I’m planning to add a rattan-like light fixture from the middle as well.

I'd have the floors professionally cleaned and sealed to get them lighter and easy to keep clean.

The photo's colors have drifted a long way from reality, judging from the varying yellow tints on the cabinets.

Good cabinet painting is expensive, much more than a new fridge. The panel over the fridge offends no one, but it could be quickly primed, then painted to match the walls.

the cabinets and counter together are attractive . I would do a fixture with black metal. I might put black hardware on the cabinets. I think if the kitchen works for you for some time [no remodel in sight] I would save some money and change the floor. It does not coordinate.

The cabinets appear to be in good shape.

For me, sorry, nothing related to each other. The granite looks like it has purple in it, the floor is a beige travertine.

I would look into replacing the granite and bs with something lighter.

CASH POOR with exclamation points once the sq foot of countertop and splash is multiplied by dollars per sq foot to replace a perfectly functional surface area......"Cash poor" is taken at word .....are we reading this wrong????

Cash poor and you are replacing with a Viking? IMO, that is a huge waste of money. Save, and it to your future new kitchen savings account. As suggested by @apple_pie_order, have the floor cleaned.

Paint the walls a white which has undertones that work with the countertops. Try: B.M. Lily White. And remove the two counter stools and replace with something lighter...

Elcieg, I said once I save money. That’s just a long term plan

I agree the color scheme doesn’t all match. I love the idea of black or bronze fixtures. And maybe some darker runners?

Cleaning the floor lighter is an excellent idea

That is what I addressed, your long term plan. You have to save for that, right? So, don't by a Viking which costs around $4600.00 but only has a warranty period of one (1) year from the original date of purchase.

Use what is there which looks just fine. Take off the panel over the fridge.

Thanks, great suggestions. If I did save for the next bigger ticket item, would you suggest floors, counter top or cabinet color?

I'd be saving for a total gut. That barrier island would drive me crazy, and the first thing to go would be the island.

So before you spend much money on this kitchen at all, make sure you can stand the layout.

I wouldn't spend a dime until I lived with it for at least 6 months. Walking around the island might drive you mad in which case you'll want to do some sort of remodel to improve the layout. If you find it doesn't bother you, then consider some cosmetic changes. Counters and backsplash will change things dramatically.

Viking refrigerators have notoriously bad reputations.

Here's what I tell most people: Live in the house for 6 months to a year before you do anything. Make notes about what works, what doesn't, what you like, what you don't like. My thoughts are that you may want to save for a total gut. The island divides the space, and although it probably adds lots of storage and countertop space, it doesn't add much seating. I wouldn't spring for any new appliances right away. I wouldn't even mess with the over-fridge panel. Congratulations on your new home!

6 months of wait time sounds really wise. Thank you for that.

If I did do away with the center island, what would go there? Different island design to add more seating?

Wait a year. Save whatever you can. Look at pictures and start keeping inspiration photos of kitchens.

Don’t do anything but deep clean this kitchen. Changing one element won’t do anything but waste your precious dollars.

When you have A LOT more saved, you should ask for help with this room. Yes, the floors don’t work but don’t redo them until you know what you will do with the kitchen. Floors are expensive and an important element of any house.

Nix the Viking fridge idea.

Post any other impulses you have after moving in so others can rein you in on impractical ideas.

Congratulations on your new home!

RedRyded, appreciate the tip! And reining me in :)
Will a deep clean of the floors actually make it lighter? I’m guessing this is not the job for my house cleaner? Is there special cleaning for stone floors?

I never had stone floors but I know that using 0000 steel wool and a drop of lemon oil (the kind for wood furniture) will help clean up the cabinets. Lightly scrub, then wipe with a clean cloth. Most likely will lighten the cabinets since they can hold invisible dirt for years.

Hopefully someone with stone floor experience can answer your question.

there is nothing in that kitchen you can not live with .

A rattan light makes no sense in this kitchen !!. Painting cupboards MAY make sense at some POINT.. What is the flooring in the remainder of the house? Do you love THIS flooring?

