Subway tile is never boring; a classic tile used successfully in beautiful bathrooms and kitchens for years ( not to mention our Boston subways). It will outlast all the glass, colorful tiles being used now.

Black perimeter counters, flat finish ; marble look quartz and a beachy paint color for the island.

My grandmother’s kitchen, 1907, had soapstone counters, white porcelain deep double sink, (a water pump) and a piece of marble for her “island”, which was in the pantry. Marble being the choice because it was the best surface on which to roll pie dough. I have no idea where my grandfather found the marble, but he dug all his wells himself…lots of wells and pumps for the gardens.

That's a beautiful kitchen - thank you! So you would recommend contrasting quartz for the. island and countertops? Hadn't thought of that but I like it!

Subway tile is ALWAYS boring; that's the point of it. You can make it go with almost anything. It recedes into the background, as a backsplash should do.

I like this kitchen for an inspiration.

Island Green Ct - Harvey Reno · More Info

IMO you either do a different island cabinet color or a different island counter but not both.It becomes to busy . As for color since this is abeach house I would stay light and airy so maybe the blue green in a dark shade for the island cabinets and that same color but much lighter for the walls.