I should have stated that we will be painting the kitchen walls as well right now. Entire house will also get painted eventually but not any time soon, so lots of beige/brown/cream to work with for the time being 😊

The only thing I would do if you really want to spend money is to update the light and the hardware together. Do the same colour has the faucet and it will brighten up the area. You want good quality paint and a couple of coats for the cabinets and I'm not sure you can do that for your $500 given the number of cabinets. Paint has become expensive because of renovation demand over the past few years.

Agreed on the paint costs - way higher than they used to be! I was thinking that we could get away with 3-4 gallons of paint. The Benjamin Moore Advanced runs about $50/gallon here so that leaves me with enough for the light and hardware. Just need to figure out colors…and now I’m leaning towards BM since SW is sooo expensive, even with their 25% off sale! 😕

Wow, the previous owners really went for it. It's quite a nice kitchen in its own way. I do agree with bifenton in that might be better to spend your money else where in the kitchen. Is the hood removable? What does the piping look like under it? If I was trying to update this kitchen on a tight budget, I would probably change the hood to a full stainless steel one, remove the molding above the cupboards, change the pantry door to a glass one or paint it with chalkboard paint, paint the walls, add large chunky pottery in the glass door shelves, paint the wall molding to blend with the ceiling and then maybe paint the island.

Agree with @nelliebean & @blfenton. Don’t know if there’s a way to take embellishments & corbels off island without damaging cabinet but at least I’d try the ceiling & pantry door which would be easier to replace. I thought cabinet paint is very different than wall paint.

Under $500?? Not feasable for all on your punch list. This is 2023, not 1983.

The house is very new to you. Live in it for at least six months, before making any patchwork updates. See if the kitchen functions for you. Do you like walking around the barrier island, every time you need something from the other side of the kitchen?

The kitchen may not be pretty, but the appliances look pretty recent, and functional. Painting isn’t going to update the kitchen…not with the dated details…the scroll work, and staggered cabinets.

Besides, painting cabs is quite labor intensive as a DIY project. It’s not just slapping on a new color...unless you don’t mind paint chipping within a few months. There’s a painting forum on this site. Or, go to YouTube for instructions. A professional will cost thousands.

Have patience. Wait. Save up for a major reno. It may take a few years, but then you’ll do it cohesively, and get the total look you want.

Thank you for the advice darbuka, and I agree with you. We moved in this past May so it has been six months exactly - I wanted to get a feel for it as you mentioned. As I also noted, my husband and I are capable of doing the work ourselves, having gutted our previous home to the studs. Just looking for the best paint color to use before we get to that next step (again, years down the road). I can’t take all this beige that long 😊I am used to greys and more cool tones, so this is throwing me for a loop.

I like the SW colors you’re considering. Urban Bronze makes sense of the backsplash behind the stove and looks great with stainless steel. I’d just add some dish towels to repeat the dark brown of the countertop. Updated liighting and hardware would help tremendously, as well as removing the embellishments, as KW PNW Z8 mentioned.

Here’s a beauty with a similar color scheme and modern lighting.

Ffpalms I love it, thank you so much for the advice and for the inspiration pic!! 😍

I would leave the embellishments and paint all of it in urbane bronze with a more matte finish

Nice job! That’s a lotta bang for the buck! Even the embellishments on the island look good since your dining chairs are also embellished. The updated island pedants look great. Their simplicity tones down the traditional bits for a pleasing whole.

Great job! It's amazing that small changes make such a big difference.

You did a great job. Big change on a small budget. Congrats!