You are rushing, which is always a very bad idea. Have a stainless panel created for fridge top and chill out until your bank account is refreshed. All you will do is waste money, delay the kitchen you do want.........which is WHAT? Show and inspo of the dream.

Unfortunately the remainder of the house is all in this stone tile. I don’t love it, but redoing floors will be a job for the future.

Not exactly sure what my inspo is quite yet since it all kind of ties to the rest of the house and it’ll be years before I do a major reno. By then the preferences and styles may have changed. Plus I’m not all that design oriented unfortunately.

Any pendant or other light ideas that could be an easy update? This house was down the street and I was thinking a light like this could be an easy refresh but perhaps not since it doesn’t go with the rest. I’ve gotta get some thick skin for the comments here! 😝

That countertop and backsplash would drive me crazy. I would consider removing and adding formica as a short-term solution, although I don't know what the cost of that would be. It's all a quality of life...how much does it really bother you vs it's just not your perfect kitchen. We moved into our house in 10/19 fully expecting to do a kitchen reno to update. here we are almost 4 years later and still the same kitchen. I would say while it is still outdated, it functions fine and we really aren't so bothered by it. After going through a full bath complete gut job, the idea of a kitchen reno is daunting.

I would NEVER get a Viking fridge. Piece of junk.

Painting those cabinets professionally will cost you 10k and with that layout, it's not worth it.

I agree with those who say paint the walls white, clean the floors and then live with what is there for 6 months to a year. I wouldn't even change the light fixtures. Learn what works and what doesn't work and save your money.

I am buying this house and the kitchen isn’t too dated,

uh, yes it is.

is that granite acutally purple-ish or is it the lighting? to me, the granite would be one of the first things I'd redo.

your travertine floors can be custom cleaned, rehoned or polished, and that grout lightened. that alone will make a huge difference.

Is painting cabinets a good idea?

Depends. are they solid wood and in very good shape? painting the cabs by a pro will cost you well over 6K. that island is very dated. the corbels and your trim work should be removed. I had the exact same thing going w/mine (done in 2004 and YES, it was dated!) had all the ornate trim removed, cabs painted, and new countertops/flooring.

Notice the island minus the Tuscan vibe trim. I also added drawers

Was it worth it? yes. my cabs were custom made, solid wood and there was nothing wrong w/them. However, I did have the doors and drawers refaced. if you want yours painted, refacing could be an option. (just don't go w/home depot or lowes)

I'd save the money you would spend on a Viking and use it towards the actual remodel. You have bigger fish to fry than a viking fridge.

Why not move in and see how you like the layout? live w/it for a bit and decide what you'd like to do and how much you have to spend.

Wow Beth your remodel looks great, and your before picture looks like mine! Wow what a difference.

Did you have your cabinets painted? Most look the same except for new oven space or island. Seems I definitely have more cabinets to paint so cost might be double! But thanks for the great ideas

the stone flooring is throughout? I might consider shopping at flooring centers to see what's avail w financing offered. its a big job obviously, but replacing that fairly soon would be motivating me somewhat. some flooring is always on sale and a basic hardwood wouldnt be out of the realm of possibility. Housing is slowing down so there may be some inventory they want to clear is what i'm thinking. You can also have extra pieces saved if in a year or so you redo the island and need some. the floor tile bothers me the most .

Congratulations on your new home! We’re waiting to close on ours too, so I know the excitement. I don’t know anything about using them on stone floors, but we love our Shark steam mop. That thing has cleaned off stains that I was sure were absolutely permenant. I’d suggest reading up to make sure that they’re safe for your floor type, then go to town. We bought ours on sale for about $75 and it was money well-spent for sure.

I like your idea of dark runners to try to tie the counters to the floor in some way, and I love the suggestion for easy built-in shelves above the fridge! That would be a great spot for cookbooks, etc.

I hope that you enjoy your new home!

