Hi, if you look in the finished kitchen block (FKB) you will get lots of ideas. I too loved the white kitchens but knew they would not look right in my space as I love and have lots of warm tones. After changing my mind a million times I decided on pale yellow uppers and med/dark cherry lowers. My kitchen is not finished so I have no pictures.
Best of luck on your building journey!

My advice to you is to sit down and revisit your plans, and make sure you still want the house you picked 11 years ago. It was a smaller house, I presume you didn't have all 5 kids then, and you've fallen in love with a completely different sort of kitchen. Do you still want an open floor plan with all hard flooring? With five children running around on it it's going to be loud! Create a plan that works for your family as it is now, for the style that you like now, and work the ideas you still like about the old plan into the new design.

HEre's what I think. The kitchen will last longer than the paint colors on your walls. You'll be in this house a very long time, I am guessing. If you have your woodfloors in the kitchen chose a countertop, backsplash and wall paint that coodinates with the overall color scheme. Bring some white into the other rooms would help it all come together. It could actually be quite striking if done right!! I say go for it!

Here are a couple of inspiration pics of mine. The first one shows white and rich wood blended nicely. It appears to me that the adjacent room has white woodwork and so does the kitchen... but the dark wood is brought in with the cabinets - kind of a flip flop of what I am doing, and what I think you could pull off. The second one shows lots of color with white cabinets. I guess I feel that cabinets are separate from woodwork. Keep your floor and window trims the same as the rest of the house.. white cabinets is very different than having a white kitchen.

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We have revisited the plans, and have actually redesigned them a fair amt to accommodate our still growing family. The things we loved then are still the same - the openness, the lack of formal areas, the idea of only building spaces that will actually be used and can be multi-functional. We have increased spaces where needed - i.e. made the living room large enough to hold our HUGE sectional, made the island big enough for 6-8 kids to sit around, made the dining room open and long enough to accommodate 20+ people at the table if needed (by extending it in to the common walkway area), a HUGE mudroom with lockers for everyone, a laundry area to hold a double set of stackable w/d and a triple laundry chute. As for flooring, our house now has Pergo, which we HATE as it is not nearly as durable as we thought. We had hardwoods in our first house and do not mind the dings, scratches, etc. I had tile in the kitchen in my first house and hated the hardness and coldness of it. We will prolly use a large area rug under the dining room table (we have that now and it is super easy to vacuum after meals) and in the LR. Upstairs we have the area over the garage designed as a dorm-style bedroom for the 4 girls, as well as a large bath for them to share with double sinks, two toilets, and two showers. We still really love everything about the plan in general, and even the overall decorating scheme. I'm just at a loss about the kitchen. I know my white kitchen will not work. I just don't know where to go. I never really loved the look of wood kitchens, even in WOOD (i.e. timberframe - which is our other love, but will have to be saved for our retirement home) homes. I had stock light wood cabinets (similar to the ones in the pic I linked) in our first home and they felt cheap to me (they were!). I love the look of cherry, but don't think I want a full cherry kitchen. I have poured over the FKB here and HGTV's site and nothing catches my eye like the white ones do. I was hoping someone with more interior design sense than me could help. I wish I could find some better pics of the house, as I think it would help you get a sense of the rest of it and maybe help me with the kitchen. The plans, complete with color pics of the demo house, used to be available online but are no longer there. We have the original magazine but i don't have a scanner. My best way to describe it though is like Panera Bread Co with its warm wood tones and saturated colors, as well as the link I included above. The link below is to an article about the Back TO Basics house. it gives you a general idea of the layout, but we combined the BTB and the "Whole Nine Yards" plans and added some square footage for our large family. Thanks for all your help!

Here is a link that might be useful: back to basics

Many of those pictures in your link show a gray accent wall or gray-ish tones. You could copy the exact white kitchen you like but in a pale gray instead. If you do some google searches you will find many people claiming that gray is the "new" white. You could then add a warm color backsplash or paint color. You would get the lightness that you wanted. It would be beautiful!!!

The pictures make it looked pretty washed out. Its actually a fairly saturated ryegrass green, which is what we were planning in the LR. And the dining room will be a peppery red. The wood tones in the pics are very light, but we will be using something with more red, prolly cherry or hickory.

