That is a whole lot of blonde wood! For your kitchen, if you want to keep the countertop, I would paint the cabinets a medium gray. that would give you some contrast. the wood in the rest of the house I would stain. Do the stain you like on the staircase and save up to replace the wooden poles (correct name escapes me at the moment) with something more modern in shape/material.

Consider painting over all the wood instead of staining.

Staining the cabinets and all the woodwork is a ton of work. I would recommend painting the cabinets in BM Thunder AF-685 or something similar in a pale warm gray. As for the sponge painting, you should sand you walls, so that they are as smooth as possible. Then paint in any color that you love. I think a painted ceiling is dramatic and works well in spaces that have tall ceilings. If you don't want to be so daring pick your wall color then have the ceilings painted at 50% lighter tint of you wall color.

I would stain the stairs and hand rail using Old Masters Gel stain in Spanish Oak, the gel stain is much easier to work with.

Hire a worker to stain all the cabinets, door and stairs the same walnut or cherry colour. I like Corey's idea of using a gel stain. For wall colour, try Restoration Hardware's Linen for ceiling and Latte for walls. Good neutrals.

I agree that the price of painting or staining all those cabinets will be very high if it's done right so that it will last. You may just be better off purchasing new cabinet doors in the end. You gave full overlay doors so you could change the doors to a different style and leave the cabinet boxes as is. Or you could decide to do some of the cabinets like the island, or only the top cabinets. Trends come and go in all things. If you are just starting out it might be better to use wall paint and furnishings to update the look.

Thanks for all your input..... Is it true that staining lasts longer that paining? I think it will look more high end if i was able to keep the integrity of the wood through a stain.

I know that trends come and go but I'm pretty sure that homes like this are typically preferred with darker cabinetry and lighter granite. I wanted to avoid whites, grays and silvers and feel that in our area rich, warm, traditional colors seems to be favorable and safe.

I certainly cant change the granite but the paint & stain I want to do if its not going to be regrettable in the near future..... Making the decision later is tough with a baby and wet paint and chemical odor!

I think before I would paint or reface all those cabinets, I would paint the island a bright color, and paint the walls and ceiling. Then I would glaze the stair handrail and skirting. I think I would also paint the textured wall all one color and see how it looks. That is what I would try with a limited budget. Redoing all of the cabinets either with paint or refacing is going to be pretty costly. Good luck and post pictures when you finish.

HI -- Looks like a high - end style house and I think the look should stay high -end looking . It is very rich looking to have dark counters with dark cabinets . I would do the base cabinets in a dark and then do all the top cabinets a color close to the floor color -- bulkheads and ceiling also that same color . That will give the ceiling height. Then some new stainless steel door hardware . Use the same dark for the stair rails ,stair and sides -- the whole thing . So do all the blond wood in the house with the same dark . Use that same tan color from the kitchen for all the ceilings . The dark color also for the front doors . You will need to sand the textured walls and perhaps use a good primer before you paint . Get a pro -painter in for a quote and they will tell you if you need to stain or paint or both . Do you plan on doing something with the fireplace ? I don't think the cabinets there are needed now because of the size of the TV opening . I also don't care for the look.... it could use an up date for a high end look .

Thanks everyone. I did actually stain my cabinets, staircase and front door. I also redid the entertainment center and painted the whole house all before we moved in. I will upload the pictures shortly.

I have not yet extended the island nor decided on the stone color for the island or the if there is a need to lighten up the space by using a lighter backsplash tile.

That looks fabulous!! You might want to incorporate the color of the stone floors for the island and/or backsplash...beige honed marble or even a concrete counter top on the island .

What a beautiful job! It looks fantastic!

Stairway update

The kitchen cabinets are pretty, so I would suggest you keep them as they are and go with a different wall color -- maybe a light grey or blue-grey and then add a few colorful accessories to contrast from all the neutral tones. As for the staircase, I would paint it the same color as the grey or blue-grey I suggested for the kitchen and keep the spindles white. You might stain the treads of the stairs a dark color and then paint the backs or risers white. If you keep carpeting on the stairs, I would suggest an ivory or very light beige for contrast. You might find an interesting wall paper for the walls of the staircase as an accent.

Regarding the trim around the double doors, the doors themselves, and the cabinets in the living room, why not paint them white to have some contrast?

I have the same old cabinets. What color/brand stain did you use? I think you did an absolutely beautiful job!:-)

I would paint all cabinetry white. Right now the kitchen is a sea of cabinets so painting them white will reduce this impact. Yes stain the door and handrail and also the stairs to a dark brown. You will have to replace the spindles if you want them dark. The cost will be too high to stain the existing painted spindles. The white spindles would not look bad at all with the dark wood. The off-white paint colors do nothing for the space. Choose white instead and use accessories for additional color. Try to get wood flooring and replace the black recessed fixtures with white. This will be a lifetime update.

For your kitchen cabinets, I would think that paintng is less expensive than staining as they would have to be completely sanded before applying a new stan colour. Look into companies such as Spray Net for the cabinet painting, they are professionals, and give I believe a 10-year warranty against peeling,chipping, etc.

For your staircase, again with budget in mind, I think that black would work very well with what I see in the surrounding area.

As to painting the ceiling in a tan colour, I'm unable to comment without more information on what other colour(s) you have in mind for the area.

This post started in 2013

Yes, op is probably ready for a new kitchen refresh after 10 years, lol.

Oups! Yes most likely or already moved out! Ha! Ha! Ha! didn't notice it was an old post!