I'd get some stools with backs and find a craftsman to give you a wood slab overhang as what could be better than sitting in a place of artistic beauty......

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...and I wouldnt deface the other wood with paint.

Painting the cabinets cream won't update the kitchen. It is a unique style and paint will only confuse things.

If you don't like this kitchen, then do nothing and save all your money for a full remodel down the road.

Those cabinets are so cool, please don’t paint. I would update the backsplash and get new stools.

Panting any of that would only make that very high end deliberate space be an obvious hacked up train wreck.

Haha thank you all for your candor. I know.. that’s why I’m torn.. okay if I were to change the flooring what would you suggest? The other adjacent area has light Bamboo

The legs on the island can be replaced at very little cost. Do that, and paint the walls and ceilings so they aren't starkly contrasting with the wood. Your white is cool, everything else in that space is warm. Consider neutral tones that pair well with other orange woods, like golden oak.

I think a warm white or cream floor would do a lot to calm that space down. A simple cream sheet vinyl would be far less expensive than a quality paint job on all of those cabinets. Or it might be possible to paint it. Yes, desecrating a complete design, but that floor really intensifies the "sea of brown" look.

Try spreading some white sheets over a large chunk of floor, and see if that makes the room feel better. If it does, investigate your options for painting or replacing that floor. The suggestions to replace the island legs and paint the walls a warmer color would also help a lot.

Change the backsplash to cream or white subway and paint the back of the bookcase same color as tile. I never say this, don’t paint the wood. I’ve painted wood cabinets and paneling over the years, always over the advice of people who said keep wood, and I’ve always been happy. But in your case, this wood is actually gorgeous, only time I’ve ever thought the wood was better.

Your kitchen is gorgeous. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Stained wood is much easier to maintain than painted wood. The paint job itself will be costly, and painted cabinets need a bit more maintenance because paint can chip at corners and edges. Light-colored paint shows dirt more easily than stained wood.

I’d change the back splash and counters to silestone quartz in calacatta gold…will go wonderful with your cabinets don’t paint them!

Start by lowering the island to one height and add white tops and backsplashes to all cabinet areas …. paint the back walls in open shelving white…then re-assess

Only thing I'd paint is the counter supports.

I'd change the floor before touching the counters or cabinets.

All of those things will cost less than painting all the cabinets..quite a lot less

I do think removing the odd tall posts is the most important thing to change..

Remove…

Looks like a quality kitchen but you’re over it. I get it. I would remake the island so it’s one level. Use the same countertop material on all surfaces. If you found (or have ) some decorative items you like put on the shelves and counter …add some of your personality to the space. Island stools covered in a fabric you love would add a lot. If the space opens to another room it needs to coordinate. Take your time and consider getting professional help to coordinate colors with the wood tone (and other rooms)

I think it’s fine the way it is. The only thing I would consider changing is the backsplash in the far right corner. Otherwise I feel this kitchen needs some personality injected into it. Think plants, a long runner in front of the sink, different bar stools, vintage vessels/vases, etc. Good luck!

This is a very large kitchen with a unique, specific design. Having a color pro help you with what to do will be the best use of your money. The wood cabinets are beautiful but if you hate them, then consider a full refacing job. Just painting the kitchen, as has been said, will make for difficult upkeep.

If you hate the wood and want a white kitchen, then do that. Painting this room probably won’t last as long as you’d like it to. Refacing, with new doors and a proper finish on the stiles and rails, will give you a more professional job, but it will be

Just softening the “wood-iness” is a better use of your money and time. The brown backsplash in the right corner isn’t helping. The wood floor is adding to that feeling. Take suggestions from the Houzzers but having someone in the room with you is best. Start looking for a kitchen pro with excellent color sense.

Full disclosure: I hated the custom quarter-sawn oak kitchen I inherited and refaced it to a white kitchen so I understand how you feel.

That’s a great space - loads of light and space - I would just simplify it a bit by getting the island on one level without the distracting legs and updating the tile BS (and the right rugs could help cut all the wood)

I think cream colors can look very nice and add a light look.

I agree with the other posts that the wood as it is now is very nice, looks quite expensive. The vertical grain matching throughout is exorbitantly costly - if you did it today, with that size kitchen, you're talking minimum $100k of cabinetry with that grain matching (and that might be pre-Covid pricing, who knows today). Do not paint the cabinetry.

Also, the touches like a raised dishwasher and a hood with sloped baffle filters (rather than the ubiquitous flat mesh filters of that time period), show that whoever designed the kitchen was cutting edge for the time.