I WILL check out your gray idea. I have seen that gray is the new white, but I still don't think it would look appropriate with the rest of the downstairs. I like the idea of mixing the wood tones with white. I also thought, since we will be using black (or dark) chocolate windows and trim caps on the columns, maybe we could do a black painted kitchen. However, even though we will have three large windows in the kitchen, there are deep overhangs on the house, and the lot is heavily wooded, so I am not sure how much natural light will actually get in and if black or a dark stain would be too dark. SIGH. This is so frustrating. I wish I could just come up with something I love. Because we love the look of mutil-tonal flooring, I think we will end up just picking a wood stain that matches one of the floor tones. I'm just not loving anything I have seen yet.

fiveunderfive:
In my opinion, the reason the BTB house looks so good is the architects ran the light maple wood throughout the space- including the cabinets. The bamboo floor color is the same shade as the maple. The article mentions the intentional use of the same wood/tones throughout. Using the same tones thru the open area allows the kitchen to peacefully co-exist with the living and dining areas. Remember that the recent popularity of dark wood cabinets and fancy kitchens came as a result of kitchens opening into major living areas. There has to be a consistent theme. Think, "seamless."

So, sadly, I agree with you. I would not put a white (or a grey) kitchen in your dark wood open floor plan. However, I do think you have plenty of time to work with your material choices to make your home beautiful.

Guess I can't continue to respond unless I change the title??

Pamelah...you hit the nail on the head.

Here is our issue - We don't like the uniform (or monochromatic) light-colored wood. But we do want it to still be somewhat "seamless" to use your term. We would like to find something for the flooring that is more multi-tonal, then pick a light red cherry wood for the trim and columns. Keeping this in mind, along with the "Panera" colors what would you recommend for the kitchen?

Well here is something to think about anyway...you never know.
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You can TOTALLY do a white kitchen, albeit, a warm white one. You could do an off-white with yellow undertones to compliment all the wood tones. You could also mix in some wood toned cabinetry with painted. I think painted cabinet kitchens look their best when surrounded by a lot of wood. Will your trim work be wood toned too? I think you can do the black countertops too, especially if you have an island, throw a slab of wood on top and you're golden!
Here's some pics warm white-ish kitchens that I really, really love. I would have copied one to the best of my ability but they're too warm for everything else I had chosen for our new build. It's pretty difficult I think with a new build when part of the equation is that everything has to make some sort of sense.

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by other metros kitchen and bath Kelly Cross

Imagine this one with wood-toned trim around that window!

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by chicago kitchen and bath The Kitchen Studio of Glen Ellyn

White and a little rustic

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107)

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by other metros kitchen and bath Kelly Cross

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by seattle architect Sullivan Conard Architects

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107)

And my favorite warm white kitchen

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by atlanta interior designer Dillard Design

Check out www.houzz.com for tons of pictures and ideas!

What is attracting you to the GW typical white painted cupboard kitchen? Is it the ...

white "feel" of the white kitchens or the actual stuff?
the white paint?
the aesthetic of paint on cupboards?
a childhood association?
beadboard?
white/black/gray color schemes as in marble?
(fill in blank)____ ?

or is there something in woody kitchens which repels you because of...
an association?
a "been there done that"?
(fill in blank) ____ ?

Have worked with S. Sousanka's aesthetic and advice a little and don't recall much that matches the GW white kitchen, except in remodels of bungalows, etc. Are you put off by the non-white kitchen spaces in her books also?

Florantha, ah you have faster fingers than I do!

Fiveunderfive, I second Florantha's questions and asking yourself why and what is it about a white kitchen that appeals to you so much, especially in light of your choice of house design. Knowing this will help in designing your new home and alleviate some of the stress you are feeling right now.

On one of the many design blogs, I saw that the designer did not recommend using white or light colors like off white unless you had lots of light coming into the room. Looking at all of the pictures just posted, I noticed that all of them have lots of natural light in the room. From what you have described, that is probably not going to be the case in your place unless you have lots of skylights or solar tubes coming in. One of the recent episodes of Carter Can dealt with a dark bedroom on a very tree-filled lot in Michigan. It was amazing what a difference the paint colors made in that bedroom. Take a look and you will see why I am recommending color and not white, pales or even light grays for your kitchen colors.

