Hey people I'm in the same page but I did a bit of research and I discovered this: Sand down with 120 grit sand paper first then wipe with a damp cloth Use Taubmans 3in1 sealer primer and undercoat Then use 2 coats of water base gloss or semi gloss Wait 2-3hours per coat

I probably would steer away from black if you want to keep the country theme

I guess it depends on how much walking space you want. In this current configuration you have quite a lot of space for moving around, but do you want that? I would personally go for an L shape to maximise bench space with one section at a different height for seating. Alternatively, you could just have a standard L shape with seating on one side. Either way it's going to be quite a nicely sized kitchen.

I was hoping you would say that! great minds... A navy blue would look great accompanied with your colour scheme, and would add a focal point and some character to your fairly neutral kitchen! Navy is always trendy, and never really goes out of style - timeless. More importantly it's a wonderful colour! I have outlined some darker navy tones that I think would work well with your pallet. I re-painted my bathroom incorporating a blue accent colour - I also chose a bright white for the panelling. (for reference - similar colour choices to yours) - that's the tricky thing with paint, it looks so different in each environment and will react differently when next to other colours. Not sure what your lighting situation is, how much sun comes through etc.. I found it incredibly useful when doing this project to paint a large piece of cardboard or thick paper - cardboard worked best in my experience(just cut a square out of a box or something) Tape it on the island - I found doing two colours at a time works best - having a variety will get overwhelming. Keep an eye on the colour during different lighting scenarios through out the day; morning sun, afternoon daylight, dusk, artificial lighting, etc.. Anyway! Here are the navy's - the colour on my feature wall is Cobalt blue - very dark, but in my bathroom appears much lighter than you'd expect! I would highly recommend doing this exercise if you haven't already - gives you a great feel of the colour before you commit :) http://www.resene.co.nz/swatches/search.php?colour_palette=Blue&type=palette