At 48" tall and 45" wide, they probably are the largest components of your kitchen. Painting them white might have made them seem even more expansive.

The metric I've learned was to try to repeat your largest number. So that a 45" w upper looks most balanced in a kitchen w a 45" sink and a 45-48" fridge; it's the reason I'm not getting a 45" sink, but a 36" one.

But you're almost done and my guess is you'll get used to them in time. And think of all your storage :)

You know I'm going to ask for pictures... :)

I absolutely felt that way when my wall cabinets were installed! We had 42" cabinets with I would guess about a 4" crown, so the existing cabinets were pretty tall. The new cabinets are 48" stacked with a similar crown and that extra 6" inches really made them feel massive to me. The top 18" of the cabinets is glass and above the cabinets it is open to our vaulted ceilings, so the height is balanced by that, but they still felt huge to me. It definitely took a while to get used to.

Oh, deedles, I feel your pain - it's my pain, too. I had the cabinetmaker make the cabinet over the range taller than the other cabinets, mostly to hide the vent hood exhaust pipe. On paper, it looked fine. In real life it is the biggest flaw in my kitchen.

We've only been here a month and due to some other issues, I haven't been able to decorate the kitchen. I'm hopeful that a decorator friend of mine will be able to help me minimize the top-heavy feel. Perhaps something large across the room will help mine.

I'll be watching to see what suggestions you get.

redo the door configuration if you have a cabinetmaker. Two doors at 22 wide and 48 tall apiece is a difficult task if this is your main cabinet for day to day frequent open/close. Perhaps do 3 doors at 15 in width and see what he can do with a top separate door with glass as in display section so the height of the main door sits at 33 or 36. I would definitely speak to your designated cabinet maker/designer about options if the doors aren't yet built.

We had ceiling height wall cabinets made for our laundry room and though it provides more room for storage, I much prefer the look of our kitchen wall cabinets that leave a foot or so above of wall showing. It looks better and adds a bit more balance and color to the room. Who can reach that high anyway?

Probably because you are not used to it. When I had my weather vane installed I was convinced it was laughably large....it was the only "finished" thing on the exterior of my house. I posted to gw and they convinced me it's just right. Now I have grown to love my rooster.

Are you more concerned about the height or the width? Are these single tall cabs or stacked? Any pics to share?

Absolutely not, but I have white uppers and black lowers so they recede into the ceiling.

I bet once the doors go on and you get used to them that they'll just blend in to the rest of your kitchen. The no upper look is so spacious and pretty, probably easy to get used to but sometimes can be impractical.

Yup. We went from 30 in plus soffit to 36 plus crown to ceiling. Once the doors are on, the counters are in, and all the lighting works it starts to feel more cozy and really won't be a problem. I kept telling DH I swear they raised the ceiling a foot!

Oh no!! This is exactly what I'm fearing will happen in my kitchen.

However, I do think that like anything new - even a great new haircut - there is a period of adjustment that comes with change.

Why don't more kitchens have soffits? It's a pain to clean the tops of upper cabinets, and any 'storage' that requires a step ladder is certainly not practical -- or safe.

It's only rational to be uncomfortable with heavy objects above us when there is no visible 'support' for them. I'm wondering if a soffit would help visually 'fasten' your upper cabinets on the wall. Possibly some fake supporting 'brackets' beneath the cabinets?

I felt that way until we put the crown on top. Having that horizontal line at the top helps "lower" the feel of the vertical doors.

deedles, I think you're just naturally reacting to something new in your kitchen that occupies a prominent spot. That happens to most of us. I reacted to everything new that went into my kitchen. Nothing looked right. As someone else said, it was like a new haircut. Arrrggghhh!

My kitchen is small with 9 ft. ceilings. It's G-shaped with uppers on two adjacent sides. My uppers don't go up to the ceiling, but one is 44 x 44 (including crown, no glass). Not quite as tall as yours, but close. It doesn't loom or seem large to me. The doors open/close all day long and it never occurred to me they were too wide for that. My cabs are all white, but even when they were oak, it didn't loom.

Cabinets without doors on them look bigger because your eye can see the full volume. Ask me how I know :/ . Doors will make your eye read them as a "wall", which will make them feel less like hanging objects.

Maybe install glass on the upper third of the doors? I'd want the top shelf to be display, which I could see through the glass. Then the bottom 2/3 could be closed storage...but it would hopefully keep them from feeling so imposing. I'm sure you'll come up with something that will work :)

Oh oops, I should have said the whole thing is 45 wide BUT the door area is 33" with a 12" wide open shelf cab on the ends. So 2-15"-ish doors per cab, not 22" doors. That much I learned here, lol. I think they'll take a little time to get used to but wow the storage! Yeehee!