I also would like to suggest that you take a moment to CONGRATULATE yourself on how far you have come! Take a breath and appreciate and acknowledge all that you have done so far. It is a lot to do, especially with your large family! All of these decisions will still be here tomorrow. Have a glass of wine... Little Celebrations along the way really help with stress levels and keeping yourself sane during this process.

Last but not least... take a look at some of the materials besides the standard granite, stainless steel and hardwood floors... Cork floor tiles can give you the wood color or warm amber/brown look. In addition, they are warmer to the touch and quieter.

:))

I love the look of the Somethings Gotta Give kitchen. Maybe its the stark contrast between the black counters and white cabinets. Maybe its the romantic feel. Its definitely a classy feel...not pretentious but not cheap. I never thought I would like that but I am so drawn to it. its definitely NOT a childhood association. Painted cabinets are probably not even smart with 5+ active kids. I don't even know how to describe my style. Certainly not contemporary, not french, not country. I am usually a mission or arts and crafts person in that I like wood tones and I like the simplistic lines. For instance, with trim pieces I like substantial (thicker than the usual builder grade stuff) baseboard and molding but nothing with curves or intricate details. But I DO want attention to detail. Just not fussy detail...does that make sense? I LOVE wood in general. We would love to build a timberframe home someday. I guess I just haven't seen a stained wood kitchen that I love. I have seen some absolutely gorgeous ones, but not ones that I can picture in my own home.

I don't really like kitchens that mix white/painted and wood. (Other than the fact that our remodel kitchen was going to be white cabs/black counters/cherry trim, windows, doors, etc.) I guess I worry that mixing cabinets, such as where you have a white perimeter and dark island is too trendy. I have seen many of your kitchens done this way and while they are beautiful and do work, they are not for me. This may not be our forever house, but it will be our "very long time" house.

I think with regards to Susanka, its more her ideals that appeal to us. We like the idea that there is no wasted space. We don't need a formal living room, a family room, a den, etc. We want one large space that will serve multi functions. Our dining room with its LARGE table will have room to expand for family get-togethers (which can include 15+ kids and 12+ adults easily). A built in storage that spans the long wall will have a long drawer for wrapping supplies, one for kids crafting items, as well as space for table linens, china, bar supplies, etc. We like her idea to make the spaces just big enough for what you plan on using them for. Obviously with 7 + people in our family, our size issues are larger than most. But we follow her suggestion to make it "just big enough" and then embellish with details. We have the entire house planned out in our minds and have started with the architect to get prelim plans. We even have color and design ideas for the bedrooms and baths. Just can NOT agree on a kitchen design.

Ugh. Sorry for the novel. But thanks so much for all your advice so far. You really are making me think.

I have been following Susanka's work for more than a decade. She uses very light wood in her house because she practices out of Minnesota, which is far north lattitude. I live in Seattle, WA and we are at 48th parallel. We have about 5 to 6 hours of grey daylight during Dec and Jan. It is terrible. We have to really pay attention to how we use natural light and materials around us, and houses with lighter wood feel better in this climate and location. Think Scandinavian furniture and colors and why they work in that environment.

Having said that, Scandinavian sentiment of everything painted white/grey/light brey blue will work really well in that house. I would make sure that the cabinet style and trim style you pick is not too traditional with too many rounded or fluted ornamentation. The house really calls for crisp corners on all the wood work. You really need to pick finishing materials with modern esthetic in this house. If you end up picking white modern feeling kitchen, it will not work with black painted wood work. It will look too much like yo-yo, where you could not make up your mind. If you use light blue greys, then they will not work too well with orange/red/green colors as you already know. However, if you paint the woodwork in creamy yellowish/tan/brownish color, then you can keep the orange, red colors for accent.

