Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
fayewolf_gw

Non matching colors- what to do?!

fayewolf
9 years ago

Need suggestion-

I am redoing my kitchen counter to granite/ not planning to change cabinet color- but my family room is connected and had hardwood floor that is in a diff color scheme with the cabinets.

So I wantvto keep cost down, I'm trying to work with the kitchen floor to hopefully make it less awkward

Current kitchen

Granite similar to this

Initial thoughts on kitchen tile color

Granite also on top of the tile here.

Suggestions???

Comments (24)

  • fraker
    9 years ago

    Why not just continue the wood flooring into the kitchen? I think it might make the whole space seem larger and more cohesive.

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    Duplicate

    This post was edited by snookums2 on Mon, Oct 20, 14 at 21:02

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    This is a tough one. The camera might be exaggerating things, but these two floors do not mesh at all. I don't see the new counter working with your new colors either. I think you need to commit to the color changes in your home and either follow through now or save to do the kitchen right later. The new flooring also clashes with the cabinets, so I would paint them and replace the tile - all to complement the adjoining area which you have already started updating in a new direction.

  • sumac
    9 years ago

    Or, perhaps you could stain the wood floor a darker color so it doesn't clash with the cabinet color. The tile you have looks to me like it would work very well with your choice of granite. But ultimately, I think you would be happy with one flooring surface thruout. I have wood in my kitchen and it has held up very well.

  • _sophiewheeler
    9 years ago

    One of the biggest mistakes in a minor kitchen reno/refresh is to put granite on top of older cabinets that will need changing far sooner than you think. Then they are set, and you can't replace them without a lot of risk to the tops. It locks you in to the current layout even if you can pull the tops without damage. These older cabinets will have issues where the tile joins the faceframe that won't be covered by the granite, and don't really work overall in the home. They should be on the list for replacement.

    If you want to make a change here, do in stock box store laminate counters, and nothing else. You won't be spending a lot on this at will need to be ripped out later in the more extensive gut renovation that is in this kitchen's future sooner than later. Or, save your money and dont do the stopgap at all. Research and plan for the gut next year. That includes extending the wood flooring into the kitchen.

  • lam702
    9 years ago

    Hollysprings makes a good point that I have always wondered about. Why put new granite on old cabinets? I understand that some old cabinets are quality, solid woods and if the finish is in pristine condition, then it can work and look great. Hard to tell from the photos, but it looks like your cabinets are in good condition, but the finish could use refreshing. I think if the cabinets were painted, it might freshen them up so that they could work with new granite counters, but left as they are, I think the shiny, new granite will make an old, worn finish stand out more. I'd paint them a cream shade, add hardware and then consider the granite. Or, if you like a darker finish, maybe gel stain them in a walnut or java shade.

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    From what little we can see, that looks like a perfectly good kitchen. I don't see that the cabinets need replacing or the kitchen needs gutting, what another $50,000. Aside from the color issue, what is the condition of the cabinetry and how old is it?

  • oldbat2be
    9 years ago

    Here goes. You'd like to redo the kitchen counter in granite and would like to keep costs down.

    We were quoted (New England) $5 square foot for hardwood, installed (2-3 years ago). I suggest you continue the wood floor.

    Here's the kitchen with hardwood floors, extended, and a backsplash.

    Now the new counter:

    Old counter green cabinets (I know, you didn't ask, it just struck me :)


    And my favorite - new counter, blue/gray cabinets :)

    P.S. Hollysprings=GW Royalty Listen extra carefully to her advice.

  • debrak2008
    9 years ago

    I agree with just replacing with laminate and planning for a more indepth remodel later.

  • nosoccermom
    9 years ago

    Boring as I am, I'd probably go for a plain black granite. Or maybe a lighter one like Kashmir.

    Is the planned granite the one on the Hennessy tile? Not sure it goes with the cabinets.

    Also, I'm not sure I understand: I thought you were trying to work with the existing floor tile.

  • Fori
    9 years ago

    Can you pull out a drawer and stick it on the wood floor for a photo? I don't know if they go good enough to continue the floor into the kitchen.

