree with the posters above. The ceiling fixture is the biggest problem and will date the space no matter what you do to it. Hang some pendants in its place, add some inexpensive plug in LED under cabinet lighting (amazon), switch microwave to a real hood and add a small counter top MW next to your fridge if needed. Paint the island if you are set on wanting to paint something. If flooring is staying, I would pick something that goes well with it...calms it down. Counter depth fridge. New wall color. Give the home some time, it's functional. Good luck!

I like the java stain best (and it is probably the easiest) - hides the cathedral arch and makes it look modern with the quartz counter. It goes with the floors and looks least dike a diy. Your home is unusual in that it has enough light to pull off dark cabinets, particularly with modern furniture in the adjacent spaces. I agree about changing the lighting but that is easy to do.

We lived in our house for 15 years before remodeling the kitchen - and I hated it after about 3 years. It took that long to achieve the necessary components: time, money, and a much more functional layout. The look of the kitchen was the easiest to ignore (it looked a lot like yours); the horrible storage was another story.

Put up with what you have, and make plans for a remodel. Any investment in the current kitchen that does not carry over to a new layout is a waste of money.

I'd fix the lighting and you could add a full height pantry where the trash can is. One door with bins on the door and 11-12" deep shelves when you open the door. Or a pull out storage system.

Cabinets are fine for now. Fix lighting and flooring.

The flooring would bother me more, as it locks one much more in, than mid tone wood cabs (that I see nothing very wrong with-sure drawers would be better, and more storage would be better, and..). But if you actually like it/or can't change it now/or wouldn't make sense to change because maybe you'd want different kitchen installed in the future-I'd find a different color for the walls that tie more with a flooring. Something cooler in tone. Off-white? Shades of blue, maybe?

I never had central fixture like this, so I don't know what light it casts-but if you don't have undercabinet lighting, install one..very useful. And can be very pretty too.

It's either very expensive, or very time consuming, to paint the cabinets right.

Also frankly I like what you have now more than any mock up you've posted. Relates better to the rest of the space, as of now.

As somebody who wasn't living here to see all the trends-I'm fine with these cathedral doors..especially in your case. Wouldn't be my personal choice-but I don't see much reason to do everything to somehow disguise these arches more. Maybe it's only me.

I'd jump up to the ceiling if I had your kitchen in our first home

(easy for me to say of course as we had no kitchen at all except for a sink cabinet..Europe.)

I'd save my money. Until I know more about the house and how it functions for me and family on a daily basis. Really. Next thing you know-one needs to change the boiler..or something else comes up. It's a house. Ongoing maintenance.

Of course you need to love it too. It's your house. I understand it more than I can express. What about painting the island only?( I like the blue-gray..or navy..if the floor stays. Next choice would be-darker stain.)

That's what I do sometimes when I really love something expensive. Say, gorgeous fabric. I buy the smallest version of it..))

In short I agree with many many comments upthread.

I guess what's left to say..wishing you a smooth sail of the rest of your purchase..and congrats! First house..very exciting. Maybe the most exciting of them all. Because it's first. As simple as that.

So..take your time..learn it and yourself in it..as very correctly suggested by many posters already.. and enjoy making it yours..enjoy tremendously.

I agree with changing the light but would hold off on painting the cabinets. Consider framing in the fridge for a built in look: https://www.thriftydecorchick.com/2015/04/building-in-fridge-with-cabinet-on-top.html

No matter what changes you make to your cabinets the kitchen will never be very attractive as long as you have that floor. What is on the adjoining floors? Could you get a unified look throughout? That would be preferable.

I like the flooring, and I dont mind the cabinets. They look to be in good condition. What really throws me off is the existing

paint color, which seems to not go well with the cabinets, nor does it go well with the flooring. I also agree, you need better lighting in there, and make sure you put in daylight type bulbs. Thats all I would do for now. Its a nice sized kitchen, and in great condition. Congratulations on your new home.

I am with Beth H on this one Great advise, it is the very first thing I noticed when I saw the pictures, Also agree with JAN MOYER with color scheme

Listen to AnnKH. Live in the house for a while before you make any decisions.

How long do you plan to stay in this house? Are you ultimately planning to remodel the kitchen? If so, save your hard-earned $$ for that. And if you do decide on any cosmetic changes, make sure they play well with any of the remaining elements (for example, the flooring).

I would keep the refrigerator if it is functional - it looks fine. The cabinets look fine too, especially since they coordinate with the doors and trim in your house. Most important thing is to get rid of the fluorescent ceiling fixture. Live with everything else for awhile. Your tastes and wants will change over time.

