A. You're not crazy!
B. I totally get where you're going...love that look! Love the chandelier :-)

Sounds like the cabinets (and tile) should go with the table you already have. (Speaking as one who finished the kitchen and can't find a table I love...well, I wish I had started with that...it's an important piece!) Do you have a pic of the table? You probably don't want exactly the same finish as the table, but they should go together. Are the chairs the same finish?

I think that antique white/cream cabinets with something like soapstone would look great. That is if you are wanting paint and not stain. The flooring color can have a determintation on which direction you go with cabinets, or vice-versa.

I would pick the style door you want first, then go for finish. You can have a crisp cottage look without glaze, but if you are going for a more aged, rustic feel, I would go with a glaze.

Here is a kitchen that has stained cabinets and dark counters:

{{!gwi}}

This one has light cabinets and neutral counters:

{{!gwi}}

You could also go with something like knotty alder cabinets.

I do not think that you need to match the table with the cabinets. In fact, I think that it adds more interest when you mix finishes, textures, etc. Take your time and look through pictures, ask questions, etc. I always laughed at people stressing over trying to make these decisions until it was my turn!

Rustic:

{{!gwi}}

Another option is wood countertops:

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

Rustic:

{{!gwi}}

Green cabinets:

{{!gwi}}

keband3boys,

Found another utensils light fixture I love. Thinking of trying to make it instead of buying.

I'm lost myself re cabinet color, so can't offer help.

Rosie

Here is a link that might be useful: Silverware lighting fixture

Keband3boys,

I love the chandelier.

JBax, gave excellent examples of how to make both
colors work into a rustic beautiful earthy kitchen.

I would say take the Sweeby test if you have not done
this. And from there narrow down the most desired
elements you love. And make a kitchen around your favorite
colors, elements, items, features...
You have the first element already, that amazing light
fixture. From there it will come together. You can do
this, clearly you have beautiful taste in everything you
describe. It seems insurmountable but you were wise to
post your question. There are so many wonderful souls on
GW who can help you narrow down and figure this all out.

Keep dreaming, your kitchen reality is coming together it
just feels like a huge task but it will happen.
No worries,
~boxer

I came running down this am to see if anyone responded. Thank you so much (Boxerpups, I understand you're a bit of a celeb on here, so I'm honored. Smile.)
Julie, thanks for the encouragement, I'm including a pic of my table.
Jbax, you pulled pictures out of my head! I like the first one and then one marked Rustic. Where did you find them? Also, I actually like the last one with green cabinets... I'm surprised. I feel like it's a bold choice to go with colored cabinets.
Also, Rosiew, check on Etsy, I posted a job there and several artists responded with bids to try to make a light like the one I found. Decided to just buy instead.

Here is a link that might be useful: Table

Keb, I love that chandelier! And the table is beautiful too.

Julie is right - you are not crazy :-). I started off thinking we would do a beautiful classic black and white kitchen, and ended up with a reclaimed wood island top, green painted cabs (lighter than the ones that jbax showed), soapstone counters and a stacked stone backsplash. Don't know if you would call it rustic, but it may give you some ideas about where you can go.

Good luck!
Eliz

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen pix

Eliz, I love your kitchen! What kind of wood are your cabinets? Could you tell me what brand/color of tile you used on the floor? I was unsure about using lighter cabinets like yours or in the Rustic picture above and tile. I really like the look though. Could you tell me what your hardware is too? Thanks so much for sharing!
Thanks for all the pictures everyone, the more the merrier! It really helps!

Hi Keb -

The cabinets are maple, and were handpainted. Floors are limestone - a colour called Jasman. The hardware is a mix - 90% of the handles on the island are finds from an architectural salvage store and the perimeter hardware (with the excption of the fridge) is from Whitechapel Hardware in Jackson, WY.

My kitchen is posted on the Finished Kitchen Blog and I have links to all of the companies that we used there. If you haven't browsed there yet, it's worthwhile -lots of amazing kitchens!

Eliz

Here is a link that might be useful: kitchen on FKB

Love that table! Actually that's just what I'm looking for :-) Did you get it recently (i.e., available currently somewhere)?

Sounds like you have some great ideas from everyone. It's amazing how a kitchen can develop!

Julie - we got it five years ago from a company called Rhodes that went out of business in Cincinnati.

What great pictures of rustic kitchens. It can go in so many ways, so everyone is going to be all over the place about something in the kitchen kaleidoscope.

My whole kitchen color scheme was a reaction (over-reaction?) to the walnut pine in our house that the family called dark (even our 3 year old granddaughter) and DH called "Romantic". I knew I wanted a "Honey Pot", with monochromatic cabinets (knotty alder), counter, and backsplash. We trimmed it with dark walnut beams and kept our dark ceramic floor. We also had a dark pine trestle table for 40 years and would have kept it if there was some way to strip the polyurethane and walnut finish without costing a huge amount. We looked for a long time and found this round pine table, which we love, and are on the search for chairs.

Everybody's saga is different so remember to enjoy the process.

