Not a pro, but I would do no more than paint the walls one light color and get a long, pretty, washable runner for the main cabinet run. Then live with it while planning a total makeover.

Thank you! So you think it would be best to go cabinets down with the remodel? Vs working around the cabinets.

Having lived with tile countertops I really don't think that will make your life better... and I think most cosmetic things you could do risk looking like lipstick on a pig. That doesn't mean don't do it! I did a new, inexpensive backsplash that lived for a couple years before full reno, because it gave me joy. But keep it simple.

Agree with bpath, no more than removing the wallpaper and painting the walls a warm white. Install a roman shade coordinated to a washable runner (the one shown is by Ruggable). You can do a gallery wall above the lunch counter.

Have an electrician install a junction box above the grid, then drop the pendant cord through a replacement ceiling tile. This hides the wiring and looks intentional rather than like a retrofit.

You can now get canless recessed LEDs designed for suspended ceilings — they snap into the tiles and look like modern recessed lights.

Thank you! That looks lovely. I was thinking possible recess lighting. Would you suggest different hardware upgrades?

You can definitely update the cabinet hardware, it's hard to see what's on the cabinets now. You can go with black or brass or polished nickel depending on what your decor will be, I'm presuming these are the listing pictures, not your furniture.

Correct! These are the staged photos. I'm just making budgets and plans but I am in the process of buying it. I'll probably replace the chairs at the bar with stools personally.

So you can install the recessed lights in the dropped ceiling, though when it comes time to remodel the kitchen you should take a look and see if the dropped ceiling should be removed.

Olive Green is a good color that works with your existing finishes.

NO TILE on countertops. Just paint.

I really am curious what is behind the drop ceiling! Def going to remove them if possible. I do love the idea of green rug + qall art. Before I was thinking of tile, green paint was a very real consideration.

So you were on the right track, but some of us have been doing this for decades, made all the mistakes you could dream of and have learned where to spend money and WHERE NOT TO SPEND MONEY. You want a pleasant room and have few funds for a total remodel. You have to learn where to spend funds to the biggest bang for your buck.

Don't worry about your floors. 99 times out of 100 the floor and cabinets never match. They only have to play nice in the room.

Thank you! I've noticed that haha. I don't really plan to do anything with the floors other than make some visual distance with the cabinets with a rug. Mostly due to the shape of my kitchen that feels possible. And then when I redo the cabinets find a stain / color that plays better. Something about the tone of the cabinets vs the floor bother me.

I did find out these might be oak or ash cabinets so I do think I'd like to see what at least one looked sanded. I think sanding off the dark glossy stain would be a huge improvement. But also... a huge project I'm scared to mess

Leave the cabinets alone for now. You will have many other projects/tweaks as you move in and make the house yours. You are right: "a huge project I'm scared to mess." It's also a mess you can't recover from once you you start sanding. Good luck with your new home.

As a placeholder till my budget grew for a total remodel, I once tiled over a laminate countertop. It was okay and looked much better than the existing countertop but my countertop had square edges everywhere like your eating area, not the curved ones at your counter. There's no way you can tile that without changing the edge and if you're not handy, that will be difficult.

Your countertops are not offensive at all. They just sit quietly in the dark, lucky you.

I agree, the gloss is what's bringing down the cabinets. Two options to consider 1) have them refinished by a professional or 2) check the cost of cabinet refacing. My neighbor did cabinet refacing and it was a huge improvement. Some folks will tell you replacing the cabinets is almost the same cost as refacing but, replacing means labor for tearing out ($), new countertop and sink ($$), labor to remove appliances and faucets and reinstall ($$) plus you are out of a kitchen for a while. Even just changing the hardware on the cabinets as they are will improve them.

If you love tile, do the backsplash only right now but first remove the wallpaper and paint. If you do that yourself, you may decide to leave everything else alone. Removing wallpaper can be a nightmare depending on how it was put up.

All the best to you in your new home!

Thank you so much! Funny enough the counter tops scream at my eyeballs more than the wallpaper even. I tend to hate a lot of granit/ marble or faux of those which I know is not typical. Unless they don't have a ton of the lines and detailing vs the more smokey bleed lines I can handle a bit better. Or are a bit of of a solid with variation transition vsnthe squiggly lines if that makes sense.

I really appreciate this website and all of yalls insights! I may still replace with a lamenate in the mean time then [professional doing it not me lol]. Just because the countertops bother me so much. But then I will still hold off the cabinets until I have the money for someone to do them or/ and some more handy skills. I plan on practicing sanding and staining before tackling it.

If you replace with laminate, you can get a plain white laminate that doesn't imitate anything.

Yes! I was thinking white or a cream. Just something to keep my eyes happy and then once I redo the cabinets I can plan a more permanent countertop decision :) which will probably be a while out.

A lot of my other projects in the house are just painting and buying furniture.

But outside of the house I need to replace the roof, install solar [with battery] [the grid in the area I'm buying Is going to continue to struggle with summer heat rising]. Adjust the fence to be cat proof as it's a 5'5-6ft chain link that I may make into a privacy. And then get a generator as well. So the kitchen cabinets are on the back burner behind all of that haha. Because I can live with them by adjusting them and they are a HUGE aesthetic investment that I don't want to majorly change again once I do them.