Kitchen Help! {THAT MEANS YOU}

THIS is my kitchen. It needs help. Mind you, a couple things have changed since this picture was taken (a couple years ago). However, this gives you the general idea of what we're working with.
At this point, you might already know that Chad and I tiled the kitchen backsplash (full details on that later) and have been working on a few other DIY home improvement projects before putting our house back on the market. So... add a new sink, glass tile backsplash, and black rolldown shades to the photos above and you pretty much have our current kitchen.

Next up on the "do-it(mostly)-yourself" "on-a-dime" kitchen remodel are the following projects:
1. Paint the ceiling/walls.
2. Schedule NW Specialty Paint to come in and paint the cupboards.
3. New kitchen hardware (knobs/pulls/hinges).
4. Window coverings.
5. New flooring.
6. New moulding.

Trust me, I would love to splurge and get myself a fancy new kitchen complete with a new stove, fridge, and even a dishwasher (which upon careful inspection, we do NOT have) - but I cannot build my dream house if I spend all my money on this kitchen! Priorities people! We are hoping to make this kitchen appealing to the masses - neutral enough that anyone can walk in and envision it as their own kitchen.

Now, I know you all have an opinion, and I want to hear it! There are a couple things already set in stone (literally - the tile), but I have to make a couple decisions in the near future and would love some input. See below - the tile backsplash along with some fabric samples and flooring samples. You can also see our kitchen countertops (which we are not replacing at this point) and our red Kitchen Aid mixer :) The tile, flooring, and countertops are all decided so if you don't like them - too bad. We have a lot of red accessories in the kitchen, including our mixer, toaster, plates, etc. so I want our color scheme to coordinate with the red.
Another with the tile and flooring samples...
See the numbers? 1-5. Take your pick. I am leaning toward one of the designs, but I could be swayed.

What am I looking for from you? Tell me this...

1. Which fabric choice speaks to you? Which would you go with based on the flooring, tile, countertop selections? I do not think my window coverings are going to be too elaborate - probably just a ruffle valence covering since we have black shades.

2. What color would you paint the walls/ceiling? I am kind of wanting to do something not-so-neutral here, I think paint is an easy change and with everything else being neutral, a pop of color could be a nice touch. However, I can be convinced otherwise.

3. What color would you paint the cabinets? This - I do want this to be neutral. Painting/refinishing a whole kitchen of cabinets is not an easy job and it is very time consuming - which is why we are paying to have it done professionally. Based on your fabric/wall selections, what neutral would you select for the cabinets?

4. What finish/style would you go with for new cabinet hardware? Mind you, we are on a budget, so nothing crazy is going to happen, but I do live in this house and I want it to be pretty. Black, bronze, pewter, brass, nickel, chrome, iron? What do you think?

Any and all input is appreciated! If you have a specific color of paint you absolutely love, share it with me! Want to design my kitchen for me? Please do! I'd love to hear your suggestions - and if you are feeling the need to paint one of these days, let me know ;) I'll put you to work!

***Sidenote - did you know the kitchen cupboards in this house used to be PINK!? Who does that? The woman who built this house 50+ years ago loved pink. More about our once pink home here, here, and here.


Linking at Vintage Revivals FFA Challenge #3.