White has been very popular around here the last couple of years and is a timeless choice if that's what you are looking for. The right color cream could look nice too though with your counter tops if you are looking for something a little different. I would suggest that you paint a couple of samples to see what you like best. It depends a lot on the lighting as well.

Since your countertop has a yellowish cream in it, I'd go with a soft cream to tie the kitchen together.

Be sure and have your cabinets professionally painted as doing it yourself isn't nearly as easy as HGTV makes it appear.

I hate to see beautiful wood painted, but these are way too dark. I'd go with a warm cream color to tie in with the other surfaces.

I'm not sure how old your cabinets are, and if they carry a warranty. But once you paint and change the color, understand you'll void your manufacturer's warranty. Just a thing to think about before tackling the big job.

Personally I think if you go white or cream on the cabinets it will be really monochromatic. Your granite, floors, walls etc will all be in one hue. Which would then lead me to either getting new counter tops or a different backsplash. I think it's actually the lighting that needs work. Maybe add under cabinet lighting, and better high hats. And get new hardware that contrasts off the dark cabinets. Like a brushed nickel to match your appliances and faucet.

You could change up the cabinets a little without painting. Remove the two over the stove and replace with a pretty stove hood - a T stainless if you like modern, or a white / cherry combination wood hood for a more traditional look. You could replace the panel in some of the cabinets with glass - plain, frosted or bubbled. That will reduce the amount of dark wood. Since you have a lot of cabinets, you could even remove a few and replace with some decorative shelves - this might require repair work on the wall behind the cabinet. You could just paint the island white.

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Those who have mentioned lighting have a good point. More and brighter lighting would brighten the whole room, bring out the beauty of the wood (as the photo shows in the cabinet over the ovens) and play down the stark contrast between the cabinets and the rest of your room. Then if needed, maybe replace the range hood cabinet with something lighter.

Thank you for choosing our dance room to add to your idea book!

Before I painted those cabinets, I'd consider replacing the granite with one that's lighter, or maybe a quartz. Then, if you wanted, you could eliminate the narrow bar. I know that doesn't answer your query.

If painting, I'd definitely make sure the color worked well with the existing granite in all lighting conditions.

Painting finished cabinets can be tricky, and your cabinets are beautiful as is. I'd suggest swapping a few of the doors into glass fronts and add some shiny cabinet pulls. I think that will lighten the kitchen substantially without costing a lot of money. Adding a lighter backsplash would make a big difference as well. Here's a rough of what they'd look like:

I would go with the suggestions above to add some glass to the cabinets and shiny cabinet pulls as in ebonshire's picture. Looks great.

It may be too costly, but I think I'd keep the cherry and change the granite to a lighter cooler color. Obviously, I'm not very good at sticking to reasonable budget. :-)

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