I think the light fixture's yellow glass shade is probably contributing to the problem, so I would take it off and get a better read on the cabinets and countertops. The next thing I would do is remove the wall paper. Where the wallpaper is in front of the window to the left of the sink, what is that, some kind of valance? Can it be removed, it is blocking sunlight. Then remove the cabinet handles and give them a good cleaning with a degreasing product. In our last house they cleaned up and got about three shades lighter. You will need to thoroughly clean before painting anyway so this will not be wasted work. I have even had to scrap layers of built up grease off with a razor blade- ick. I kind of like the green color of the Iaminate. The full splash makes it a bit intense but it is probably just a thin sheet of the laminate glued to the wall and may come down very easily. It could also be covered it like nosoccermom suggested. Two full height stainless backsplash panels can be gotten pretty cheap at HD or Lowes. I don't know your storage needs, but you could remove all the uppers on the sink wall and the backsplash, You could do a small splash behind the sink to protect from water, it could be stainless, or tile, and then do open shelves on that wall. If you do decide to paint the cabinets, think a soft grey-green would look nice. If you can remove the backsplash, I think I might go with a chocolate brown on the lowers and a light off white on the top.

One last thing, I'm of Mexican descent and we adore Mexican textiles, pottery and artisan works. I especially LOVE cobolts! thanks again!

First photo is the antique house, second house I did in lighter colors; third and maybe final house (downsize), I used white, taupes and Ikat fabrics Before all of these homes, when children were young, I loved a more formal look with oriental rugs and mahogany furniture. Then we moved to a condo in Harvard Square. There was a Crate and Barrel furniture store there and I went in that direction (will never do that again…as you say, Is1114, it wasn’t “me”.). Onward to a Maine Post and Beam, using furniture I brought from the formal house and that is where I made my mistake. What you love in one house may never look right or feel right in another. Sorry for the ramble…I just went down memory lane.

Not a perfectly good room, but I tore off a perfectly good deck from the back of my row house and replaced it with an even better paver patio. When I bought the house, the deck was a big selling point, I figured I'd spend a lot of time there, have plants around, etc. But I soon found out that unless you have something to look out over, a deck is not a good idea. The raised deck put us all on view of our close, close neighbors, and it was hot and windy out there (southern exposure) and the view was the deck railing bars and the tops of my neighbor's heads and cars . . . people thought I was crazy but I put an ad in the local paper and sold the deck to a guy who came and disassembled it for me. He took it away to use at his house. Win win. The patio proved to be a joy for us, I planted small trees and shrubs around the perimeter for shade and privacy, it was cooler, less windy, and I designed a garden specifically for viewing while out in the yard. Different strokes for different folks, and unless you're ruining something forever, why not, no harm no foul. The only people who were upset about what I did were the PO's of the house, they were the ones who had originally put the deck in. My neighbor said they came by one day when I was gone and were dumbfounded. I get it, but they moved on to greener pastures and so did I, literally.