So excited to here about your theme! We are currently extending our house with a similar theme and colour style. We have gone with 'Solver Parchment' in our kitchen (and most of the new section actually), it is not a yellow or cream colour, more of a beige undertone. Lots of warmth and not too strong. Quite similar to half strength Dulux Hog Bristle. (We don't have kitchen cabinets just yet). In the master bedroom we have gone with 'Taubmans Morning Fog ' which is a lovely duck eggy blue colour, very calming. Could also work with your blue accents. Both match with my Laura Ashley wallpaper feature walls very nicely (Laura Ashley Josette in Duck Egg and Sable). Ceiling, cornice, archs and skirts etc all in 'Wattyl Magic White'. Nice and fresh. See pics - please excuse the samples messiness, they have been rolling around in my glove box for a while. Look forward to hearing what you go with and seeing a pic.

Have you been to visit some kitchen showrooms? You can customise the photo search here on Houzz quite a bit. For example, you can simply select [dark wood[(https://www.houzz.com.au/photos/kitchen-design-ideas-with-dark-wood-cabinets-phbr1-bp~t_10444~a_17-103) cabinet finish in the filter options. Then add more filters like floor colour, kitchen layout, cabinet style, wall colour etc if you wish. Leave the benchtop and splashback options open and see what results you get. You can then save any photos that appeal to your ideabook.

Hi Lil, I believe your original plan works much better than the revised version. While the notion of ideal working widths is great, the larger problem here is the post. I worked on a project very similar to this last year where a post could either be connect to, or separate from the island. What we found was that by separating the island the space between island and post became very awkward. It's not enough of a space to comfortably walk through or be seated at the island in front of. Instead of your room feeling open and generous in proportion, it is going to start to feel cramped and awkward. We have a kitchen in our showroom (Kitchen Studio Tauranga NZ) with a 6ft gap between bench and back wall and it works wonderfully. It allows someone to work at the sink and a second at the island with ease. Stick with the original plan. It will feel a lot more spacious, without compromising work flows.

White-matte cabinets (flat panel, not shaker) and white bench (or maybe epoxy sealed marine ply??...siriuskey can tell you about that), mirror splash. Love the ceilings. I personally would go for a modern, stream-line, no handles, integrated appliances look. This space has real potential to be very cool, even with the slate. It doesn't need any more more texture or darkness. This is a nice kitchen, you should be able to sell it on ebay.