Did you just move in?

Hi, is this a house u have moved into or are you just looking to update your existing kitchen?

What is your style choice? Ie contemporary, traditional etc?

Are the units solid wood?

As supervintagegirl don't paint units. Once painted they can't be unpainted.
Do the walls, floors windows, cabinet handles, taps, worktop as suggested to personalise.
After you have redone above for 2nd time + looking for 3rd update - then paint the units.
14yrs down the road + minor decorating + changes in kitchen, I'm now fed-up with wood. So looking to paint now.
Once painted, you can not unpaint. If you paint in dark colour - you will have a great job to paint in a lighter colour at a later date.

Your units are very nice and personally I wouldn't paint them.
If it were me I would put up a really nice blind and paint the walls a different colour.

I agree- new work top and floor.
Personally I think you should go light with both and have a punch of colour on the walls.

I agree - new worktop. I like the floor though. I personally do not like curtains and blinds above the kitchen counter as it is difficult to keep them clean... I also would change the tiles or a put a decorative splashback behind the hob with wipeable painted walls around. Some potted plants/herbs in the window would add color...

I think if you update the tiles it would make a big difference, white rectangular tiles with grey grouting would look great and tie in with your worktops. Then I'd add a pale cool colour to the walls to contrast with the warmth of the cupboards; grey, green or blue. Then I'd add in an accent colour with a new blind and a few accessories.

If you've got a bit of cash to spend then look at the worktops and flooring.

I'm not a big fan of the floor I'm sorry, think it makes the room look gloomy and looks a bit dated. Something light and reflective would make a massive difference.

Yes, but I think it is practical (being dark). I love your suggestion, but it is really difficult to keep clean (again - I am a mum of 2 little ones) - in my experience...

Zczi, I have to say dark floors are a nightmare to keep clean, they show every speck of dirt. I hoover my kitchen floor daily and it looks dirty again immediately. I agree they don't show dirty marks as much though so maybe less actual washing required. I think somewhere in the middle is best

Much cheaper to paint the units than replace the floor. I got tired of my sour wood cabinets and it has certainly lightened everything wonderfully especially with a dark floor. Dark floors are fine - much rather have a natural tile than a laminate and "dated" is very subjective. If you like something keep it - there are no style police enjoy what you like and try things out. There are some lovely paint colours out there for walls and cabinets .....

The cabinets seem very good quality, i would not paint them as it is not reversible instead paint the walls and change the tiles .....

Ultimately it's up to you, I love the painted look so I wouldn't hesitate if it was mine and when you see before and afters of kitchens that have been painted, the effect is dramatic. I'd still replace the tiles for something more modern though. I'm sure it will look great whatever you decide. You have plenty of options here.

I agree Minnie I wish I hadn't gone for dark oak floors, shows every speck of dust and need sweeping or hoovering every day, drives me nuts.

Hi sorry everyone I have not replied the flu got the better of me the last 24 hours. Here are another two pictures the red wall again no idea what to do with that! Husband wants an American fridge in that part but I don't think it will look right.

Hi. Poor you, hope you feel better today. I agree I wouldn't put a FF here, you couldn't put it against the radiator anyway. It's perfect for a breakfast table. What's on the wall opposite the sink? Can you take a pic? Have you decided what you want to do with the room? I do agree with comments about not painting the wood at this stage but I also agree with mrcmcee I thnk it could look stunning painted.If you compare the kitchen with the room next door you can see how the floor, red wall etc are absorbing the light. I suspect next door has a patio door or similar but even so there is quite a contrast

Not sure why people are saying paint is not reversible. Of course it is that's why there was such a craze for stripping furniture ages ago. Also might find that the floor will be fine if you complement it with the wall and cabinet colours. A floor, however, is very expensive to replace and if you don't like that when it's down is a much bigger problem to deal with. Not just a matter of a couple of cans of undercoat and topcoat. You don't actually say the floor is "dated" they are other people's comments, so if you are happy with it and, after all you are the one living with it just get on with it being a happy room where people gather to eat, drink and talk. After their initial look at it people don't really notice any more and enjoy the social aspect of this important room in your house. Rant over ....

Sorry it was me that mentioned the floor, hope I haven't caused offence. When I said dated I meant the dark grey floor and oak unit combo that everyone was having at one point. I think the floor will look fine with lighter units, the combination of the red wall, dark floor and oak consumes the light at the moment. At least it's a good layout and good quality - good bones.

