Your kitchen is very similar, but in much better shape than what we started with. I had to redo mine in stages, over the last three years. The first thing we did was replace the big oak framed fluorescents and ceiling (after a broken pipe forced it).

Ours had yellow (or missing) appliances , so those were the next to go. We were able to find great bargains on Craigslist, so that helped out a bunch. This was our biggest functional change, sine the house had no dishwasher, an non-functioning builtin oven-microwave combo, and no exhaust hood. We also replaced the old trash compactor with a trash/recycling pull-out. You lucked out with black appliances, so I think you'd be fine leaving them as long as they work. Replacing your sink with something more functional for your chief dish washer will be an easy fix and a great way to get started!

The next phase was the floor. It had the ugliest yellow tiles, set on top of two inches of concrete. A royal pain to remove! We used laminate, that was actually relocated from another room where they covered up an old blue jacuzzi (which turned into another huge project). The laminate, while not my first choice, has held up beautifully, and we have been really hard on it as we figured it was only a temporary fix.

The next phase was painting the golden oak cabinets and replacing all of the hardware. Time consuming, but cheap and easy. I went with a very dark green, knowing that it would be a while before being able to replace the yellow tile counters (with flowery accent tiles containing a bit of the same green). This made the kitchen much more livable for the next year or two while I saved for granite and backplash.

We just finished the last phase. Granite, backsplash, raised bar on the peninsula, sink and faucet, under-cabinet lighting, and crown molding for the cabinets.

It was really hard having to hold back and do it in stages. There were (and still are) a million other projects going on at the same time, though. Kind of par for the course when buying a foreclosure for a steal ;) Three years seems like a really long time to wait to get my perfect kitchen, but friends and family are always amazed at how much we've done, so I guess it's really not so bad. We did all of the work ourselves, short of the granite fab and install, so it's been very rewarding!

I'll attach a picture of where it started, so that you can see our similar cabinets, then try to find some showing how it progressed :)

This is after ceiling, floor, appliances, and paint. This is how it was for the last year or so while saving for the last phase.

Here it is last month with granite, sink, crown molding, and working on UCL.

And here we are now. I still need to do some caulking and grouting, but I'm tired of working on the kitchen and have spread out into the adjoining dining room ;)

Check out General Finishes Java Gel Stain to give your cabinets a facelift. I followed the online directions (google it, lots of great posts) and did a bathroom vanity, and it really came out just as great as the blog pics and was just as easy as they say. No major sanding, no huge time or money . . . Just a good scrub, light 30 second sanding per cabinet, then wipe on stain. Repeat two more times with the stain a day apart . . . Then a couple coats of a good polyurethane. (I used the GF Arm R Seal). Some new knobs/pulls, and those cabinets look great. Really. Super cheap and pretty easy for a big impact. Seems like a good fit for your house since those cabinets look sound functionally and you say the layout works well for you.

Here's the instructions I mainly used. http://www.monicawantsit.com/2012/02/staining-oak-cabinets-espresso-color.html

ps. She says it doesn't work for bare wood, but I used this exact same procedure (but with Oil Based Floor Poly) on bare pine steps for our new basement stairs, and it worked perfectly for bare wood, too. So, if you need to add some trim or shelves or whatever, you can use the same approach and they will match nicely.

sundance - you have a great space with a lot of light. Your cabinet style also seems to be nice and clean lined, so easy to update (unlike my raised panel, cathedral arch honey cabinets!)

I just spent the weekend painting sample boards various shades of greige. BM Natural Cream and Edgecomb Gray both look to be very pretty and warm light grays. One of these might work on your cabinets.

Also, if you or your DH is handy, perhaps you could add taller crown or build up your upper cabinets to the ceiling. I've seen a few impressive DIY projects online showing how to do this, like the one in the link below.

Errant - wonderful transformation! Your granite and ss farm sink really make a huge difference in updating your kitchen. Was it difficult to retrofit your existing cabinet to accommodate the farm sink? I'm thinking about doing the same.

Here is a link that might be useful: Raising upper cabinets to ceiling

I think the light coming in through your windows lends itself to an airy look, so I'd continue with the beachy colors you have in your living room. A light gray or white would be a good choice if you paint the cabinets. Since I'm not a fan of painted oak cabinets, I would change the counters and floors to a lighter color that looks good with oak. I think your sectional is a good light gray that has a blue undertone, so that could work. You could use a LVT like Armstrong Alterna for the floor, which is a grouted tile and is waterproof. It looks very much like porcelain tile when installed because it doesn't have the fake grout lines of sheet vinyl. Or leave the kitchen as is and use your money for appliance upgrades. It really is a cute and functional kitchen, so I would keep it simple. In a few years you may want to put in a new IKEA kitchen or RTA cabinets from a company like Barker.

Errant, great work!!! I can tell that a lot of thought was put into those updates and it looks wonderful. Good to know about the laminate... we will see if I'm brave enough.