Definitely change the backsplash. And yes, the island legs are obtrusive, but they match the floor, so I don't know how you'd change their color without them looking like a one-off that doesn't relate to anything else. I would not change the floor, because it matches the rest of the kitchen well, and sometimes lifting a floor opens a can of worms and creates a snowball effect of things to re-do.

Me, I would re-do the island's counters to one level which would eliminate the problem legs and really bring the kitchen current - it just depends whether you want to spend for that. As a one-level island, you'd have to cantilever the sitting area's counter, so make sure you get a really good stone fabricator who understands the support needed. I think changing the island to one level plus a new backsplash is the way to go, if you are OK with the cost. You should get a KD to help you. Any chance you could find out who did the original kitchen?

You mentioned you didn't want to "break the bank". Everyone's definition of that is different. If I wanted to spend only a little, I'd just change the backsplash. If I was OK with spending more, I'd make the island one level. Done. No more changes needed.

If your ceiling is white and gray as it appears in your photo, cream cabinets will clash with both colors.

I would keep cabinets save up for a remodel having the island and counter all 1 levels, new countertop backsplash and flooring. If u have patience and a plan the kitchen can look 2023 new. I would not paint or do anything but maybe a rug for now

I think the wood cabinets are gorgeous. I also think people are almost brainwashed into the "white cabinet kitchen" look. They see it so much that anything different creates almost a compulsion feeling they need to change it to fit the mold of white kitchen. And I actually like white kitchen cabinets, but not solely and exclusively. I also like wood cabinets, especially the ones in the OP which seem exceptional from the photo.

I disagree with people saying change the floor. I think changing the island as others have said is the better place to spend the money. You mentioned not breaking the bank, and changing the floor would be costly. And what to change the floor to would be a very difficult decision, and since there is so much floor, a different one had better be an absolute perfect choice or do not do it.

The island is the problem so that is where I would focus my efforts - and my money!

I'm not a fan of the stripe effect of the veneer of these cabinets. Painting will remove that. I'd lower the island to one level. I'd lower the counter housing the dishwasher to one level. As these add up a complete replacement becomes more of an option. That's probably the choice that would add the most value to the property, even though more expensive. Pale European/French Oak cabinets and flooring without any yellow throughout the house. Doca cabinets are one brand. Classic elegant kitchens | DOCA (docakitchens.com)

JMO.....

your kitchen is kinda fantastic!

It's not your run of the mill Kitchen. It's got a great style to it.

Add accessories.

What does the rest of the house look like, especially adjoining rooms? Is there anything functionally wrong with the cabinets, appliances or countertops? Why did you buy this house?

Cream colored cabinets will not look good with the wall/ceiling light gray paint. Your kitchen is so unique; slapping on paint will ruin its one of a kind look, and will not improve it, I'm afraid. Someone spent a lot of time, thought, and money creating a special space. I understand that it might not be your style, but don't remuddle it with ill-chosen paint colors. Save for a complete remodel if you must. I also don't think the wall paint color looks good with the cabinets as they are now (cold gray vs warm wood). I do agree that re-styling the posts and the 2-level island would be a much better place to start, and the removal of the BS on the right corner would make a big difference.

Leave the wood cabinets alone. They look great. Replace backsplash and flooring, if you want. Replace countertops and those sorta ugly supporting columns, if you want to do even more.

I'd lower the counter housing the dishwasher to one level.

No, don't do that. Actually, raised dishwashers are better, and considered more design forward. They are ergonomic to use, and you don't have to peer down and pull things out to see what's in there. Once you have a raised dishwasher, you never want to go back to one that is below counter level. @dan1888 - it would mean not only changing the dishwasher, but also all the counters, and what would happen to the cabinets to the right of the dishwasher? The OP specifically said she didn't want to break the bank. Plus, you'd lose the ergonomic benefits of the raised dishwasher that is there now.

My rec is to change the entire kitchen. This appears to have been an artistic exercise by a designer. You're not going to paint over it. The house is likely at a higher price point. Its value will go up with an update and upgrade. The OP can make that decision. It will cost more up front.

if a more generous scope is desired the L walls on the right could receive the paint on the cabinets. A new floor would be an upgrade as the current one looks a bit worn...but not sure if it can be tinted or rejuvenated [what is the floor]......here's freshened space w lighter feel for the floor pick and the white on the long run......many wood elements remaining and you also could leave a designated section of the original you have . My hunch is the white is newer cabs they installed in the space/ along w the floor.

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