Black kitchen without too much uppers and light counter top would work quite well with your black woodwork. If you eliminate much of upper cabinets, then it will not feel too dark even with larger over hangs. I would paint the walls very light/bright. One of my architect friend designed her house that has that similar sentiment with Susanka's house with peaked high pitched roof. She used black slab doors and marble counter top with minimal uppers. it does not feel dark at all.

Do you like painted white kitchens that have modern esthetic? You need to ask yourself if you are attracted to more traditional feel of white kitchens or if is the color of white in the kitchens you see. If you prefer the traditional look of white kitchens, you will not be very happy in this modern feeling "house". You need to accept that you want more traditional type of finished in your house. This will be difficult to pull off in this house because the rooflines are so non-traditional. You don't want that feeling that the kitchen looks out of place in the house....

Modern houses have a very different feel to the entire house. I live in a home with three walls are mostly windows and with no walls between LR/DR/kitchen. The wood cabinets do not feel "cheap" in these homes if you make sure the cabinets go with the house. If you put in the wrong type of cabinets, then they feel like builder grade cheap wood cabinets that do not belong in the house. Some of the ways to get less cheap looking wood cabinets it to look at custom made veneer cabinets. I would explore (look at lots of images) more modern looking kitchens using either dark or light wood and see how you like them. Even if you paint the kitchen a light color, the kitchen has to feel modern in that house. Are you okay with that? If you still are attracted to more traditional feel of "white" kitchens, then I think you need to really ask yourself if you want this house.

Go look at some books that publish Susanka's work. They all have very similar vernacular in what she uses; maple or other light wood (beech is very commonly used Scandinavian wood) cabinets with shaker style or slab doors and simple mouldings/trim.

I am asking a very obvious question but you have to really accept the architectural scheme and the decorating scheme of the house that you are committing to. Not everyone wants a modern house. You may be much happier in a traditional type of home. This is not too late to get what you really want! Often, people here see kitchens as a stand alone from the house. Your house is not like that. The entire house is viewed from one perspective as most modern houses are since there are no walls separating the rooms. The entire decorating scheme has to fit together in one quick "look". The more you steer away from that one quick look fitting in, the less pulled together your house will feel.

Even if you don't love the light wood kitchen, if it works in the house and you LOVE the house, I would bite the bullet and go with it. I disagree with the comment that the painted walls last less than the kitchens. You will spend easily $5000 to $10,000 to have the living area repainted, if it is as big as you say it is. My living area costs about $3000 to $5000 to have it painted everytime. I don't change colors on a whim. I also pick paint color based on what is already there. Often, there are not many possible choices because I am limited by the wood tone, colors of furniture, flooring etc. Painting is NOT a cheap investment, unless you do it yourself. Even then, you are committing many many weekends to doing nothing but painting. Look at how many walls you have to paint. Each wall takes primer plus two coats of paint, minimum. I doubt that you will paint walls yourself since you have 5 kids....

When you put the entire house together, you will end up loving the entire house or not. If you love the house, even if there are elements that were not your first pick, you end up appreciating why you have to make those choices and accept them and will learn to love how the entire house pulled together.

Good luck.

When I looked at the photo, I thought of painted cabinets in Panera colors, possibly mixed with the light wood (e.g. painted island and hutch, wood cabinets, or vice versa).

Even though some posters have made a case for white, I think you need to be very careful. If you shoehorn your "dream kitchen" into a space where it doesn't work, you might not find it so dreamy.

I think it would be a good idea to try the home decorating forum. There are a lot of pros over there, and they have a very good eye for what goes/doesn't go.

Thanks you so much for all of your advice. I am (SLOWLY, RELUCTANTLY) giving up my dream kitchen. White just will not work with the rest of this house, which I truly DO love. I know the perfect kitchen is out there, and I love the rest of the house so much (as well as all the conveniences it will represent for our growing family) that even if we were to build it today, exactly as it is in the original plans, I am certain I would still love it. We do have all (I think) of Susanka's books, and we are very familiar and satisfied with her concepts. She was one of the original architects that worked on the project, but not hte primary one, whom we have been in contact with several times regarding modifying their original plans to suit our needs. I'll show you an exterior pic of the house (ours won't have the angry eyebrow detailing, but the rest will be pretty similar, possibly down to the red siding) and you will all probably agree that a white kitchen just does not fit. Plain and simple. I think I need to get off the internet and visit the kitchen showroom that our builder uses to get a better idea of what we want. We both love natural cherry, so if we can afford it, that is probably what we will end up with.

