It's hard to say based on my crappy monitor, but I think it will all go well. Just be sure the white for the walls works with the cabinets. The best way to do that is to use the wall paint on some foam board and compare to a cabinet door sample in your own kitchen in differing light conditions. That floor looks like a nice neutral shade (but pretty, not boring) which will go with a lot of colors.

I put the cabinet next to a piece of drywall that is textured the same as our home and painted in nebulous white. Is there enough of a contrast?

It should be good, you don’t have too much paint in the actual kitchen area. Plus you have good contrast with your counters.

I think it looks good. Pretty quartzite!

Regarding your layout.

1. Flip the dishwasher to the left of your sink so it's not in the prep zone.

2. I'd Personally do no upper cabinets on the stove wall and instead have the uppers on the sink wall die into the stove wall.

3. If it were me, I'd also give up the lazy susan corner cabinet and instead make it a dead corner and make the drawers on either side wider. YMMV.

Can't tell for sure, but the counter top looks really dark to me.

Have you planned a backsplash?

How much light does the space get? Black counters will suck the light out of your room, so I wouldn't go that dark unless I had lots of natural light (and recessed light for night time).

The room gets a lot of light - there are two big windows in the living room, a window over the sink, 5' french doors in the kitchen and another window in the den. We haven't started thinking about the backsplash yet - have to make a final decision on the counter top - but something light if we go dark on the counter for sure. The reason I put the dishwasher to the right is that when people are bringing dishes from the dining room they won't be able to get to the sink if the dishwasher is open - is that wrong thinking?

That countertop seems way too dark with your dark brown floors, and black with brown is not the best imo. You need to at least consider the back splash at the same time as your countertop. With the black you will likely be looking at a very light whitish back splash, which may be hard to match with light walls and light cabinets. A lighter countertop gives you more options for color on the back splash.

Super Susan or dead corner (or any other corner storage solution) is completely dependent on what a person needs to store in that area. Robin, if you haven't done so already, map out where everything will go in the new kitchen - as you assign homes for your most-used items, you will figure out what makes the most sense for the corner.

If you decide to stick with uppers, change the angled corner cabinet to an Easy-reach corner. And I agree with cpartist about moving the DW.

What's an easy reach corner? And move the DW even though dishes are coming from the dining room?

I have an angled cabinet on uppers and an angled cabinet on the lowers with a large lazy Susan. Both are extremely functional and a good use of corner space.

I have an angled lower corner with a super susan, and a drawer above. I got rid of two angled uppers that were veritable black holes - there is a lot of room, but you can't get to anything in the back without moving the things in the front. I have more things that I use regularly than things that can be stashed in the back of a deep corner.

This is my easy reach corner (shortly after the kitchen was finished - it is arranged differently now).

How long does it take your family or guests to put the dishes in the sink? A minute and a half? Compare that to the time you will spend prepping a meal. If you have the DW to the left of the sink, you can keep it open to deposit used vessels as you prep (if that is your habit), and a helper could be loading it while you are prepping to the right. If you include dish storage drawers directly across from the DW, on the island, helpers could also unload the DW or gather dishes to set the table, without entering the prep space.

Robin, I have a DW in the prep corner of my current kitchen (24 years old) and it's the most hated part of the layout for me! I cannot wait to get rid of it soon!! My new kitchen is designed to keep everyone out of MY prep area/s ;)

The reason I put the dishwasher to the right is that when people are bringing dishes from the dining room they won't be able to get to the sink if the dishwasher is open - is that wrong thinking?

Yes for a couple of reasons.

1. New dishwashers don't really need dishes rinsed off before loading. So anyone carrying dishes from the dining area can actually help you load them without rinsing. And anything that needs to be rinsed can still be put onto the counter on top of the dishwasher.

2. 70% of our time is spent prepping and prep work is done between sink and cooktop/stove. Now imagine you're prepping and someone needs to load/unload the dishwasher, or even you need to put some dirty stuff in while prepping. If the dishwasher is in your prep zone, it means you're going to constantly be moving out of the way for the open dishwasher.

