How much renovation do you want? ceiling is great. Lighting change easy fix. Get a simpler hood cover or paint what you have— the curves might be necessary with the barrel ceiling. Countertops with those heavily trimmed corners more challenging. I wonder if the wood floor can be bleached to blend more with the travertine.

I agree! You would not believe how many of the metal pieces we took off of the walls. I definitely want to change out the light fixtures. I already took off the chicken that was sitting on top of the light fixture over the island. We were also considering taking the corals off of the island, because my hips have permanent bruises from hitting those corners. We definitely want to change out the floor. We want to change all of the countertops, and I would love to take the vent hood off. I have a tall son 6’8”, who is a chef, and is constantly whacking his head on that. The cabinetry is in beautiful shape, but I’m not totally opposed to potentially painting the island. Thank you all for your help.

I agree the corbels have to go, as well as all the iron anything decorative. If you get new counters look into squaring off the top of the island. Hoods are very in so I wouldn't reduce it but maybe take off any trim or decoration. We really can't see your stove area. The issue will be what will you have when you are done? With the ceiling I think you still have the nod to Tuscan and I am not sure it will work???? Unified flooring makes a space feel larger but both floors are beautiful so I would work with them.

I think you win for most ridiculous lighting placement- they should have just bought a flush mount.

In the eighties hands this could be pushed California modern but it’s going to take skill to pull it all together.

You've lived there for several years and now you know what you want. Start getting estimates for the things you want to change. Then decide what has to be done in what order (like changing the floors, removing corbels and getting new countertops) and what is independent of other things (like changing the lighting).

If you go to city hall, you can perhaps find the names of the architect, builder and subcontractors The original cabinet shop may have the appropriate expertise to change the corbels out and offer options on the hood. If they aren't around after 30 years, check with new "luxury kitchen" contractors to see what they can offer.

flooring will be a big project - I would want a wood floor, and then next would be figuring out what complements the cabinets, and then deciding if maybe new cabinets are in order… it would be easy to get to a gut reno in no time (not sure if you want that or not)

if it were me, I would find a talented local design pro to help me clean up the space - agree with @HALLETT & Co. that the floor is not the biggest issue

IMO the worst is the heavy Tuscan cabinets more so than the floor. I think you need to explain what style you ,ike since IMO all your furniture is rather Tuscan too. For me the kitchen would be atotal gut so at that time you could do all the flooring to match I see no way to do much in the kitchen to tone down the Tuscan without a gutjob. BTW love those vceilings and in Europe often they are kept but all the decor is super contemporary and looks awesome . Sit down and really analize what you would do if you could do what you want then you work toward that .Your idea books say something very different than what you have so big change takes a lot of planning . IMO Tuscan style works best in Tuscany and to spend money on new counters in a kitchen you do not love is like putting lipstick on a pig it is still a pig. I never want my clients to throw money awy with no proper plan .I have to agree the FR ceiling is all wrong too. Myabe share a bit of what you would do if you had unlimited rules and money. What would your sty;le be then ????

The kitchen ceiling and the living/dining area ceiling are such a HUGE contrast. I see you carried the iron work through to that room. Ae you sure it's not the ceiling in the living room that's the issue for you?? It seems the odd man out giving off more of a Colorado mountain feel....

I'd start a list of all the spots where iron scrollwork is placed and there are numerous. [remove] ..... Because cabinets and floor really arent the problem as much as 1. pendants w metal scrollwork 2. wall applied decor w scrollwork 3. chairs w metal scrollwork backs 4. endtables w metal scrollwork . Note you have two modern smaller chairs in liv room. you can work on obvious things having to do w scrolls/ iron work etc and bring in OTHER sorts of furnishings and probably be easier than floor/ cabinets/ counter changes [take off the corbels tho] . Not sure about the two ceilings ...probably one or the other could be painted as a transition into a more streamlined transitional space. Some simpler things to do are right in front of you.