Congratulations on your new home!!🎉🎊🍾 Quite a feat in this market. Your kitchen is perfect for right now, and I have the best and most perfect project for you right now and it’s free!!!! Remove the door to the living room. Live in the house for a while, and your house will tell you where you need to spend money first. It’s kind of a pain having the fridge and ovens on the other side of the island from the sink, but you need a livable house, not a perfect house. And the island is a great workspace. It’s really a great kitchen even if a little dated, so focus on using it instead of eating out, and you’ll be able to save up for a reno.🙂

Shady, thanks for the encouragement! Appreciate the positive tone and yes that door should go!

Eric, you’ve already heard that you should move slowly….makes good sense. Doing things here and there only works if you only need to change a couple of elements, but not when your entire kitchen is dated and needs help. Take your time, save up and do the whole shebang. As to cleaning your floors: if you’re able and willing you can do this yourself. We had a bathroom floor in this house that was so dirty (previous owners were elderly) that when you opened the linen closet the floors there looked like a totally different color. My husband used a combination of bleach plus outdoor cleaner, spread it all over the tile, let it sit for a couple of hours, then got on his hands and knees and scrubbed and scrubbed. It was hard work (and will be harder for you since you have a lot more of this surface), but cost him next to nothing. You can do some research on the internet as to what to use, and how to reseal, esp if the floors really are a true stone. To redo our kitchen actually took us 5-6 years…..enough time to figure out what exactly we wanted. It’s a long time, but the wait was worth it. Good luck!

@Elcieg please delete that link! I’m not sure how you found it but it’s definitely not appropriate to put another poster’s address online. that makes me incredibly wary to post any pictures with questions of my own home.

Eric, Your kitchen is awesome because it's yours! You've probably been looking at homes for a while during the buying process and many of them likely had very updated kitchens so by comparison, you're feeling yours is outdated. Unfortunately, everything in a home is outdated at some point so don't make yourself crazy over keeping on trend for everything.

Folks are saying wait 6 months to a year. I say wait at least two years just to figure out what you want to do and what functionality and style you really like. You say you aren't design oriented but I can tell you have preferences and care about what your home looks like. You just don't know what those preferences are yet. I recommend taking this on as research project. Educate yourself on architectural styles, design styles and learning to DIY where you can and learning what goes into having a trades person do a quality job when you have to hire others to do it.

I'm not a digital native, still love my print, so I purchase design magazines such as Architectural Digest and tear out pages of houses, rooms, specific items in a photo, I like. Pubs like AD have homes in a wide range of styles from Old English estates to super Modern condos rather than honing in on a pub like Dwell that has a Modern style focus. Look carefully at photos of rooms that might not completely appeal to you but in which there may be an element that you really like. I'm not big on very traditional styles but I can usually find an interesting treatment of shelving or a piece of furniture in room that is interesting so I tear that page and circle the item. By looking at a lot of styles, collecting the ones you like, a trend will emerge that will give you a direction you will love for many years. You may not see the trend, but if you show your collection to a professional designer or architect, they will see it. AD is online of course so if that's your thing, you can collect pics that way. AD also has a site called Clever https://www.architecturaldigest.com/clever that is geared more to the newer homeowner like you. It has design and home ownership tips. It's a good place to start. IMO, AD is well worth the annual subscription. After collecting pics for years, when I began my remodel my architect looked at the photos and said, "You like a kitchen that doesn't look like a kitchen." Who knew, but she was right.

Don't know where you live but if there is an annual architect's design tour and a remodeler's home tour (you can find out by Googling "AIA residential design tour" and "Remodeler's home tour), go on those. It's a great way to see what people who live in real houses are doing to build/update their homes and you can talk with builders, architects and designers who have done the work. Looking at staged photos can be deceiving for what is really possible or more importantly, what is really something you can actually live with. An annual Parade of homes is fun but looking at all new houses with all the latest stuff is not as helpful when you have to work with your existing style and structure. Plus, even high end houses on a Parade of Homes are not usually site specific designed by an architect so they don't give you the creative ideas you get on a AIA/renovation tour. The AIA tour is focused on site specific design of the existing or new space done by architects, the remodeler's tour is focused on the contractor who has done the work which might include an architect and interior designer. Both are helpful IMO.