3. It's easier to have the dishwasher close to the dishes and it's best if the dishes are close to the dining area.

Would this counter top be better?

Yes on the perimeter.

Thanks Suzy - so if I choose this new counter top, would you suggest chrome or satin brass pulls?

Either would be great. I like chrome. Are you getting pendant lights for the island?

Yes we are getting pendant lights - any suggestions? The more I like the more confused I get! Our home is transitional/modern in style.

And would you mix metals? Chrome faucet, gold pulls, etc? Lights what finish? I'm not a fan of matchy matchy.

Or if we get a chrome faucet & chrome pulls, would you also do chrome lights?

And I would use that new counter top for the whole kitchen - I don't really like two different counter tops.

With white uppers and lowers and a lot of natural light, I personally like the dark countertop. Take some time to think about it and to look at pictures.

I'm worried about the dark counters with a medium brown floor. Almost black with brown... Is that ok?

No I don't like the light countertop at all. It looks like 1000+ other kitchens we've seen here and it's already a trend that's on the way down. Your choice is so much more elegant and will better stand the test of time.

Sorry but I disagree. That may not be the "one", but its better than the black top. Dark floor and dark top is gonna be too dark regardless of the light. And a nightmare to keep clean.

Robin, "Karen" posted a couple hours ago and has a picture with a black (but kind of busy) island, white cabs, and dark wood floor. Take a look.

Thanks stillpitpat, but how do I find that post?

Oh I found it!

Suzy you can disagree all you want but as stillpitpatjust showed by referencing Karen’s kitchen, having white cabinets, a dark counter and medium dark floors will not make the space dark.

And guess what? Not everyone wants the same all white kitchen that every other post on gw has

Where is the dark counter picture? I was suggesting the lighter top for the perimeter and the darker top for the island. Not all white. My kitchen is flooded with afternoon light that really highlights every crumb and and water ring. You can't see it at night, but If my tops were dark I'd lose my mind.

We definitely want the same counter top throughout. My husband created these pictures for a better visual. Coloring isn't perfect and our couches are lighter in color. But it helps to see the bigger picture.

I don't see a lot of pictures with all dark tops with a dark waterfall island. This is the only one I could find with a darker floor.

Transitional Kitchen · More Info

I think if we go with the black we may not do the waterfall because it would be so dark. I like both in all honesty. We just tore out a very dark granite so I may be ready to go lighter. Decisions decisions...

Very pretty kitchen Suzy!

Does anyone know what countertop this is? I found it on Houzz and saved a picture but I can't find it again :(

Hard to tell from that picture. It might be sea pearl.

Add Soul to Your Home with Natural Stone: Sea Pearl Quartzite · More Info

found it! but it's bianco mikonos marble - sad ;(

Its beautiful but marble really etches and stains. You could get a similar look with the right quartzite.

I can't find anything in quartzite that I like - it tends to lean toward blue, yellow or green unfortunately.

I've seen a lot of them. It really depends on the slabs. There is so much variation with the same names. My Taj Mahal is neutral off white

and gray, but I've seen slabs with the same name that almost have a purple undertone and some with a lot of oxide streaks that lean yellow. I wanted marble but my family would trash it in no time. Here's mine, its slightly leathered.

Encinitas Kitchen · More Info

very pretty! yes my family would trash it as well unfortunately.

The black quartzite is really pretty and I wouldn't worry about black tops and dark floor. I have a soapstone top on our island and white quartzite on the perimeter cabinets. Dark floors. You could do that.

beautiful kitchen muskokascp!

I’m not a pro, and I prefer anything other than the all white kitchens that are popular now. I like the look of the dark but my parents black granite shows everything. Every fingerprint, every water ring from a glass. My mom is constantly cleaning it. She wishes she had known and made a different choice. Just wanted to share. Maybe find something medium tone..grey/beige? I would try for something not black and not white. Good luck!