Here is the link. Scroll down to the bottom and it is the last thumbnail (labeled PLANS FOR THE 1999 LIFE DREAM HOUSE). The link used to take you to the (original) plans and several interior pics, but the link currently appears broken. not sure why...it was there last week. I hope they didn't permanently remove it, but it is getting old...

Thanks again for the advice. I will definitely check out the decorator forum. I need plenty of decorating advice!

Here is a link that might be useful: not so big house

Fiveunderfive...as I read what you're saying, I feel a tug of empathy. I, too, have somewhat contradictory visions of my dream kitchen and my dream house. And even the conflicts of my dream countertop or cabinets, with my dream kitchen. I've simply got too many dreams to fit all in one house.

As I'm on my third house and 2nd remodel, I have learned that sometimes, if the visions are really too inconsistent, it's better to give one up, saving it for the next house (even if that's in 20 years when kids are grown) than to compromise both visions. At least for me, I've been happier with the end product when I can restrain myself from choosing disparate elements and focus on the whole. In this case, jumping off from Sarah Suzanka's design sensibility, thinking holistically is probably even more important. (I love how she uses space too...and have tried to incorporate several of her concepts in my remodeled old homes). So much of what she does...and what you like about it...is about how spaces relate to each other. I think if you try to shove a pristeen "somethings gotta give" white kitchen into the middle of a wood and saturated color home it will never feel right.

That being said, I see two ways to look at it... you can try to incorporate something of the "old" romantic feeling of the white kitchen into wood and color that will flow better into the rest of your home. How about rethinking an arts & crafts type kitchen...I've attached a link to lpolk's kitchen, which I just love. It's warm woods, some color and to me has some of the romance of a white kitchen, in that it evokes old and classy, but in a different way. Maybe something like that?

Alternatively, you could rethink the woods and colors of the living room, dining area, family room etc. There's no reason why Suzanka's concepts of usable, flowing space can't be done in a style more compatible with your white kitchen...think black and white checkerboard tile...or black slate in place of other slate for your walkways, white painted woodwork, darker wood floors, with bright colorful accents...red oriental type carpets, vivid spots of wall paint and upholstery.

I believe I'm remembering correctly that Suzanka makes the point that it's the quality and details that make the difference in how the space feels. If you incorporate them into either kitchen and either home, I suspect you'll come to love either a "white" house that meshes with your dream kitchen or a wood and colored kitchen that meshes with your dream wood house.

Here is a link that might be useful: lpolk's gorgeous arts and crafts kitchen

check out more kitchens - link below

as posted on thread 'cool site'

Here is a link that might be useful: kitchens

melisstastar, thank you for posting that link! I sticky-noted the magazine spread of that kitchen with a simple note "love this kitchen" and I'm happy to see more pictures from it.

I 2nd everything Melissastar just said.
She gave an eloquant voice to everything I was thinking.
And wanting to express to you. I also think you
( 5-under-5) are overwhelmed and might consider hiring
a KD. A KD can really help you narrow down your loves,
wants, desires and the work out a punch list of all
the real needs. I can only imagine with 5-under5 it is
near impossible for you to really focus on what YOU
want. : )

Don't give up your DREAM!
It will be beautiful you are just trying to ski up a
mountain with roller skates. You can do it. You just
have to figure out a practical way to make your dream
kitchen blended into reality. It will still be your dream.

~boxer

We had an initial houseplan with one kitchen, but my next design, the one we built, 'called for' an entirely different kitchen appearance. I agree that sometimes you have to adjust your vision if you're trying to put a square peg in a round hole and things aren't coming together. I also agree that sometimes it is possible to get the feel and dream you want, if you identify exactly what it will take to get there.

