you sure that's baltic brown? can we have a closer shot?

what kind of lighting do you have in there? do you have canned lights? w/4000K bulbs?

lighting looks a bit yellow. bring in some better lighting

do you want to do a creamy white subway?

or this natural stone stile in a creamy white?

it would basically look like this. I like the ORB handles too

I would NOT do a smaller subway (like a 2x3 or even a 3x6) in a white

or something darker

this is similar to yours. Do your window trim like this. the subway tiles are more of a taupe/gray color. hardware is a dark ORB knob. I like Pulls better.

remove the trim work from around your window and replace it w/simple window molding, painting it the same Creamy color as your cabinets.

here's a few w/baltic and creamy white cabs

Travertine backsplash

Baltic brown granite has mauve tones. I wouldn’t do Creamy cabinets. What is your goal? I would think twice about painting what looks like oak wood grain. It might be best to just replace your backsplash. A lighter look would update your look with not huge investment. I would pull the granite out first. That is what is the most dated. Plus wood tone cabinets are coming back into fashion.

I think you would get more value from new countertops and backsplash. Here are some looks you could achieve.

Thank you for those ideas! We are torn about what to do bc we are trying To work with this granite color. All looks too brown.

just did these quick so you could get an idea of what it might look like

only difference between pics is the second one I changed the wall color to a grey'ish. Cabs and splash are the same SW Creamy.

Thank you for the response and pics! Do you think it would be better to stain darker and lighten backsplash?

Are you having the cabinets professionally done?

Yes, for sure.

Price out new quartz. Look at Cambria. Just avoid ones with distinctive veining. Go to a Cambria showroom if you can. Best way to see what slabs look like installed and they have 12x12 or bigger samples. For your kitchen, I like Tourquay. It’s light but not real white. The price for pro painting your cab pro job will be close or more than quartz. There are several colors that would par well with your cabinets. Here are a few. And play nice with your Mackenzie-Child pieces! Take a cabinet door with you to check with samples.

Do you like the granite you have? Are you painting the cabinets yourself or hiring a pro? Why I ask: lately on Houzz there are gorgeous cabs in white oak. Look them up. Maybe you could lighten the wood by whitewashing or picking

Restaining, White-washing or pickling her cabinets are a huge job. She wants to paint them Creamy, which is what my kitchen is. We need a better shot of your exact countertop if you are absolutely keeping it. But I would consider saving your money for a new one. Baltic brown will dictate the look of the room, even with the creamy color (which I love too!)

What do the floors look like? Can you post a pic?

If you are keeping the counter, use a backsplash tile which matches the creamy color in the granite....not too far from the creamy color you select for the cabinetry.

Or just paint uppers and leave the lowers wood tone. Backsplash tiles that look handmade would be good and a nice variation on the subway time look.

That granite looks like it might be Old Giallo Veneziano.

Can we see a photo of the entire space. Flooring is important to the space as well. If you are keeping the countertop possibly a mirrored backsplash as above inspirations to not have to compete with the cream cabinets or the countertop. If it were my kitchen I would invest in new hardware, darken the wood cabinets and replace countertops and backsplash. New window treatment and faucet for updating. Not seeing the entire space and the adjacent spaces, it is difficult to give best advice. Best of Luck.

Thank you for all the suggestions!

Your flooring is beautiful! Is that hickory?

that granite is busy, so no matter what you choose, go for a low contrast backsplash. make sure the grout does not stand out, and I agree with Beth to not choose a small tile.

I think Beth's off-white examples are the best! or a light tan glass tile could be really pretty:

I wouldn't go too dark or too warm. this example below is way too muddy:

I would ask yourself what do you like most about your kitchen. If you love wood cabinets but don’t love the granite, spend the money replacing the countertops instead with something simple & light - a marble looking quartz would look amazing.

I personally love painted cabinets, so if it were me, I‘d paint them and try to tone the brown of the granite down (it sounds like that’s what you don’t like?) with a simple subway tile in a cream or taupe - glass tile would look amazing.

Thank you Karen! I love the glass subway tile!

Good advice Karen. That is the fundamental question. For me, it’s the granite. That granite has been used by builders for lowest cost option for at least 15 years. So it is the biggest issue to me. But, of course, this is about your goals bsmarrone. I sense you are torn. White or light cabinets came back into fashion around 8 years ago with the gray/greige period. Both have faded and woods are coming forward. But totally up to you. One factor in replacing items. Backsplash typically is installed after countertops so if you replace backsplash now, it will be a problem to replace countertops later. Just something to think about. 😊

Flo is right. Paint the cabinets first! Then decide if you’re keeping the countertop. If so, repost photos and you will get lots and lots of ideas for the backsplash.

Beth’s points are exactly why I asked. You may be surprised at the cost of painting cabinets. If you hate them, of course paint them. But if it’s the overall look you’re trying to change, the countertop may be the best bet and similar to the price of painting the countertops.

The order of making changes is really important. How long do you plan to live in this house? Are you still with us?

We just moved into the house in July so we should be here for several years. We were just trying to lighten the kitchen without doing a major renovation. I agree about the granite being the issue as far as color. That is our dilemma.

If you just moved in, maybe live in the kitchen a while before doing anything hasty. If you are going to be in this home more than 5 years, you may find layout/function issues that dictate new cabinets AND counters.

But, to my eye, the cabinets look good and compliment your beautiful floors. I would look for new counters/back splash and remove the window treatment.

Lighting, counters, backsplash (plus removing the tile trim around that window and that horrid valance) and wall paint. In that order, will give you the biggest change.

If you like the layout, Do this first. You can ALWAYS paint the cabs afterward if you're still unhappy.

But painting the cabs, and doing nothing else, is putting lipstick on a pig.

I ditto others who say to live with it for a while. when we bought our house, I had all kinds of strong opinions on what I wanted done to the kitchen and bath. over the years, we have changed our minds considerably on what we want. turns out we really need to replace all cabinets and change the layout, so it's a good thing we didn't waste our money in the beginning.

as for the bath: I hate the granite counters, but painting the walls and updating the fixtures and accessories transformed it into a room I can live with for a while.

Thanks to all for the comments. You have given good advice and we will consider our options! Very appreciative!

if you think you're going to do bigger changes in a couple of years, one DIY fix you could do now is remove the backsplash. you could patch and paint or even wallpaper or use peel-and-stick tile. if you think you're going to replace the tile window frame, you could paint it for now (clean it well and carefully paint 3-4 layers). or chip that tile off too. framing that small window would be easy.

these would be temporary fixes, but enough of a change to make your kitchen something you could live with for a few years.