Re: gel stain... I want to emphasize that these are NOT real wood. They have absolutely no wood grain. I think the grain that you do see is laminate. I have a little experience with stains and I feel like I would just end up rubbing it around uselessly since there is nothing to absorb it. Maybe I'm wrong.

juddgirl2: Good luck with your kitchen! Those paint colors are very different and I am interested to see which one you choose. I love the idea of gray cabs, but have heard that some people regret them because they feel they look dreary. I think the right shade of gray would prevent that??

Welcome aboard, sundance!

I did a facelift in my kitchen a couple of years ago. Good layout, but builders grade golden oak cabinets. I replaced the doors and drawer fronts and had everything painted (professionally) a creamy white. It completely transformed my kitchen. I did other things too (quartz counters, backsplash, lighting), but updating the cabinets had the biggest impact.

When you say you're tired of seeing white kitchens everywhere, do you mean in magazines, online, or in real life? Big difference. Remember, it's not like a dress you wear to a party and 10 other people show up in the same one. When you are in your kitchen and loving it, what does it matter if anyone else has one like it?

Good luck. I think your kitchen is already very cute. You can really transform that space with a little paint and a new sink.

Ouch, I missed the fact that they weren't real oak. I have seen those weird plastic looking oak cabinets before. Paint would be the only way to update them, as even gel stain wouldn't work quite right. Actually, I'm not even sure how paint would work out on them, maybe a spray that's formulated for plastic?

Juddgirl, cutting down my existing cabinet was easy. It already had more than enough width, I just needed to reconfigure the front a bit and build in the sink supports. Moving the drains around is what gave me the biggest headache, but I've always hated plumbing ;)

Seconding the idea of Java Gel Stain, it was the first thing that came to mind when I saw your photo. I'd do that to the lowers, add a nice light counter and paint the uppers a light color, maybe add a few glass doors.

I used gel stain on my bathroom vanity and the laminate sides actually took the stain the best. Gel is a whole different beast and is more of a paint. The downside for some may be the dark colors.

Thanks sundance. I'm actually using an off white for the kitchen cabinets but testing those colors for the walls in our bathroom remodel. I love that they both seem cool enough to work with the brushed steel medicine cabinet but warm enough to work with the Dover White trim color.

They should work as cabinet colors if you want to avoid white. I saw some examples on Houzz that looked great.

linelle- you make an excellent point and really got me thinking. Of all the homes I've been in of friends and family, I think my mother is the only person I can think of who actually has painted off-white cabinets (done in the late 90's out of necessity). I guess I've just seen so many "reveals" on these forums and blogs and they're ALL white. On the internet, my kitchen would just be another white kitchen.... but in my circles, white is rather uncommon.

Re: the gel stain. I don't really want to go darker. I'm not of the camp that anything is better than orange cabs. I don't HATE them, I just think the room could look a lot better. I'm actually starting to think that I should go ahead with painting them since I have some time right now. Any suggestions for colors? These are the laminate counters I need to live with for a little while:

Sundance, Sundance, Sundance!!! You don't live on the internet. All those white kitchens being revealed on the internet? They're virtual. They aren't real. :) They aren't in your life. Just another white kitchen reveal on the internet? You know that's a lame excuse, right? When your kitchen is done, hopefully you will go about your life--your REAL LIFE--and you can stop fretting over being just another white kitchen reveal. Little good that will do you.

I live 50 miles from San Francisco in an expensive, progressive area. No one I know has a white kitchen, none of my family, friends, or neighbors. If they did, so what? You live in your house and they live in theirs. In the end, you're stuck with your choices. Hopefully they are things you like/love.

You are wise not to want to gel stain darker. There are worse things than orange oak.

I would suggest paint over a dark stain. Your kitchen is nice and bright and your counter is dark, so keeping the cabinets a light color or stain will keep the open feel you have going. The BM Natural Cream might work better with your black appliances, unless you like more contrast and decide to go with a brighter white. It actually looks like a pale, warm gray - not like cream at all - so the name is misleading.

Your kitchen has really nice windows and layout!

I think a light coloured non-white paint for your cabinets is a great idea. Pick a colour that you like and it will be really unique. There is a kitchen (can't remember whose) that has the most awesome powder blue cabinets, for example. I love Errant's kitchen and that look, but personally I would want something lighter for my own space. Google how to do this properly. It's a very painful process from what I have read, but well worth it.

Check out the Farrow and Ball for an edited selection of colours that are fantastic (but make sure flooring will match). Dh wouldn't allow painted cabinets in my case, but if I was having fun with painting old cabinets I would look at something like Dimpse.

I think matching laminate in the kitchen is a great idea, especially if the kitchen is open to the other areas. You can get leak alarms for spots where there is a risk of leaking. I would not do laminate with wood or wood look cabinets, though - just my personal bias.

I would probably replace appliances with white enamel or stainless, as they need replacing. Black appliances look good when you decorate around them, but it sounds like you want a lighter look so black appliances wouldn't be my first choice.

I think the current wall colour looks nice.

Here is a link that might be useful: F&B pale colours