Much better today thank you. My husband wants to take away the rad for the American fridge freezer but I just don't see it working at all! I have attached more photos of the room and the next room (dining room)

I must admit I don't either! I assume you have an integrated FF To the right of the hob? Maybe compromise and get a beer/wine fridge for the utility room? The walls may look good in Borrowed light by f and b. If you do decide to paint the units i would go for one of their off whites which would really lighten the room. I would go for a breakfast table in the corner, something for your child/ren to use for drawing, baking etc. it does look as if the kitchen would take an island, maybe a phase 2 plan to give you more worktop space?

I would leave the units as they are but if you took down the wall cupboards the kitchen would get an instant update. You would have to redecorate that wall and you could maybe retile it with metro tiles. I would suggest open shelves but with small children you won't have time to keep them 'styled' so may be not. The floor is perfectly fine - you need it dirt coloured when kids are tracking in and out - but the red wall should go, it is eating the light.

I love your house! Honestly, the floor isn't an issue when we can see how it flows through the space. I genuinely believe all you need to do is update the worktop and walls, that's it. As for knocking through - no, no, no. Unless you have three reception rooms a kitchen diner which serves the family/hosting the work boss/homework station etc soon becomes a crowded and untidy space. Also, open plan means cooking smells spread further. My mum now rents her old house and lives in a much smaller one which has a kitchen/diner and a living room. The way to the kitchen is through the living room. When she cooks, despite having an extractor fan the smell permeates to the lounge and from there up the stairs. She hates us having family meals at her house because of this. She does have modern glazed oak tri-fold doors screening the kitchen/diner from the lounge but it's not enough.
You already have a great space and flow. My suggestion would to be change the worktop, cooker hob, tap and wall tiles out the kitchen, and then spend the rest of the budget styling. What you would save on not knocking through would really give the wow factor with furniture, curtains, lights etc.

As a design trained wife and mother, I would say - this is much easier to update than you imagine! I love to advise friends who are selling their homes etc and its amazing how simple this often turns out to be. You essentially have a good kitchen, it is just a bit bland. You don't have to have the latest colour flooring or units or work surface for it to still look brilliant. All these look perfectly OK to me - if you change the work surface you could damage the tiles and that is expensive to then re-do the lot, there is not so much work surface to worry about anyway. So, I would recommend, change the sink if its not a great quality as well as the taps - these can make huge amounts of diffence, go for the best quality you can afford. Paint the walls, this will immediately bring in colour - you already have very light tone (the work surface) as well as warm tones (the units) and dark tones (the flooring). What you need, depending on the light coming into that room is some colour - warm red for instance if you have a north facing room or something cooler, for instance a navy blue if you have strong southern light. Teal is a great mid between warm and cool and would go with both as well as contrasting with the gold tones in the units. Add a blind - roman if you can it or make it, if not rollar, in a similar colour, introduce a bit of pattern on it, as there is no other pattern in the room. Don't wind it all the way down, so avoiding it getting spluttered with stuff. I use mine as a feature more than anything else, but boy does it soften a room as well as adding colour and pattern. Likewise some great, inexpensive accessories, oven gloves, T towels, ceramic jars, etc. You can have great fun with these, depending on your personal taste. If you go towards the girly, then have some lovely retro patterns or even bright pink walls, or more sophisticated, go for sleek modern looking items in bright colours and stainless steel. Make it your own by tearing out things you like from mags and sticking them down on paper - a moodboard, this will help you to determine what YOU really like so you have your own ideas about feeling and colours etc. Always keep in mind those references to the light in your room though at the same time, and you shouldn't go far wrong - good luck!

Personally I would paint them. You have nothing to lose if you don't like the current finish as the only other option is a new set of cabinets anyway.

We stripped and white washed the doors in our kitchen, then added some funky door knobs from http://www.theseplease.co.uk. Made our kitchen look lots brighter. Best of all as it's not a perfect finish our toddler can bash and crash in there without me needing to worry about it.

