Background: large u-shape kitchen with island in contemporary cedar house in the woods in an area with a lot of old dairy farms and barns. Looking for a clean rustic country look, and love the idea of barn red on some or all of the cabinets.

Backsplash: The one thing I have are beautiful decorative tiles in greens, browns and whites with cabins, canoes, trees, etc. in relief. They will be designed into a backsplash with a coordinating plain tile.

Cabinets: Glass door uppers, mostly drawers lower. Also a pantry.

Surfaces: I want to use soapstone on counters or island or both. If I do two surfaces the other will probably be calacatta gold marble or something else light.

I see the island base as red beadboard. The top could be soapstone or marble.

I am playing around with combinations of red, black, natural cherry for the cabinets and pantry. cherry lower/red upper or black lower/red upper or red lower/black upper or all cherry with red island and pantry.

Would love to hear any ideas you may have!

For example, we live in a reproduction house of an early 1700s colonial house. Our kitchen cabinets are cherry, our tops are black flamed granite, our beadboard and trim are a deep barn red that's very close in hue and value to the cherry cabinets, with random with pine floors finished in a distressed grey-brown.

Find the few materials and colors that are harmonious and work within them. Less is more! Good luck!

I am interested in your floors and would love to see a picture of them (and of your kitchen). I love random width and painted floors.