The good news is, your home looks like it's really high quality. The bad news is that when you gut a space like that, what you are replacing it with unless you've done extensive planning and saving, might look better but have far less quality at a big price.

Go slowly, enjoy the process.

Eric, you can look for stone restoration companies. We’re getting ready to have our travertine refinished. While it won’t change the color, it will remove 20 years of dirt build up and old, yellowed previous sealer.

I found it because the picture you posted (obviously a download) is from on-line real estate listing which is available to the public. Your new home is quite a beauty and the floors look fine, as does the kitchen. Larger, clearer photos, are so much help when one is trying to give advice. BTW, the pool and the landscaping are just perfect.

Absolutely, I will delete the real estate link, but in the future don't upload photos unless they are yours. Also, keep in mind that the listing details always will be available to anyone. The Registry of Deeds is for public information for all sorts of important reasons. Best you read this to familiarize yourself.

https://www.movoto.com/blog/public-property-records-whats-available-and-whats-not/

Eric your house is absolutely gorgeous….I agree the pool is fabulous

@elcieg thanks for deleting the link and you’re quite the sleuth! I used a snap from the 3D matterport so I don’t use actual images until house closes in a week or two. But you found it!

Yes it’s a higher priced home but that’s CA and the neighborhood. And I’m still cash poor after this purchase! I love the house too overall, but I think there’s definitely items I can work on here and there - not a while redo.

I love all the ideas and I’ll definitely look into the floor cleaning, removing the door to the kitchen, some darker fixtures and runners to match the countertop and maybe a white paint job. But mostly, learned to wait! Haha.

@tozmo1 thanks for the encouragement and great suggestion on learning! I do think my wife and I will enjoy that process.

Also seemed everyone hated the Viking idea. If I do want to put in a high-end refrigerator in the future, which would the good folks here recommend? Sub zero?

SUB ZER.

Eric, I didn’t see pics at deleted link so only view I have is pic you posted - no advice to add to good stuff you’ve received. I’m only curious about that door standing open at top of pic past the frig. Looks extremely inconvenient - I think I’d be taking it off hinges to live with free access to the other side & not blocking kitchen side cabs.

Putting in a Sub Zero level fridge only works if it is in the 150-200K kitchen that supports that level of appliances. And that only works if you are in the 90th percentile of homes in your market. Meaning you are in the top 10% price range of homes in your market.

Because that kitchen doesn't belong in a top 10% priced house. And if it's appropriate to the 50th percentile house that it looks to be inside, over spending 50K on appliances is just a complete waste of money.

Best thing you can do is not let your eyes be bigger than your stomach here. Waiting on changing anything lets you explore changes that actually fit well inside the house that you bought. You do not want to end up putting hundreds of thousands into a home that you will only occupy for 4-5 years, and lose those hundreds of thousands. Better to take a couple of years vacation in Greece as do that.

If you Google the ratings on refrigerators you will find that Samsung and LG rate very highly. The others you mentioned, which are very expensive, are not rated as well. My recent conversation with my appliance repair person was that Samsung wins the fridge contest.

Reading consumer comments, to me, are always helpful. DeWayne also makes a good point.

Start a “New Kitchen” file. When it’s time to actually spend the money your personal preferences will be repeated. Then you’ll know what you truly like. My new kitchen looks JUST LIKE the myriad photos I saved on Houzz.

I have a Jenn-Air refrig that I love. It's probably not high end but it met the needs of my kitchen remodel i.e. I wanted to have a refrigerator that "disappeared" into the cabinets so it has the same wood front as the cabinets, I wanted a side by side (hurts my back to pull out the freezer drawer and then bend over to fish out stuff out) and I didn't want a water or ice dispenser of the front. Jenn-Air was the only one that met all those needs. That's why I say go slow. You'll want to make choices for the appliances as part of the overall design.

I think it's usually more of a refrigerators to avoid thing e.g. LG. The wait time to get parts on LGs when the electronics break and they do break is awful, according to my friends who have them and also repair people.

One more bit of advice from an old person...when making an appliance selection, don't ask just the sales person or the manufacturer and read online reviews, ask the repair person. They'll give you the real story on what is reliable or less expensive/easier to fix. Another reason I went with the Jenn-Air, a repair person told me they were easy to fix. Not a lot of electronics. When one of the LED lights went out in the freezer causing them all to go out, a quick youtube search showed me exactly what I needed, I ordered the very inexpensive part and did a quick replacement with the plugin unit. Sometimes it's not even the price of a repair, it's the hassle of finding a repair person, waiting for them to show up, etc.

Enjoy the adventure!

Ask a repairman about Samsung and LG. They would never in a million years buy them. Look at all the secondhand stores full of them. Nope. Don't do it.

A SZ is a 25 year wearing refrigerator. But you can buy 4 $3000 GE's that last 7-10 years for that. And those are made in Kentucky.

Buying appliances is very difficult these days, to say the least. In our last house we had a Jenn-air, bottom freezer, water dispenser inside the door, ice in drawer, it worked great, no problems. This time DH wanted ice/water dispenser on the outside, I wanted French door; we researched (7 yrs ago), bought a Samsung. No issues with the actual fridge, but the icemaker started acting up in year 3, and now, in year 7, it's out of commission. DH thinks of we have a new one installed, the same will happen, so he bought a separate icemaker and then fills the ice into the Samsung for very noisy dispensation….super annoying! The long and short of it is that ratings change from year to year, and literally no refrigerators are great anymore, or at least long-lasting. Esp French door fridges seem to be terrible. Not all of us can afford Sub-Zero, or want to devote that much space to them…I hope you find one that works, and preferably more than

just a few years….good luck!!!

We've had great experiences with our Bosch refrigerators.

Erik, where in cal are you? i'm in So cal near OC.

I had my cabinets painted by a fantastic kitchen remodel company. (I have more cabs that you. you just can't see the rest of them. I used 60 handles if that gives you any indication!)

That's why I asked if yours were solid wood in good contidion. if you like the layout, you can get the bases painted and new doors and door fronts. for your kitchen i'm estimating maybe in the 10K. Still cheaper than all new cabs.

Granite or quartz, since you're in Calif you can easily get pre-fab countertops. They ship over from china pre-fabricated in all diff sizes, (w/24" depth for kitchens)

A 9'X24" pre fab can be as little as $600. Most of the stone yards around here carry them. that's why I asked where you were located. This is just one sample of a tile place that I frequent. The pre-fabs in the middle look like bathroom vanity tops. (but they also carry the longer 9' kitchen tops)

This one is a TaMajal quartzite, 9'x24" and runs a bit more since it's an exotic. this was $1800.

but, if someone has a smaller countertop space to do, this is cheaper than buying a full slab of Taj, which runs in the $3500 neighborhood, and another 2K or more to get it cut.

I’m in LA but yeah great ideas! I might have to look one up and go check it out

Hi Beth, I do agree painting the cabinets is off the best move. I think it’s a great place to save money and still have it look fabulous. My advice would be at a Dover gray as it goes with everything so whatever colors you bring in for the countertop I think it would look great. Where is the countertop, definitely quartz or granite, lasts forever, and it will lighten the entire kitchen. The price is the same a bit high on the slabs, keep in mind the fabricator will usually charge about the same amount of money that you’re paying for the slabs to fabricate.
Your refrigerator looks good and if it’s not dented, it can certainly be reused. I might suggest trying to make the alcove where it is sitting maybe a little deeper, that would make it look much more built in. I’m a fan of the subzero or Viking or KitchenAid for refrigerators. If you’re looking to change it. They get quite costly and if you’re happy with yours, why spend any money, isn’t the whole point just to keep the food cold?
:-). Ds

Erik, drive down to Anaheim and visit Tile Row. (State College Blvd between Ball and Katella. just north of Angel Stadium) State College Distributors is where I took those photos.

Some other places are out in the valley in North Hollywood. But tile row in Anaheim can't be beat. tons of tile places and Stone Yards w/all sorts of pre-fabs.