Don't hesitate to paint those beautiful cabinets! This is the most important thing you can do to update your kitchen. Pour over photos of kitchens you like, collecting them in one place. Observe patterns in your choices - light cupboards and dark flooring or dark lowers and light uppers. Use a tried and true colour palette like Farrow & Ball to choose your cabinet colour, and have them professionally sprayed. Changing tile is a major job, so if you plan to keep the white backsplash, make that a consideration in your choice of colour for the cabinets. You can update your look and improve function too, by adding a sheet of stainless steel behind your stove - right from the range hood to your countertop. This is easy to keep clean, unlike the grout between your tile. Your work surface would be better made of natural material - granite or quartz. And your sink? The final piece of jewellery in your kitchen, and the most-used item......make it a quality item with a fantastic faucet, and you're done!

replace floor for a lighter finish, concentrate on brightening up and lighting. Those look like nice cabinets and doors, i wouldn't paint them.

I personally would paint them the pale grey to tone in with the floor, which I would keep! I would change the tiles for something rustic and neutral, and add a pale grey granite worktop - then you can add almost any colour you like to the walls!

I agree with most of the comments above, DONT paint the cabinets! Change worktops, blk or dark grey would look great. Could also change tiles depending on budget. If you want to add colour then could paint the walls and tie all colours in with the blind fabric. Or keep walls neutral and have a dramatic blind, make sure it has some colour of the worktop in it what ever that may be but don't leave the blind plain it to have a pattern and does need to say something!

I disagree with most of the above. We've just moved into a house with 30 year old kitchen units in solid ash and have painted them shabby chic style and I love it.
I really didn't like the all wood look but this gives us a few years breathing space regarding replacing the kitchen. We will be replacing the worktop and tiles but the units look great painted. I just did one drawer front at first to see if I liked it.

In my years of having homes and re doing on a budget, making do with hand me downs and eBay purchases, and then being able to have what I have chosen, my advice is to get rid of the thing you dislike the most and then you can decide what to do with the rest more objectively.

Caza9876 a great comment. Necessity is the mother of invention and having to scout around and find all sorts of ways to decorate on a budget leads to pleasing results. Love a good rummage around in an auction and it's great fun. I wouldn't necessarily paint
"Good wood" but bog standard pine can look very jaded. As Caza9876 says go for and keep what you like.

If you want to paint, paint. I think I'd agree with the people who suggest professional re spraying though unless you love diy and love the idea of being able to change the colour yourself relatively quickly. I recently painted a dresser (heavily stained and varnished wood, nowhere near as nice as yours) and a chest of drawers (bog standard orange pine) and unless you can take the wood right back it takes coats and COATS and a lot of patience to get a good finish. It is worth it though!

Personally, I'd go for a greyish blue on the bottom half, White worktops, and paint the uppers the same white as the tiles (there's nothing intrinsically wrong with them, a classic choice that won't date). Put in a steel splashback behind the cooker (it should be possible to fit over tiles) to tone with your handles and a hard wearing natural fibre rug on the floor to break up the dark grey. A few wood accessories and the usual bits and pieces to finish.

I think it is a shame to paint the units, or change what is a perfectly good floor (my dark floor has proved incredibly practical) one thing that has really changed my kitchen is painting the skirting and kick boards dark grey to tie in with the floor. It's very practical, and gives a sophisticated feel.
I would change the wall colour and either go white, and add colour pops with accessories, or use a pale, slightly dirty colour, that would increase the light, but would be in keeping with a more mature, sophisicated look. I would also look at the lighting, and make sure there was a range of quality task lighting, as well as mood lighting.
The area in the corner is crying out for a table- no to the big fridge in my book! Let the kids colour and create or do homework whilst you chat and cook !
Good luck with whatever you choose!

Grey cupboards with white walls

If you paint it and don't like it then you can strip it with paint striped. Tedious but possible.

Nothing in decorating is permanent.

New tiles and paint - nice blind !I wouldn't touch the cabinets .

Why not just change the handles on the carbonates you could make it very modern with new handles and maybe a deep coloured wall maybe red or if ur like me and not too brave with colour why not try brilliant white and possibly a feature wall on a wall with no units

Paint the cupboards. We painted our dark wood cupboards 20 years ago and we have never regretted it. Initially we painted them Buttermilk but 10 years ago they were painted again with the top ones being very pale cream to match the walls and the bottom ones are called Georgian Grey. I think this two tone idea would work well with your kitchen as it would help you 'lose' the wall cupboards as they would blend with the tiles. Otherwise you could recycle the wall cupboards else where and have open shelves for a more modern look.

Your kitchen looks quite dark and heavy. Painted cupboards will make it lighter and more contemporary but still retain it's country feel.