When planning my kitchen, I fell in love with many, many white kitchens, but with 8 kids and a passion for wood and more color, I knew I couldn't feel like an all white kitchen was 'me.' I looked for other reasons those kitchens were really speaking to my heart. First I identified what the feeling was they gave me, as you tried to do above. I felt they said homey-ness, baking, warmth, and an old-fashioned type of welcoming feel that said there should be the smell of bread baking in the oven and pies cooling on the counters. A place where you wouldn't be surprised to find a flour-smudged face on an apron-bedecked baker (me). I noticed that they all had at least one section of wood counter, and some had stainless. Some painted cabinets/a bit of an unfitted look seemed to be necessary for the look, but I didn't feel I had to go all-painted, or use white to achieve it. I looked past the white cabinets to see what else was talking to me.

Maybe you don't need white-white either. Maybe you don't need to do a slight variation of white, like light gray. How about a color that will go more with your warm wood colors...Golden yellow, or golden tan...A brick or cranberry red...Maybe a dark grayish green. Crownpoint has a black painted kitchen with wood counters that is WONderful. And, as I mentioned, maybe you only need a section or 2 of painted cabinets, because I can tell you that, although our painted cabinets are holding up all right, the wood finish cabinets in our kitchen are more forgiving for splatters and dings in a busy house with a big and busy family.

Like others, I wonder if you'll continue to like the completely open plan. Someday, you may have babies and teens in the same house....Different types of noises, different types of toys. I like to have spaces that might stay cleanish (completely clean is a little unrealistic), and somewhat quiet....A place to sit down, take a deep breath, and relax without being bombarded by noise and clutter. A place to sit with another adult and have a hope of carrying on a conversation. :-) I also like to let the kids be kids without having to get after them all the time, and having spaces for activity and belongings helps a lot. I like the aftermath of cooking for 10, or making Thanksgiving dinner for many more, behind walls and closable doors. But that's me. I think a good exercise, though, for those with young children, is to think about the family age range in 5 and 10 and 15 years, and imagine how your house will suit the differing needs for storage, traffic, big groups of big friends, etc. You'll get there much faster than you think! ;-)

Best wishes! You have an exciting project ahead!

PS Have you seen David T Smith kitchens? Some great examples of painted cabinets in houses with lots of wood.

Here is a link that might be useful: David T Smith kitchens

Thanks Boxer! I know our builder works with a "kitchen place" locally that has a KD, so I am sure that will be our starting point once we finalize an overall design and have the actual kitchen floorprint and dimensions.

I loved your quote about trying to ski up a mountain with roller skates. I feel exactly like that every day! I AM overwhelmed. I thought that we would be able to make a list of our wants/needs and then have the "perfect" plan designed for us. We have not had the greatest of luck with the two architects (one for the addition, which is where we started last year, and now another one for the new build), we have used so far in that arena, so I guess I am worried that the kitchen design is going to turn our the same way and I am trying to make sure I cover all bases on my own. However, despite my attempts to educate myself, I do not have the time, patience, or energy to learn EVERYTHING about kitchen design and am going to have to rely on someone else to put my (our) wants on paper. I am just worried that we are sinking so much money into this project that I want to make sure that we are not settling. If we are really going to do this, I want to make sure it is worth it in the long run.

Thanks to all of you for your advice. I'm checking out all the links. I have seen a few stained wood kitchens that I can envision in my house. It's hard for me to visualize things in my head...I need to SEE it. So many of the gorgeous kitchens here have elements that are not my taste (french, country, oak, etc) so even though I might like one aspect of it (the stain/species of the wood, or the cabinet style) it is hard for me to "see" it if it is not ALL together how I would like it. Does that make sense? For instance, I just realized that wrote off a kitchen with a cabinet style I really loved simply because the cabinets were made out of oak and the overall style was country. I need to learn to look past the elements I don't like to see the ones I do, but it is hard for me to picture things piecemeal. Anyways...

Our kitchen is in the center of our home, and part of a great room that includes our family area and breakfast table. The cabinets & wood in our kitchen are the same as the cabinets throughout our entire house, which is contemporary. The pulls are different. Especially in an open plan house, you need to have elements that coordinate and repeat throughout, but they don't have to exactly match. It is actually simpler to hone away at all the details to find the elements (materials, color, etc.) that you love and want to repeat.