If you don't mind a lot of work, the paint the cabinets yourself. You don't have a lot of cabinets, so it seems doable, otherwise, ikea is the way to go. Pro paint is quite expensive and probably not a good idea since the cabinets are pretty old and not quite as nice in terms of function as new cabinets would be. Ikea is an amazing value for money wrt to quality, function and durability.

I agree ^^^ IKEA all the way.

Are you happy with the layout? Do the cabinet doors and drawers all work well? If yes, then paint or have have them refinished. The rounded corners are a little bit 80’s, but the 80’s are kinda in style again. As far as colors.... kinda depends if you are keeping the counters, the rest of your home, and your style

Thanks for the replies everyone!
Ryan- yes the layout works good for us and I think the kitchen is a great size. Our home was built ~1920 and to me has elements of craftsman/traditional.. (we love the thick baseboard but not the dark green, it is white throughout the rest of the house!) and I’d like to stay true to the personality of the home.. not contemporary.

I agree with live-wire, I think the cabinets are cool, including the porcelain knobs. Update the counters and backsplash but leave the cabinets if they’re all in as good of shape as the ones you’ve shown.I have white solid surface (Corian) counters and I love them.

Updating the floors would be nice to, but that’s more of an undertaking than the counters.

If you want to hearken back to its 1920s roots, I think you might do better to think about replacing them with Ikea; you would get improved function, and perhaps can improve the layout. The cabinets as they currently are remind me more of the semi-rustic/pioneer fad of the late 60s-early 70s. Painting them a soft color might do to bring them more to a 1920s-1930s vibe - if you paint, you could fill the knob holes and change to pulls - cup pulls would seem appropriate.

Have you just moved in? Are you looking for comments on other things in the kitchen? Why are there Post-Its on the appliances?

Agree with raee -- the cabinets are nothing special, nor original, so it's mostly about the utility of the layout. I see a desk space that's wasted, and no lower drawers, so if I had the money, I'd start over. But "start over" is always a bit of a money pit, so if this place is new to you, you might live there a couple of years and then see what changes would serve you well.

Meantime, there are simpler changes you can make in the interests of a face-lift, if that's your main motivation. New hardware would change the feel a lot -- weathered brass would stand out more than oil-rubbed bronze would, so I'd go that direction. The next step would be painting, which would be a really huge change, lightening the space, getting you closer to "white and bright," and making the white appliances more at home -- agree you can do it yourself, but only with proper research and prep: count on stripping (with TPS), sanding, priming, sanding, priming, and painting, and you'll still see a bit of grain (and be all white with these counters). Keep in mind that there is probably somebody who would love these cabinets, so if you think you'll end up ripping them out in 3 years anyway, might be better to save them as is and start your Kitchen Project penny jar now!

Do you have enough cabinetry to store all your kitchen things? Are the cabinet interiors in good condition and are the shelves fixed or adjustable? Do the drawers glide well and do the doors close properly? Is it possible to add a proper vent (vents to the outside) over the stove? Do you have enough good prep space in the existing kitchen? Do you have a dining area near the kitchen which you can use for all meals? Would you be willing to get rid of the peninsula to open up the kitchen (can that cabinet be placed against the wall?). What is your budget? Do you have a to-scale measured drawing of your kitchen showing the location of plumbing and other details?
Do you have enough electrical outlets or would you want to add a few?
A professional painter may be able to paint your cabinets without having the wood grain show through...have you gotten an estimate?
These are some issues to consider which may affect your decisions.

1980's for sure. One "small" update usually leads to another, then another etc. and you still wind up with "not really what we want". Anything you do to the existing is money down the drain. Any time you spend would be better spent on a second job where earnings could be saved for a gut re-do. Been there, done that, learned my lesson.

I agree with the other posters. The kitchen isn't original to the house, and looks like most everything needs to be changed. If you are on a budget, I'd paint the walls and the baseboard/trim, change the hardware on the cabinets, try to get some lighting, maybe replace that door, and call it good while I saved for the full thing. If you think new cabinets, flooring, counters are in your budget, then I'd do it all.

if you have the money, do an entire gut and get what you like.

If you don't, here are some ideas.

lose the mini blinds and bring in some light.

Paint the cabs. (fill in the holes if getting new hardware). Read up on how to's on how to properly paint those oak cabs. (Evolutionofstyleblog.com) has the best tutorial.

get rid of that florescent light. (also how to's on youtube)

you can get a butcher block countertop at Floor/decor or ikea, or look for something else if you have the budget.

for the stove wall (check craigslist for good deals on new stove) I'd tile the entire wall, do open shelving (if you like that. which can also be done rather cheaply)

Before^ and After: