Get a medium gray.

Search the Houzz website and look what others have done with white dove cabinets

Contrast is good!

kitchen · More Info

According to the designer these are White Dove cabinets with soapstone countertops from Bucks County Soapstone ( http://bcsoapstone.com/)

Falmouth Designer's Kitchen · More Info

Here's another soapstone

Kitchen · More Info

Honed black granite per the designer

Erin - I love your updates so far and your floor is beautiful too. I agree with mxk3 and others — I really hope you consider a granite. It will give your kitchen a bit of contrast and interest. Granite is very strong and maintenance free once sealed (if the stone is one that needs sealing). I love the idea of soapstone too, but I don’t know if it’s expensive. Fantasy Brown, whether it’s a marble or granite is gorgeous. My son has it in his outdoor kitchen (previous owners) and it’s survived beautifully in Houston weather for 20+ years.

the new samples you're showing match fine. it will be an all-white kitchen -- is that what you wanted?

We are wanting quartz for budget reasons

No, no, you go with laminate for budget reasons -- not quartz. Quartz can cost as much (or more) than granite. Corian in plain white is always a good choice.

Yes the lights were not installed when I took this picture, they are installed now and I have good light.

Good. I was going to talk about lighting /was going to say it's the item sorely lacking -- but you've already taken care of that essential.

The elements you have chosen are all lovely, but having ALL white shaker cabinets, white backsplash, and white countertops, seems like it might be a bit bland.

Agree. Perhaps you can add some standout hardware, accessories & fancy lighting. At the moment it reads as "Hits of the 2020s".

they don't have to be 'busy' or speckled. In fact, many gorgeous stones have a lot of interesting veining

Consider that people look at "speckled" today and scream "dated"! Veining will read that way tomorrow.

Contrast is good!

That first picture is lovely! All the details are so well done. Is that countertop wood or brown stone? Can't tell from the picture.

all-white kitchen

All white is hard to get right, especially if the items you use aren't top-of-the-line. Texture matters, lighting matters.

@Theresa Peterson: "Contrast is good!...That first picture is lovely!"

The foreground countertop -- what I found a good contrast with the paint -- is soapstone and the background countertop is oak, original to the house per the designer.

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Corian Solid Surface Evening Prima

The floors are lovely!! There are so very, very, very many topics from homeowners who pick whites that don’t look quite right once installed, even though the samples seemed fine. 🙂

While contrast is trendy, there is something very charming, calm, and chic in a full white bright kitchen.

Surgical suites are only calming because of the anesthesia. They are also freezing cold.

To each his own! All white kitchens are clean, bright and cheery to me. Love black or rose gold hardware and plants & wood accessories. I would do a complementary white quartz with a subtle pattern of some sort. Soapstone will also look nice.

Something in a white but very soft pattern would be nice. Just think about where your eye will focus when you walk into your room. A bright, swirly granite, beautifully patterned quartz. If you choose a light, white countertop with little or no pattern, jazz it up with a nice tile backsplash. Your eye must focus on something. Good luck with your choice. p.s. I also love white cabinets.

Don't use grey (imho). That is what will make it cold. I have white and wood in mine with the shaker cabinets. I would do a quartz with smaller veining (meaning thinner veining, not shorter). Mine is all white with wood touches and looks very warm. Your accessories matter and white is a great canvas for those.

I like soapstone for contrast if you are picking an interesting backsplash or hate a look with a strong pattern. For a plainer backsplash, I would consider Kashmir Gold, Fantasy Brown (which I always heard was quartzite), Typhoon Bordeaux, or White Springs as they’re interesting and unique, which give your eye an interesting place to look. It’s important to coordinate but too matchy-matchy can also feel flat. I’ve always heard 10% risk is a good idea. I’d recommend bringing your flooring to the slab yard. And remember you can use paint and/or grout to tie things together and/or make parts of the stone pop, whether it is veins, flecks, or some other element that needs a bit of balance. Same with accessories like towels, canisters, trivets, plants, accent show lighting, etc. What does the rest of your home look like? Do you have a favorite room? Or an inspiration photo?

9 years ago I went white on white... white cabinets, white countertops and marble subway tile. 9 years later I still like it. Granite vs quartz? Granite is passé, quartz is the way to go. I'm amazed by how many people are suggesting granite. Here's a previous discussion. https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3713300/white-dove-kitchen-cab-with-what-white-quartz

Would butcher block/hardwood countertops be an option? Wood is so warm, can be refinished, and can be stained in so many different ways. And it is usually not very expensive. I've installed them as a "temporary" countertop (to get an occupancy permit) while I took my time figuring out what I really wanted. Ended up liking them so much I never changed them.

I have quartz countertops and eight years in they still look brand new with no maintenance needed. It’s a cream color and stains wipe right off - I cook every day so they have to be impervious to everything thrown at them.

Going through a similar process at the moment. Our cabinets are Chantilly Lace and our quartz is Calacatta Bello--the whites of which are a bit darker than Chantilly but would probably work even better with White Dove. We are pleased with how it looks and it was quite reasonable. There were a couple of perhaps better choices but they were prohibitive and we did not want to spend the money there. What we've learned is that it's impossible to do a 100% match unless you pick the surface first and have the cabinetry color matched to it, but if you stay within the same undertones it'll work just fine.

Given that this is a very subjective choice, what we wanted in this open space was a clean, neutral look which played well with other areas like living & dining and where we could add more daring pieces in lighting and art--something that can be easily changed later for a whole different look. Sometimes boring now=timeless later.

AGHHHHH ! TOO MUCH WHITE !! SO BORING ! NO CHARACTER/PERSONALITY !!

Take a look at a quartz called fantasy brown! It worked wonders in my White kitchen!

@nlflynn - Fantasy Brown is not Quartz. Quartz is a man-made counter product. Fantasy Brown is a stone which is a mix of marble and quartzite, and typically behaves more like marble in that it etches. Just being clear.

All white is beautiful and pure. As someone else commented this is subjective so I would discount the opinion of those that say otherwise. Your small appliances can offer pops of color. Perhaps a plant or two also can be added.

Erin, I like the Soprano quartz. I've done all combinations (dark cabinets with dark counter tops; light cabinets with light countertops; dark cabinets with light countertops; light cabinets with dark countertops). Although my favorite is my dark oak cabinets with light quartz (with lots of fine gray veining) and charcoal marble backsplash, my painted (Revere Pewter) cabinets with light white/warm gray quartz with soft gold hardware was wonderful and had lots and lots of compliments (and helped sell the house in a hurry). I totally get why you would do light cabinets and light countertops and I understand why you want quartz. You can add live edge wood shelving, wood clad range hood, a giant wood butcherblock or soapstone section; you can add wood or black iron or weathered brass knobs and pulls; splurge on a marble backsplash - either grays or beiges or whites that pick up the darkest colors countertops -- there are so many things you can do that it will not feel like a cold, bland white on white kitchen. Plus, you have kids in your profile picture, indicating that your kitchen will never feel cold. It may be messy, it may be noisy, and it may be covered in jam and homework, but it will never be cold. Post pics when it's done!

Soprano quartz with white cabinets - Zzzzzzzz.

Bcrlsn Yes, I have 5 kids so it will be busy for sure and as you mentioned covered in jam😂

Love all white kitchens! No need for adding contrast with your hard surfaces that will be hard to replace/change as time goes on. Like aprevious poster said, you can add color, texture and contrast with other items like small appliances, bowls, dishes, wooden boards, dish towels etc.

Remember "Boring" now = "Timless" later. You will not get sick of it and easily switch out your accessories. Much less expensive than chaging counters or backsplash tiles!

Kerri Johnson -- your kitchen is gorgeous!!

(to OP: see how she's got an expanse of white but there's contrast with the wood and with the backsplash? Contrast is a GOOD thing; white on white on white everything...not so much)

I used a gray quartz countertop and black hardware and felt the wood floors and red accents helped warm up the white kitchen

Behind your stove, you could have colourful tile, a mural/painting covered in glass or one of those back lit coloured acrylic boxes I've seen on Houzz. Something you love, then use one of the colours for inspiration.

I would stick to your initial gut instinct and stay with the all white scheme you seem to have really wanted all along. The samples you brought are all light colored... All colorful "accents" will eventually date the space and things to "add contrast" make your tire of it because it's not what you really wanted and you will be wishing to repalce the soon-to-be outdated colorful accents tiles etc. And that will be super expensive! Go all white and you will love it for a long time! Classic. Timeless.

Try a travertine or travertine color quartz. Grey is out and all white would look timid and bland.

There's a thread about dark / plain leathered granite. Check it out. I'd contend that with your creamy cabs and lovely med flooring, leathered Uba Tuba would be spectactular AND cost effective.

Yes! I had leathered granite and loved it in my last house! Great finish.

Just finishing our kitchen, which is pretty much the opposite of all white, but the White Springs granite is my most favorite part. It’s very interesting and hides crumbs (and jam and tomato sauce!) exceptionally well. (Possibly more than I want, but I think my eye will find that stuff more easily once I know the character of my own slabs better.) It’s also warm and matches a lot of things exceptionally well with tons of “wiggle room.” My main slab has a lot of gold, but that’s special to my slab. Most White Springs has little to no gold, just the rust red, clear taupe, soft flecked gray, and black on the very creamy white background, which I think it would match BM White Dove quite well (though with less contrast than I have). It is a busy choice, but has the whitest background of a warm slab choice that I saw while looking. The other warm choices seemed quite gold or beige as a background, vs. the creamy white. The whiter choices I saw were, on the flip side, quite cool, which might make the White Dove look yellow, which I think was your initial worry. I definitely intentionally chose busy, colorful slabs, which is clearly not your taste, but I think the background cream would match really well, and there are definitely calmer slabs out there if you like it. For reference, my backsplash is Daltile Urban Putty, which I think would be significantly darker than White Dove but in a similar color family (a current mushroom tan beige with no yellow). I added some pictures with more typical bits of slab, too, since the gold is pretty rare. It is more typical that some sections will have the blockier cream and others will have the finer gray texture or a mix of the two. I obviously really love my White Springs, but I mention it primarily because I think it would match White Dove well.

I have fantasy brown in 2 kitchens. It is beautiful and stands up perfectly to kitchen use!

Laura - I really like your granite slabs. Very interesting and your kitchen is lovely. I think those who are undecided should look through some granite slabs. You can find something stunning and unique, unlike manmade quartz.

I vote soapstone or fantasy brown marble. I had FB previously and it stood up amazingly to my kids. I have soapstone now and I love the contrast with my white cabinets.

what are the plans for the backsplash? tile? please dont say white subway tile.

the one on the right looks like a better match. less cool than the left.

I think these are White Dove. the countertop is Pental Serano, honed finish. I love this one, especially w/the wood accents. A cloe tile backsplash would compliment this

TajMajal quartzite is actually a nice warmer compliment to the cabs and your flooring

Granite is not passe' lol. it's a stone! how can it be outdated.

Blue Flower granite is a newer version that's actually very pretty. (and would hide kids jam marks!)

Porcelain. Porcelain slabs have come a very long way. this is one that looks like marble. I actually though it was real marble when I walked by it

Soapstone is another nice choice. If you can find the dense version.

If not, here's a look-alike. Silestone Eternal Charcoal quartz. comes in a matte version too

The entire slab of this quartz was listed at 2200K at my place. another 2K for fabrication, give or take.

what does the rest of the space look like? If you like the marble-quartz, then amp up the look w/accessories and hardware, wall color

That's pretty Beth! I like the gray one on the left I think it adds some dimension the gray one is pretty but the crack reminds me like it's broken an earthquake or something

I love color, solids and large, bold patterns. I hate tiny splatters or little patterns. I will be using Cambria Bentley Quartz in my kitchen with purple cabinets.

However, I can appreciate that others like what they like and don't have to agree with my choices.

If you want a white on white kitchen you should get a white on white kitchen.

When matching whites I have found the easiest method to see if the tones are going to work together is to take the materials outside around 2:00 in the afternoon on a clear day.

You will see the differences in undertone so much more easily that using any type of artificial lighting. The same goes for neutrals.

The two tiles below looked very much alike indoors, but wall colors were not working the same in both rooms with every beige looking either too pink or like mud. . . Looking at them outside in natural daylight the difference was much more obvious.

colors · More Info

Based on the pictures you posted of the last 2 samples I agree with Beth, the one on the right looks better, but that is based on a picture posted on the internet - probably the worst way to view color, especially now that we use cell phones that color correct the photos automatically. Sometimes the color doesn't look remotely the same.

Jennifer I like purple and I like bentley. can't imagine what they look like together though! I'd love to see it when finished!

are you talking about just a spalsh of aubergine

Or full on purple?

Here's the Bentley w/medium blue. I think the wood and gold really take it up a notch

I also like a good black and whte palette.

@Beth H. : It will be a 11' galley kitchen with a small peninsula at one end (Kitchen is 10'x11')

The color palette for the entire home is based on the purple, red and green slate in the entry.

It will be a grayish purple, not bright purple. Liking expressive plum, but will test a dozen before I pick one.

General House color mapping.

The flooring in the guest bed and bath are a dark purple gray, the flooring in the remainder is a purple/pink undertoned taupe, very similar to frosted toffee that I picked for the main neutral.

Sadly I am about 2 years out before I can do the kitchen. Last room on the list.

I like white kitchens! White is timeless & you won’t get tired of it. You can add pops of color in less expensive ways with cabinet handles, bowls of fruit, accessories & small appliances.

I’m in the white team as well!! I am currently visiting cabinet makers in my area and I will soon have to choose my new countertops. I am following your comments! I personally prefer granite because of its natural properties although either way I’m planning to leave a butcher block next to my top cooker to use as a trivet. Thank you Laura for your picture, I really like the pattern in your granite it’s inspiring… especially for the spagh sauce.

Susanne Croley
You sound like the designer Maria Killiam, who I have loved and read her blog for years! I totally agree with you, white is classic. Boring now equals timeless later and I don’t want to redo my hard finishes any time soon! I’d love your opinion between the two samples, do I go with the more white, or the pale warm gray? I think both are quite neutral and I’m going with a classic 3x5 off white subway tile for backsplash with stainless appliances.

Erin, it is perfectly fine to do a white on white kitchen if that is what you love.

Getting 3 surfaces (counter, backsplash and cabinets) to all work together and not get one that is too yellow or too blue is where the challenge lies.

I am going to reiterate that the best way to view these three finishes together is by looking at them outside in natural daylight.

If both of the countertop samples "work" when viewing them in natural daylight the next thing I would think about is which one works best with the things you own and love.

When picking furnishings, area rugs, other things in your home do you generally pick warm grays, cooler grays, off whites, creams, true whites . . . Look at the clothing you own. What are your neutrals?

When I help others select colors for their home, even if they are doing mostly white, we always start with the colors they love. Why? Because some whites look better than others next to the colors. The white that looks best next to lime green and the white that looks best next to khaki green won't be the same white.

And don't forget the room shadows!

Nice white granite with black thin lines