I wouldn’t. I interpret that space as part of the counter, not a wall.

No, not the place for it. Put some nice stools there.

A third vote for no.

Fourth vote for no. Absolutely no need for it here. It is not a wall. Will look like overkills. Like when there are way too many decorations on a cake.

You can probably split the duct and do this. And you can find better looking registers, or even have some made.

Instead of picture molding, consider adding a trim piece on the wall part just under the countertop to hide the space going on there. When budget allows, explore getting a decorative vent return cover for that wall.

A fifth vote for no. Don't highlight vents.

No …..

IMO, picture molding is for places where you can hang pictures. Once you have seating there, you’ll never miss the gilding of the lily.

Can you say more about why you want it here? Maybe there is a problem you are teying to correct with the room as a whole that can be achieved some other way.

So that appears to be a return, not a supply. That could be altered to move the base of the peninsula.

That said, I dont recommend the picture molding. Consider installing the panels that match your cabinets with appear to be white raised panel style.

Just purchase the cabinet doors and hang them on the face of the wall.

Have you considered covering it in bead board? I don’t think you can get a symetric balance around your vent with picture moulding but bead board can dress it up and the vent won’t be an issue.

Beadboard is too country for this installation IMO.

Beadboard is too country for my first floor where the kitchen is located. I have a modern Colonial home) I was thinking I would use picture mold because it is in another space including the entry, up the main staircase and in an area of the 2nd floor that you can see from the front door. Currently there are barstools and I thought it would finish the space with the molding. (No matter what I will add molding at the top to finish that part) You can see that wall from the family room as these new pics show. Maybe I don't need anything at all?

That wall traditionally gets banged up since you have stools there. I don’t think it’s a space that needs decorating.

Your house is lovely.

I'd find low back stools so you can see across the space, it's full with the dining chairs and the high back counter stools.

You can add trim to the island in order to make it look nicer. I really dislike drywall on the back of an island. You don't have to use picture framing - it would still look nicer if the top/sides/bottom had trim installed on back and sides + painted with trim paint so it looks like its wood instead of drywall.

You also could move the return duct down just a bit and add something like this:

You could add it across the entire bottom of the back of the island (where there no return vent) just to make it look the same all the way across.

Have you removed the vent cover and looked inside? Many return vents simply use the space between studs in the wall - without being lined with metal (actual duct material). If that's how yours is done - you could probably split the return into two instead of one long one OR you might be able to move it over so that it's centered on that island wall.

Then you could do something like the below (pretend the photo below is of the back of your island with your vent):

You could make picture frame boxes like shown below:

Your middle one would be wider - but the squares don't have to all be the same width (typically they aren't - they are sized for each wall - but people don't really notice).

Also, you could replace the metal cover with one made out of wood + painted with trim paint:

You also could use decorative metal or wood overlays:

Then make a wood frame:

It could be whatever size you want in order cover the air return.

In the below photo, someone built a cabinet over the large return vent on the wall. You could add doors across the back of your island (many islands have actual cabinets with doors on the back). They would be faux doors - but it would just look like doors across the back of your island. You don't need to build out the doors as in the photo below - they wanted it to look like a cabinet. You could simply add doors across the entire back of your island.

Simple door frames + whatever type of metal - you also can paint the metal so it blends in with the trim paint used on whatever trim you add + the rest of the drywall to make it look like wood.

In the photo below, the homeowner wanted to change her two level island down to one level - but look at the way the vent looks in the finished photo.

This is the trim sizes that they used around the sides and back of island:

Here is the finished one level island. The vent is much less noticeable since it's the same color as the island. They should have thought about the outlets! You don't have to add the center piece of wood dividing the island into two - you could simply add the trim on top/sides/bottom if you wanted.

You also can purchase one of these covers instead of putting one on top of the drywall. It is flush with the drywall. You could add trim around sides/top/bottom and paint with trim paint to make it look like wood instead of drywall - and simply paint this flush cover. Once you add stools, no one is really going to notice the vent cover - especially if you painted your island a darker color (because you won't notice the dark open spaces as you do when it's painted a lighter color or white).

Honestly, when I look at the photo with the stools in place, I barely notice the return register. However, I do think that your island would look more custom if you added trim and painted the drywall with trim paint.

What if this may be a solution?

Install individual slats that allow for the return vents. Don't ask me how to do it, but there must be some way to use that counter overhang.

It needs nothing, leave it alone and spend money elsewhere: )

Am I seeing an island in that not very large kitchen? Add more pictures?? All angles?

Here are 4 pictures at all angles

The island is black.....kinda looks blue in some of the pics

The molding I'll add for sure is at the top where the counter meets the drywall....currently it's messy and unfinished.

Good advice already - another vote for lighter, less bulky stools at the counter as @Lyn Nielson suggested

Fix what is "messy/unfinished", and stop staring at the darn thing.: )

Jan I love that comment.....burst out laughing! Sometimes it's just so simple and we make it complicated:)

^^

You can trust me on this.....the "fixes" people dream up to fix the annoyance? Are usually far worse, and call more attention to whatever the hell they thought was driving them nuts.

Like too much zit cream on a pimple that some kid picked, covered with God knows what, he's now grown the darn thing to four times the original zit size, and then applied ninety coats of cover up. The little zit is now the size of an suv headlight: )

Knowing when to stop is a gift. You’re getting advice from the pros here. Take it.

To Jan HAHAHAHA