Don't forget:

Susie,
Your kitchen looks so very family-friendly. Sounds like you have lots of memories there and many to be made in future. The whole family has given input and will grow older using the new kitchen. Love the quote!

Elizpiz,
The serenity in your space is wonderful. Good job on the "library" within the kitchen.
___

I second the advice that says look for door style first. We did not know enough when we went out for bids. We thought that deciding on a tentative floorplan was sufficient.

There are some structural factors that play into the limitations of various doors when paired with a cabinet frame. Wrestle the other family stakeholders into a conversation about what you like and what you plan to spend. Make some lists...what is non-negotiable, what is negotiable. If your DH is like mine, you will need concrete examples to show him--catalog photos, actual kitchens to visit, photos from websites and mags, etc. If there is a color or a wood or a frame style or a door style that is driving all the rest of the thinking, that needs to be clear to all. If you are flexible and want a particular kitchen "feel" then the options are different.

I can't forget how naive I was as I pulled three sample doors off a display during our appt. with a kitchen rep and said "well, how about these? just bid these"

Once you know what ballpark you are playing in--change the metaphor, once you know what ballgame (door style and cupboard frame) you are playing--then you can get a realistic ballpark of the costs. THEN you can pick out the stain. Or change the game again, as some of these posters have done.

Cabinets are so difficult!

If you're building, are you tied to a certain cabinet manufacturer? When we built our previous house, our builder offered a certain line of cabinets. We had to choose from that so our choices were quite limited.

If you're free to choose whatever, I agree with florantha to look at the nuts-and-bolts of cabinetry before moving to the stylistic choices. Do you want inset? Frameless? Then once you have an idea of what you need for the practicalities of your space, then door style and color. The choices are really endless so I also agree with the folks who say to take the sweeby test. The sweeby test has saved me so many times. It's so easy to get all turned around when you're hit with a gazillion different choices.

Good luck and have fun!

Nothing says Arts and Crafts like oak with a prominent grain. Painted cabinets aren't very Arts and Crafts. There's a really great oak cabinet look in the Kraft-Maid catalog at Lowe's. It's on page 22 and part of Crosscreek(?). They're Willowbrook Oak Square in Toffee finish. I thought it was great and I'm not big on oak cabinets. Kinda Arts and Crafts contemporary. Enough of a flavor to suggest as opposed to historic replication. I recommend slate tile. My parents have it all over their living, kitchen and dining and gorgeous. Its a bit rougher texture which adds to the rustic-ness and works great with their in-floor heating.

Thanks for all the advice. My DH is meeting with the builder tomorrow - I do not know if we are tied to a particular line or not. I'm hoping not b/c he uses Merillat, but the Classic line is so limited, and the Masterpiece bumps the price up almost 40% just to the base cabinet. So the possiblities may be endless if I can go with another, but I need something to compare apples to apples. My understanding is that Merillat is a pretty basic semi-custom cabinet.
I'm going to do the Sweeby test if I can find it... I can't remember where it is?!

Go here and start reading

Here is a link that might be useful: What to read to help you think...Sweeby test and more

Another point to consider: We finally decided on Dynasty cabinets, but we could not switch doors and drawers. I liked certain cabinet doors, but not the drawers. DH liked different ones, so in the end it was a compromise. Also, I knew I wanted to use a glaze over the stain and you need enough "nooks and crannies" in the door/drawer style so it shows up. It took 3 months to decide and KD was great about ordering at least 4 door samples.

We're building a Craftsman-style house and chose Shaker style cabinets. I went round and round (I feel your pain, truly!) about what stain and finish. In the end, I went with painted white cabinets and no glaze. The main factor for me was I wanted a kitchen that didn't place me in this decade. When we were looking at houses to buy, I could tell what decade it was built in by the cabinet colors/stain. White was the only thing that seemed timeless to me. It also functions as a nice neutral and works well with other Arts and Crafts elements. For example, you could get the Regency Hardware to give it that A&C feel.

We're doing a built-in banquette and having the table built, too. We'll probably get a big 'ol piece of reclaimed wood for the table top. So while we're going for a bit more of a transitional look, it feels OK to me to mix and match "clean lines" with "rustic." That sort of feels appropriate to the period, too. If you think of Shaker style furniture, for example, you could say it has very clean, modern lines. At the same time, it's very earthy, simple, and old-school.

Good luck deciding. I know it took me forever.

Here is a link that might be useful: Regency Arts and Crafts style hardware

Susie, I think we are going to choose a cabinet co. based on that fact. Merillat is tricky b/c they only do certain finishes on certain door styles. Others I found will do any finish on any door. Sherean, are you in the process? Do you have any pics? I am thinking of doing more natural colored cabinets for that very reason. Neutral, anything goes. I think as I go through this process I am learning that I HAVE to go with what makes ME happy. I can't pick something because I think that is what designers would pick. Slowly but surely... Thanks again all!

You aren't crazy! If you can appreciate all kitchens, finding the right one for you is really hard. Below is a link to a GWer's kitchen on atticmag (allison0704, her kitchen is one of my very favorites). Her kitchen shows how you can combine a love for many things into one overarching theme. She's also still very present on GW and great with answering questions. The first photo that jbax posted I believe is another GWer Casey (sombreuil_mongrel), who is also very present and helpful.

Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: French Gray Island Kitchen

Hi Keband3boys! We just ordered the cabinets so no pics yet but here are the plans and inspiration pics!

Here's the rendering for the back wall of the kitchen (we'll have a stainless chimney hood above the stove):

Here's the overall floor plan:

Here's the breakfast nook we're totally copying!

We're going with white Shaker style cabinets and black granite counter tops. Our island will be the reverse: espresso cabinet with a white granite countertop. Pics of the granite and island drawings are on my Flickr stream (linked below).

At the end of the day, it's important to go with your gut. Use the decorators just to make sure you aren't screwing up your space planning or choosing some hideous combo (which you won't do). As for neutral finishes, the kitchen cabinet company told me their most popular finish is Java. It's a beautiful stain; I used it in a bathroom. Contemplated doing my master bath in it.

Have you flipped through any kitchen magazines? I'm trying to think what my "ah ha!" moment was that made me go with white. I had been leaning towards dark. I think it was when I read a decorating blog and got the tip that white is more timeless. That, plus I noticed I was always drawn to white kitchens in magazines, or the uber-dark, sleek, sexy modern ones. I figured if I went with the latter, I might be bored with it in five years, so I went the "safer" route.

I do remember practically being in tears trying to figure it all out, though! Please let me know if you want to bounce any more ideas off me. I am knee deep in all of it right now.

Here is a link that might be useful: My Flickr Page with our Kitchen Design Pics

After looking at cabinet after cabinet, I returned to my first choice and couldn't be happier. I chose a moss green with a brown glaze but they aren't a dark moss color. They sometimes look like sage and most of the time just a very soft mossy green. I have oak flooring and lots of oak furniture and accessories. I used antique brass hardware and my faucets are Kohlers brazen bronze. I can definitely picture your table and fun silverware light in my kitchen. I wouldn't call mine a Craftsman look exactly but the colors make me think of the outdoors which is what I wanted. I've received nothing but compliments on the color and am glad I took the chance on something a bit out of the ordinary.

Thanks Sherean! Mileaday, any chance you could share some pics? I think I'm getting the vision! Thank you thank you! I met with a KD yesterday (not sure if we're going that place or not), but our builder gave the okay. She was great, and helped me figure out some colors and is going to tweak some things for me. We have a pretty small budget (I think) of only $10,000 for cabinets. Of course, we want glaze/distressing/glass/height/pull outs/etc. so we may be way off here... we'll see what she comes back with. She didn't kick me out when I told her that, so maybe...

Testing to see if this works, Keband. Just one pic of my green cabinets.

Mileaday, it didn't work. :( Do you have any posted online anywhere?
Thanks again all! We are finally feeling good about the direction we're going. I'm still questioning some countertop choices, but overall, if the budget will allow, we're going to do a recessed door panel, a burnished ginger, maybe on Alder wood on the perimeter, and most likely a moss green with brown glaze for the island. I'd love to do a wood countertop on the island, but I just don't think the budget will allow it...

Mile - it worked! LOVE the color and pulls. Can you tell me where you got them? What is your countertop? Granite? What color? I might be copying you.... :)

Perhaps something like this except in moss green.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{!gwi}}

honeysuckle, you pulled that picture out of my head! :) I'm printing it to take with me to the cabinet place later this week! Thanks!

Keband3boys,
Glad you liked the color. I liked it so much I used it in one of my bathrooms also. The counter top is Silestone Ivory Coast on both counters. However, they were installed about a year apart and are quite different. The kitchen has much larger pieces and has more color in it - salmon and creamy yellow but the bathroom seems to be more tan and smaller chips. They both look nice with the cabinets but I didn't realize there was a difference until after the install.
I purchased the pulls at Lowe's online for the ridiculous price of sixty cents each. They are item #227017 AB Cup Pull by L.G. Sourcing,Inc. The knobs are also from Lowe's and the same company but have a Gatehouse name on the bag. They are labled AB 1.25 Mushroom Knob and I think they are still both available in the store. I kept bringing hardware home to try and couldn't believe my luck in finding such a good match for such a cheap price.
I'll try my best to post some more pics for you to get a better look. Good luck in your endeavor. I'm not sure what that spot is on the bath cabinet door but it isn't there in real life, thank goodness. The counter isn't photographing as a true color representation on my monitor. Don't know how it will look on yours.

I love those green cabinets with the silestone. The ivory coast has little bits of green. Another pretty green quartz is cambria hyde park. It is the color of those cabinets.

I saw a moss green island with a zodiaq warm taupe countertop at a kitchen display and stopped to look and considered copying it. Very nice combo.

Mile - thank you so much for taking the time to help me. I really love the look you have. Your bathroom is gorgeous - love the bowls and faucets. I appreciate all your help. Honey, I actually am looking at a granite that looks very similar to the zodiaq warm taupe (looked it up online). I like the combo as well.
Thanks again!

keband3boys,
How's the project going?