@Hallett&Co. I agree the lighting is ridiculous! Apparently the question for them was, “Do I center the pendants over the bar/eating area, or do I center them in the barrel ceiling?” Apparently the ceiling won. My main goal is to lighten the kitchen. I don’t mind a nod to Tuscan, I just want to brighten the area. The cabinets, floors, and countertops are all dark. I don’t want to have all new cabinets but I don’t mind painting some or all of them to brighten the kitchen. And, I can’t in good conscience paint the great room ceiling. This is the style I would like.

I’ll echo what you and others have said. Your home is beautiful and so extremely Tuscan. Whatever you do, in turning this Tuscan Titanic, you’ve got to plot a course with a clear design vision and plan. If you change piecemeal without this, you’ll have a mishmash of unrelated sadness. Given your archways, architecture, and details throughout the house, I’d get a designer to go through and help you at least get to a general but clear vision before you start changing “this” floor or “that” countertop.

#herbflavor I agree. We just removed that huge couch and tomorrow will be delivered a much smaller solid couch in a light honey color. The two chairs will go on either side to make a small conversation area in front of the fireplace.

Green might be an option if you decide to paint any cabinets.

@Jane Cohick ...Glad to hear it re decor changes in the living room....a bit of a shift...here's French country and then , more modern , for example..... help to give confidence that the kitchen isnt really a nightmare. I think smaller adjustments in the kitchen will work.

Locust Hills Chateau · More Info

Modern Living Room · More Info

Maybe the ceiling should be painted but leave the floors and cabinets (de corbel for sure). If the floor is replaced I’d say the whole floor throughout should be the same lighter wood tone (as a dark tone floor with dark cabinets won’t meet your goal of lightening things up).

The floor being changed to match the other solid wood floors would be a good first step. Removing the corbels and painting the kitchen a warm creamy color could keep the costs down. The hood can be repainted or replaced. I think you can avoid a gut job if the layout works for you. The countertop will look completely different in an ivory kitchen.

The ceiling would look gorgeous with these changes. Fixture changes can be last. Your kitchen looks large and functional so I would work with a designer who isn’t “remove-everything-and-start-over” focused. This can be done in phases.

#herbflavor that is the style I’m going for. We actually repainted the walls in the entire house. They were a dark gold. We painted them a creamy almond. It made a huge difference in the rest of the house.

#thinkdesignlive. I agree. I am thinking a lighter wood tone, more the color of the baseboard.

#RedRyder I have a bit of a fear of painting, the cabinetry, but all along I’ve been a fan of doing a really warm cream paint on the island, maybe with a little glaze over it to give it some character. I absolutely hate the granite. Would love to lighten it up with some sort of beautiful quartzite. Maybe a lighter tone around the perimeter, something like a Taj Mahal, and then something really cool on the island. I am definitely OK with losing the corbels. I might even consider replacing the entire island, because there are some features that don’t work well for me. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

#Lisaam I had the exact same thought but have been told to refinish the wood and lighten it up would cost more than simply ripping it up and replacing it.

A new Taj Mahal countertop will definitely change the room. And the island.

Are you thinking of a different size and shape island? Just removing it may make the space seem oddly large in the middle.

Could just the gold tile be removed between the wood trellis and replaced with white…white walls and new countertop would change the entire room!..the wood is beautiful.

I agree with the comments that the floor isn't the big problem here. It's the dark cabinetry, acres of speckled granite, and overwrought details like the corbels, hood, and lighting. I agree with painting the cabinets a pale olive green and removing the corbels. Get rid of those weird dinky hanging lights. A nice encaustic tile backsplash around the range. Neutral counters.

Oh and please don't do a glaze.

With the walls now much lighter (looks like a warm white) I like the dark cabinets. I would replace the countertops and backsplash to also a warm white, replace all lighting fixtures, replace all hardware with black, paint the range hood, and remove some of the black metal wall decor. For the flooring, of course all would would be nice but if you could replace the tile inserts with something like black marble, I think that would also work nicely. Something like this...