I can't post any more pics or I'll wreck my reveal, guys. :(

I have big, wide uppers and really wanted to add a stacked cabinet to the ceiling. I made lots of mock ups and even built a little model to put up there. As much as I love the look for my wider cabinets I thought it was just way too much. I've since reversed my thoughts and embraced the horizontal aspect of my kitchen. I only have two uppers though. I wonder if I would have grown to accept it but for now it's a no go for me. hths!

I took my cabinets to the ceiling and love them -- they actually make the kitchen feel bigger to me., and I just find that the tall cabinets "please my eye" for some reason. They are painted though; I did think that wood would make the space feel more closed in.

I am sure that you will like them once the doors are on, Deedles!

I haven't read through all of the responses to your post and don't have time to tonight, but I wanted to say that part of the "looming" is the absence of doors. Probably others have said that. All of the shadows and converging lines and shelves and such will go away when the flat plane of the doors is (are sounds better but is wrong) in place.

I am SO eager to see your kitchen!

I agree with the others that said you are reacting to something that is new & different. When my crown went up, I freaked. I have one narrow cabinet that if I really focus on, it looks large. It just took awhile to get used to the change.
I also have a new rug in my familty room that I told DH - "I hate it, it's going back." Turns out that I love it.

Chisue, my DH is 6'4" - he can reach every shelf in our 42" uppers. I don't mind using a stool. I'm short, and if I could only use storage that I could reach standing on the floor, I'd have to build an addition just for storage. Whenever I see a kitchen with soffits, all I can see is wasted space - especially in a smaller kitchen like mine.

Running cabinets to the ceiling solves the cleaning issue.

Isn't diversity wonderful?

Deedles, pics pics please!
My laundry room uppers (my only uppers really), go all the way to the ceiling, and my first thought when they were installed was "What the h*ll was I thinking???". They seem ginormous! But actually, after looking at them numerous days, they don't seem so bad any more. Hang in there Deedles. I would bet that they are really nice and not looming at all.

I think I'm getting used to them now and the doors will be put on tomorrow, so we'll see how that changes things.
I'm loving the storage, though!

My kitchen is as vertical/perpendicular as any, and I don't feel oppressed or loomed-over by it.

Sombreuil: Yours don't look loom-ey at all. I notice that you have a really tall window, though and that's part of my issue. My window is a bit squatty because of exterior issues and that contributes to the height visual of the cabs. Totally getting past it now, though and when I set the doors in, well, that does help. Actually, I'm kind of starting to fall in serious like with them now.

Now, if only the cab guy hadn't given me the totally wrong hinges we could be installing the doors right now. Grrrr.
Cab guy just had a total hip Wednesday so I think we're on our own with this one.

Quite the contrary! I think it makes my kitchen look bigger and roomier. I love my 45" tall upper cabinets!

I need to take new updated pics! Here's one early on during the installation.

KOMPY

Those of you who have high ceiling dilemmas have my fantasy "problems" ;) . Seriously though, high ceilings are absolutely inspiring in a kitchen, as the photos above illustrate.

Deedles -

**My window is a bit squatty because of exterior issues and that contributes to the height visual of the cabs.**

Do you have room for curtains? I`m hoping to help my squatty window issue with hanging curtains. In your case, you could do this:

Those of you who have high ceiling dilemmas have my fantasy "problems" ;) . Seriously though, high ceilings are absolutely inspiring in a kitchen, as the photos above illustrate.

Deedles -

**My window is a bit squatty because of exterior issues and that contributes to the height visual of the cabs.**

Sorry I have no idea of your layout...and no photos. Do you have room for curtains? I`m hoping to help my squatty window issue with hanging curtains. In your case, you could do this:

If you hang a rod to line up with the upper cabinets (or near) that may help to fool the eye into feeling like the window and cabinets line up nicely.

No, curtains won't be a solution in this kitchen. It's not bad, I was just shocked by LARGE SOMETHINGS where nothing used to be, I think.

deedles - I think that a big part of the issue is just what you said, "LARGE SOMETHINGS where nothing used to be". Each time we get another step closer to our kitchen being finished, I get that "uh-oh, did I screw up" feeling.

It's normal...it's a lot of money and not much options if it's not "right". And if you're like me, there's really one chance to get this right...we're for sure not going through this again any time soon.

Just yesterday, we started to get our handles put on. As much as I wanted something other than blue tape...I'm looking at our beautiful wood...and I'm feeling rather "meh" about the handles. I wanted to look at those and say, "oh, that's so perfect." Instead, I'm looking at the handles and going, "Well, it's nice that I can finally open the doors properly now." Not really a chance of a redo there...holes are drilled.

I imagine in a few more days, once I adjust to our kitchen having the handles (that we've been waiting for to be put on for about 1 1/2 months now), I'll look at it and think it looks just right. But for now, I'm feeling that uh-oh feeling you described.

Knowing the bits and pieces that I do about your kitchen, I know it's going to look stunning when it's all finished. :)