    Don't replace good tile with laminate. Do the granite and floor, but first figure out all the details mentioned above (as well as getting everything to match). I trust that you know whether or not your cabinets and layout are good enough!

  • Jeannine Fay
    9 years ago

    I agree with extending the wood floor into the kitchen as your first step. There is just no good way to meld that pink tile with the yellow hardwood. Adding a complicated granite into the mix will not help and will likely only make things worse.

    On the other hand you can not go wrong with extending the hardwood and it will make all your other choices down the road so much easier because it's a neutral that you don't have to worry about matching to.

    I also agree that if you really want to be rid of that tile counter ASAP you go with a solid color laminate. It will look and feel like a huge upgrade over the tile and will be a good placeholder for when you can upgrade both counter and cabinets down the road.

  • ci_lantro
    9 years ago

    On my computer, your existing tile works okay with your cabinets. What isn't working is the yellow hardwood. Maybe think about refinishing or replacing the wood floors instead...esp. if you don't love the color of the wood. I'm not a fan of wood floors in the kitchen...(sloppy cook & a sloppy Labrador retriever who leaves a trail of water & drool after every trip to the water bucket.)

    Anyway, after resolving the big problem--the clashing floors, I would replace the tile counters with laminate and install some pulls on the cabinet doors & drawers.

    Would not make a granite investment on those cabs. I hate those (unnecessary) face frame dividers between cabinet doors. Plunking granite down on them would make me feel like I was stuck with the cabinets forever.

  • Cadyren
    9 years ago

    Some people never plan to redo cabinets. Mine are 30 years old & solid. No way to change the floor plan (other than what we did 2 years ago) & I will probably have them forever! We did the unthinkable & plopped granite on old cabinets. DH had to have it, I was Ok with anything. We did do hardwood throughout the living area and I would recommend doing that here if it is possible. My kitchen is much more functional than previously & it looks fine. I would never paint my cabinets & if I got new ones they would be the same color. Face frames don't bother me at all. Just saying that some of us would never spend $30,000-50,000 to redo a small kitchen that would be outdated anyway in a few years. Any new cabinets I could afford would be lesser quality than I have now. Contrary to popular belief on this board, new kitchens are a fantasy to many people. I would do whatever makes you happy in this space. Do I love my granite???? Ehh...., but there were not many other reasonable options & I am happy with the overall kitchen. JMHO

  • jellytoast
    9 years ago

    "Contrary to popular belief on this board, new kitchens are a fantasy to many people."

    Ain't that the truth!! When someone comes on here and asks for advice and opinions on how to spruce up their current kitchen, I generally take that to mean that they have, for whatever reason, no intention of replacing their kitchen cabinets unless they say otherwise. Just because someone wants to spruce up their current kitchen does not mean that it is temporary, or that they are saving for a full remodel down the road. Sometimes fixing up what you have is the only option, whether by choice or by necessity.

  • annaship1
    9 years ago

    "new kitchens are a fantasy to many people" -- Agreed. I live in a fairly high cost of living area, surrounded by folks who make pretty good professional wages. There are very few "new" kitchens (i.e. less than 15-20 years old) in my neighborhood, and certainly almost no GW-quality kitchens. These are houses that market for $700k+. Replacing cabinets/plumbing fixtures is a large expense and a huge hassle that not everyone wants to deal with.

    That being said -- I think that the yellow floor tones and beigey/pinkish cabinetry clash. If you are going to keep both of them, I think you should go in a totally different direction with the countertop/tile. I don't think that adding more warm colors, like you have in your counter and tile samples, will work. I like the slate/grey/blue in the above photoshopped photos. Maybe bring home a sample of a granite and floor tile in that color family to see how it looks. I am also a fan of bringing the wood all the way through the kitchen. It really will make your space look larger and more cohesive.

  • coll_123
    9 years ago

    "new kitchens are a fantasy to many people" - OMG, Amen. I havent been hanging out on the non garden side of this board all that long, but was starting to wonder if I had stumbled into some alien, parallel universe..I've seen people here "update" kitchens that look like they are less than ten years old...maybe not even that.. Hey, if you have the money to do that- congrats. I know that I will never have one of the beautiful dream kitchens I see on here so often, unless I win the lottery- which I don't even play, because it seems like a waste of money, lol. So people like me look for ways to make what we have look nicer or work within the means we do have. It's tough not to get a major inferiority complex from this place sometimes.