Your kitchen isn't ugly and it looks functional. Due to that and the fact that you don't have much of a budget, I agree with living with it for awhile. That way you can save for a bigger budget while figuring out what works, what doesn't work and what you really want.

I'm jumping on the band wagon as I say this, but I'm with those who say, "Change the lighting first". My eye goes straight to that awful florescent light above the island. If you changed ONLY that, I think it'd make a big difference.

I am neutral on the cabinet wood tone, but it looks bad next to the grey floor -- they are not friends. I'd change one or the other.

Looking at your color mock-ups, I really dislike the darkened cabinets. My favorite is the blue-grey paint; it looks good with the flooring.

I don't like that the windows are partially covered by the upper cabinets. It'd be expensive, but I think it'd be nice to remove the uppers closest to the window ... and replace them with smaller open shelves ... knick-knack type shelves.

I'd also put some pretty curtains on the window ... it looks kind of empty right now.

The upper cabinets look "unfinished" ... they need something on the top.

Finally, I agree with the others who say, Don't hurry into this. Live with it a bit and decide what you really want to do. Throwing money at half the problem won't satisfy you in the long run.

One more vote not to paint or stain. It's a big undertaking, and often has iffy-to-poor results that can looked trashed within a year - unless you pay a highly-skilled painter who is very experienced in cabinet painting, and by then it'll be so expensive you may as well buy new cabinets.

Whether you buy new, or decide to alter the existing cabinets, just say a big "No" to espresso stain ("Java". "Espresso". Whatever). First, that cabinet color was at its peak a dozen years ago or more, and is very dated at this point. Do you know how many posters come on this forum saying "I installed my espresso cabinets in 2004, and absolutely can't take them anymore, they're so dark, please how do I paint them lighter?". A ton do. That's the second reason, espresso cabinets suck the light like nobody's business.

It think the white cabinets with the teal wall is very pretty.

Hopping in just to second the comments of Hillside House ^

I'd hold off on painting. Cabinets is a big DIY undertaking. I'd rather continue channeling $$ into a savings fund for a larger renovation.

Floors not bad. I like the java stain but agree that doing so is a ton of work. Plus one more for changing the lighting. I also wonder if changing the look of the island would be a nice intermediary step.

For example,

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Your kitchen is nice. Here are some golden wood kitchens that will make you want to live with it for now and maybe for the future. Don't mix two kinds of wood. Embrace the givens: golden oak trim, gray floor, and work with it.

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Maybe you could just paint the walls a pale gray and change the lighting. However, whatever wall paint you pick should harmonize or continue paint you use in other parts of the house that adjoin the kitchen. This is dark gray. I think lighter, for your kitchen, would look better since you have dark gray floors, so you don't want too much gray.

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The teal wall doesn't agree with the floor. Neither does the current beige, although it works with the wood. I dislike the dark gel stain. Of all the potential colors of cabinet paint with the floor, I liked #6 the best (you called it teal, but on my monitor it is a grayed out teal -- not like the wall teal), then #2; but there still isn't something right. I think it is the white white wall and ceiling.

The problem is the very cool floor vs. the warmth of the wood. They are colors that occur in nature together, and will work together in your kitchen, with the right choice of wall, maybe ceiling (and perhaps cabinet) colors. Finding that right color will take some patience though.

The teal doesn't go with the floor at all. It's a case of your liking something that doesn't go with what you have--those gray/beige tile floors, which are actually pretty nice. You need to start with your "givens," gray/beige floor and wood trim even if you change the cabinet color. Just for the heck of it, try pale gray walls with existing cabinets and wood trim, then pale gray walls, existing cabinets, but a pale gray island. That might work.

Hi HU-321967066 ,

number 4 is really pretty its the on i like best. I would also suggest purchasing new cabinet hardware. New hardware can really help update the look of your cabinets. I would suggest something in a Satin Nickel or Matt Satin Nickel finish to help tie in your appliance. Century Hardware has Two collections that come to mind, Belvedere and Caledonia you should check them out! Best Wishes!

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My vote is to keep the honey wood on the bottom cabinets, and then paint everything white on top along with the walls. That way, the walls and backsplash will tie together. It will simplify your space.

When you're ready for the next project, I agree thinking more about the lighting will also help.

Best of luck!

I say you should update with stainless steal appliances. Paint the walls a light gray, and paint the doors and cabinets white. That gives it a more updated feel without spending a fortune.

I like the java stain if you're keeping the black fridge. However, your cabs may not take the stain very well without LOTS of PREP. I say get a pendant to hang above the sink and track lighting to retro-fit into the ceiling. Add LED's under the upper cabs and live with it while you save up to do a real makeover. Much depends on how long you plan to be here.