Yes to painting your bar. The contrast between the cabinetry and the adjacent balustrade is jarring. Too bad the countertop can't be replaced. The contrast between the countertop and cabinetry will be even more apparent once the cabinetry is painted but it is what it is.

Looking for tile suggestions.

yes, the black countertop and white cabinets will be contrasted, but people do use that combo in kitchens. it is not my favorite look, however, i think it will be better than what is in place now.

my thought was adding a pretty tile would make it look even nicer.

It is not a wet bar and IMO just the same wall color on thta wall no tile . Once you have some stuff on that counter like a shaker , ice bucket there will be no seeing the tile anyway. How do the lucite handles work with the rest of your decor ? I would be tempted to not paint those cabinets white I think they will look cheap. I need to see the LR at least to have any idea about this space really. To me from what I see it is in a strange tight space and why the different flooring in front of it ? Post pics of at least the LR here in a comments DO NOT start another post . Do you really use this area?

there will not be an ice bucket, shaker etc… we arent drinkers. the beverage fridge will hold water, seltzer's, juice, small snacks etc. the space isnt used for alcoholic drinks/ mixes etc.

the only thing on that counter may be a small decorative vase or serving tray.

i had my kitchen cabinets refinished in white and they look beautiful. not sure why the color white =cheap (?)

the flooring was here when we purchased. I have no idea why it is different and we have no plans on changing it.

i like glass/ lucite pulls, they are pretty.

i am looking for tile suggestions.

I have a couple thoughts. It might be interesting to see if you could pull out the drawer stack on the left. Then you could also make that a coffee bar. You are showing tiles in colors of gray, however, the flooring in your pictures leans a lot more to the yellow tones of an older house. So I think that if you have grays and grayish colored paint against the flooring, you are going to hate how it throws the flooring into looking very yellow. I would look for a warm cream color paint, which is coming back into style right now. And then look for tiles that have creams and pretty browns in them to make what you have coordinated and cohesive.

personally, I would want a bit of warmth in the tile to connect with the cabs - straight grey & white seems a little disconnected from the surroundings - I am not saying this tile exactly, just showing for hue

Gtdj, I think the area is referred to as a dry bar( no sink). I think your ideas are spot on. I love white cabinets and that will really brighten the space up. The area is so small for tile, I would just be careful not to get too busy pattern. I really like your first choice. Of course a subway tile is timeless!

Thanks nora… dry bar it is! lol

i call it a snack bar🤷‍♀️ whatever the case , thanks for the suggestions. subways are definately an option as they are classic. i was hoping for something a little more decorative. i can always default to subway if i dont find anything i like foe the space.

i will answer others here. cabinets will be chantilly lace like the rest of my home cabinets/ trims. walls will be babys breath ( front runner right now) but if not that one, i am planning on a shade of white walls.

Family room which is off of this landing / hallway will have a light blue sectional.

other than the flooring ( which mostly will be covered by an area rug and sectional) there isnt much warm colors. my house is cool colored ( light blues/ light grays/ silver / white )

also, the floor tiles in front of the bar area is actually a taupey/ greyish/ textured floor tile. the lighting makes them look beige.

The cabinets appear in the photo to be in excellent condition. They don't look dated really, they look MCM. If you are determined to paint them, white is the last thing I would choose. As J Mig said, you have beige tiles and warm wood floors. Chantilly Lace is really white. How about a medium to dark green? It would look better with the black counter and other warm finishes than white-white would.

There is zero green in my home. that would stick out like a sore thumb. the cabinets are very MCM. previous owners had a lot of it going on in the house, and little by little for thr oast 10 years, we have transitioned things.. i have always disliked it, and am happy to be rid of the heavy and dark features .

i have chantilly lace kitchen cabinets , fireplace and all trims in the house.

the tiles are not as beige looking as photos.

they are a taupey/ grayish

actually… i have the same tile in the bathroom off the family room and the walls/ trim in the bathroom are chantilly lace. to me, it doesnt look bad or too beige / warm .

I happen to love the wood, but you are the person who has to live in the home and as long as I don't pay your mortgage my preferences don't matter.

I would look at your lighting. It is very yellow and colors will look very different if you change the lighting.

If I had to pick a tile to go with white cabinets and you have mostly blue colors I would probably add a bit of blue to tie it with the family room color palette.

gtdj, I was trying to tag you on a tile thread yesterday, having no idea you were actually needing tile for a new project! The styles just reminded me so much of your lovely house; I wanted you to see for fun.

Anyway, I’m no tile expert, so can’t say if any of these would work in this spot, or how expensive they’d be, but they sure are pretty. Scroll down for the ones I think are most your style:

https://ceramicmatrix.com/product/floral-collection-by-artistic-tile/

I like antiqued glass tiles, too:

Something like this blue/gray tile would be beautiful:

I agree with you painting these cabinets. I like warm wood stain, but it’s not in keeping with the gracious style of your home and decor, and there’s nothing precious about that wood.

ETA: Meant to say that I very much like the choices you posted, too. I think the last one might be too large of a pattern, though. It reminds me of this … similar pattern, but smaller size (ignore everything else here):

Thank you jennifer and jilly.

I the lighting in that area is really not much lofhting at all. the bar area is in the hallway off the fanily room it really only gets the light from the recessed hall lights. we arent invesrong in electical fornthis small spot, so the lighting will stay as is.

i like both of the suggestions of blue/ touch of blue. that may be nice.

Its the black countertop thats killing me. 🤦🏼‍♀️ someone suggested green cabinets( not doing) but then i thought maybe paint the cabinets a soft light blue, with the black countertop and white tiles. (?)

sort of like this type look. not really sure though…. i feel white cabinets may be safer. (?)

Oh my gosh jIlly….no way!!! That is so coincidental!! I would love to take a look at what you are talking about. Love the suggestions you made. i loved the fan design tiles. Do you know the source of those?

gtjd, it was a thread of an OP asking if anyone knew the name of a certain tile … a great slueth found it:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6442874/help-me-locate-this-tile-manufacturer-or-where-to-find-it-please-pleas

Love the suggestions you made. i loved the fan design tiles. Do you know the source of those?

I’m sorry, I don’t. If I come across it, I’ll post back! Hopefully others who know of fan tiles will see this. :)

Jilly…. inspired by your mirrored tile suggestion, i came across these which i think are beautiful. they are by akdo.

Thank you ! i found a few others that i am seeing about getting samples for as well.

i agree with you.

we have had this ice machine which we disconnected and never used the past 6 years. we are replacing it with a beverage fridge.

the dark brown wood just feels so heavy and dreary in the small space. It never had any hardware on it except for 2 tiny knobs (?)

the black granite i am not a fan of, but I think by making cabinets white, adding a backsplash, pretty cabinet pulls, and a decorative countertop tray and pretty floral vase , it will become less of an eyesore and the space will become a nice feature off of the family room . or like you said a “ little jewel of a space ”