    FWIW, I like the idea of extending the wood floor and simply painting the cabinets. Mine were the same color and basic style and I am very happy how they look painted.

  • Bunny
    9 years ago

    I agree with those that say to continue the wood into the kitchen. Regardless of what you do with your counters and do/don't do with your cabinets, it will expand the space and make everything more cohesive and intentional.

    I know some aren't in favor of spending money on cosmetic updates to existing cabinets, e.g., painting, or putting new counters on old cabinets. It was all I could afford to do with mine. Despite being builder's grade oak cabinets that are now 23 years old, they are still in good shape. I see no reason to think they won't last until they carry me out feet first. New doors + paint transformed them. I'm not saying you should do that now, since you say you're not planning to change them. But I do think you can redo the floor and counter *and* keep your existing cabinets. No rule says you have to change the entire kitchen.

    Just curious: What is that long thing next to the toe kick?

  • ci_lantro
    9 years ago

    OP says that she is not planning to change her cabinet color.

    The existing kitchen floor color works with the cabinets.

    Again, the offender is the yellow hardwood. Extending more yellow hardwood isn't a solution. That is, if matching hardwood can even be had.

    Most cost affective solution as I see it is to refinish the wood floors, staining them a light neutral brownish color.

    If the floors are an engineered product, they might not be refinishable.

    Working with the kitchen floor color is the wrong approach, given that she isn't planning to change the cab color.

    Another alternative would be to extend the kitchen tile into the family room. Most likely, the chance of matching that tile is less than Zero.

  • oldbat2be
    9 years ago

    Thanks cstr, I still like that blue combo. Works with existing appliances.

    The hardwood floor may run through the rest of the house, and the OP (Originating Party) was showing us tile samples, so I think the kitchen floor is what she's considering redoing. Speaking of the OP, did we scare her off?!

    Fayewolf-if you're willing to post another picture which shows both the kitchen and adjacent rooms, and/or give us feedback on what's been posted, we'll keep tossing out ideas!

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    Oh, I'm sure she wants to rush back with photos of the rest of the house for us to demo, lol!

  • User
    9 years ago

    Fayewolf,
    You want to keep costs down,
    Your kitchen floor that is down now, DOES go well with your choice of granite.
    I just answered your original question.
    It looks good together.
    So, if you love that granite color, go right ahead and have it installed.
    In the future, if you still don't like the color of your family room wood floor not matching the color of your cabinets, you could always stain your family room floor. Then you won't have to do anything to your kitchen.
    Or, you could try your best to match the color from your family room and install wood floors in your kitchen that match.
    Staining is alot of work, but certainly not impossible, and what ever you do, don't mess with the tile in the kitchen until you have alot of money to redo the room.
    If they are real tiles, I hope they tiled the room before they installed the cabinets, and the cabinets are resting on top of the tile floor.
    But scraping those tiles up, removing the bottom cabinets and applicances, to install a new wood floor to match the family room is going to cost some money.
    So get your granite that matches your current floor.
    It'll look beautiful, and it'll feel like a new kitchen.
    Personally, I hate tiled counters, I would replace them too.

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    That blonde floor doesn't look like a wood that will take a darker stain well. The newer aluminum oxide finishes also do not come off readily. I would be very cautious counting on refinishing the floor color as a solution.

  • ci_lantro
    9 years ago

    That blonde floor doesn't look like a wood that will take a darker stain well.

    With old school stains, that is true. But they can be dyed...Trans Tint is one of the brands of dyes that are commonly used.

    A traditional oil-based stain would probably make a huge blotchy mess of OP's floor.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Sanding floors w/ Alum Oxide Finish

Sponsored
Virginia Kitchen & Bath
Average rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars150 Reviews
Virginia's Award Winning One Stop Kitchen & Bath Remodeling Resource