I would do white. It will make your appliances feel at home, will keep the room bright, and will cause no problems relative to the floor -- lots of people have white cabinets with natural floors like that, from traditional to modern.

Wayside Kitchens · More Info

La Jolla 02 HC · More Info

Hartman Rd, Newton · More Info

The flooring will keep a white kitchen from feeling too cold/stark.

Honestly, you could probably keep the white appliances with the off-white cabinets too -- people do it plenty. The brown you're showing is too close to the flooring -- a little contrast is a great improvement.

Deephaven, MN – Cottage completed in 2009 · More Info

Off-white Kitchen · More Info

Gold River Fun Classic. Nar Fine Carpentry. Sacramento. El Dorado Hills · More Info

Gray is a color with a lot of staying power and would go well with the birch floor. Remember that color preference is not only driven by fashion but also by what colors manufacturers are willing to invest the money in offering.

I agree that white is timeless and won't look stark at all, especially with your warm wood floors. I'd go with white.

I would definitely go a light gray, I agree w/Carolina kitchen. It is fresh, & warm, yet will go nicely w/the white appliances. White or off white is ok but will look ho-hum in my opinion. The gray cabinets will also pop the counter top.

Bailey, I disagree. In my area, it's still going strong. However, if nickliss likes an all white kitchen with no contrast, that's what they should choose. Unless they're going to sell within a few years, I always tell my clients to go with something they like, not something that will "sell." A kitchen remodel is too much of a hassle to not feel inspired every time you walk into the room.

All I know is what the trends are where I live ( So California coastal ) ... & gray is definitely not being used like it was 5 or so years ago. Maybe because of where I live... lots of creamy whites, tans & the closest to gray would be a color close to driftwood.

I would go with off-white or light gray cabinets to go better with the floors. White appliances will not appeal to most buyers, IMHO, so you should replace them. Since you're replacing the fridge anyway, may as well get a new stove, DW and sink. The fridge and stove are the big ticket items, so make the investment now, enjoy them until you sell, and have a new, gorgeous kitchen to attract buyers.

When you say white, do you mean the stark white or the cream white? I don't want my kitchen to look cold and hospital like and that is what I am afraid of. But I don't want the off white to look yellow and old. Which white do you think will probably work out better? Will probably change out appliances to SS.

I'd say the cream white. It's bright and light but warmer than stark white.

If you are going to paint, do what kathleen MK says: Hire a pro!!!

Refacing (or painting) the bottoms could work, but I'd want upper cabinets that actually go to the ceiling -- you get essentially an extra shelf per cabinet! Better for you and for resale. Otherwise, if the layout has been working for you, maybe it's not worth the extra investment. Personally, I'd like some big drawers for pots and pans where you have cabinets (and 4 small drawers where you have 3), but I'm not sure that's worth 10 grand and having your kitchen gutted.

I am considering refacing and will get an estimate on Monday. The guy I contacted refaced my sister's kitchen and it came out really nice. Is is a master carpenter and refaces as well as builds new cabinets. I am also trying to get an estimate from Home Depot or Lowes to see what they would charge to install. I know if they do the install I will not pay tax on the cabinets. The guy who I wanted to install the kitchen (and know his work) gave me an outrageous estimate of $8,500 and I feel that is just too much. The cabinets will cost me $16,500 and this is half the price of the cabinets, without adding backsplash and countertops. I have already designed the kitchen with Home Depot. It will have a 36" Pantry vs my current 23" Pantry, more rollouts, a lazy susan, a 15" 3 drawer cabinet with 2 level cutlery tray, a 4 drawer cabinet, a 36 inch 3 drawercabinet, a larger cabinet on the island for pots (my current cabinet is a 24" with 2 pull outs and is way too small), and additional upper cabinets. I want either a 36" with 2 pullouts or a 36" with 3 drawers), an 18" garbage cabinet, and the cabinets go to the ceiling with crown molding. They are Kraftmaid. This is what I really want. I just don't think it is wise investing between $30,000 - 35,000 when all is said and done in this kitchen but I would like to upgrade it for resale. It needs it, Cabinets, counters, etc are outdated. I also have a leak in the sink/faucet and this desparately needs to be replaced. I have been holding off to get counters and and the complete package but it really needs to be done as I have noticed some water damage on my wood floors.

Why not do white? It would look great with your floors too. Take a look at a design we did for some inspiration.

Issaquah Kitchen · More Info

Issaquah Kitchen · More Info

Home Depot's prices are outrageous. Try a good kitchen show room. I remodeled my kitchen last summer with 36" solid maple slab doors and all sorts of pullouts and bottom drawers and spent $9700. They are beautiful, well made cabinets. Look at other houses in your area that are around your square footage and lot size and see what they have sold for. You don't want to over invest in something you'll never get back. In my area, kitchen returns are about 80%.

The big box stores prices for cabinets only is fairly reasonable. They use their installation as a profit center and you may find that a cabinet dealer has slightly higher prices on cabinets but their installation is much lower. They install so they can sell the cabinets.

Also look at what you've chosen/they've steered you to. If the door style is mitered (below)(meaning the corners are put together at an angle) they're more expensive. This is not intended as an advertisement, just information I think will help.

If it's a stile-and-rail cabinet (below), it will be less expensive.

A raised panel cabinet, like you currently have, will usually be more expensive than a flat panel, shown above. It should only take them a couple clicks to change the style within the Kraftmaid line.

Also, if you're looking for a color other than white, try a beige (or greige) tone, if you're not partial to the yellower cream colors. Beige has more gray in it than it has yellow. I think Kraftmaid may have a finish like that.

Merillat Classic Tolani with Chiffon finish

Kraftmaid is manufactured in the same factory as Merillat Masterpiece under the parent company, Masco. They usually only sell Kraftmaid brand to larger outlets like Lowe's and Home Depot. The smaller dealers sell Merillat brand, in case you want to price the same style at a different dealer.

Masco also sells the Merillat Classic line of cabinets. It's got the same quality as the Masterpiece (Kraftmaid) but a fewer number of styles, finishes and options so it's less expensive. The big boxes don't sell the Classic line.

Again, I'm not trying to advertise and I hope you won't take it that way.

white painted cabinets!

did you consider hand painting them ? not only is it very common and gives your kitchen a special look it also will cost you less.

let me know what you think

There are a lot of reasons to choose white cabinetry, especially since it's a very flexible finish. We just posted a blog on 3 reasons to choose white cabinetry.

However, gray is the newest trend in kitchen cabinetry. We have released 2 new gray finishes (graphite and mist) this year; and one last year (Shale).

You could go with the best of both worlds, with a very light gray, almost white. Mist is gray, but it almost appears white.

Just a few ideas from the Merillat Marketing Team.