I agree with much of what musicprnt says, but we find with the delay button on the dishwasher we don’t care if it’s loud. We do one load a day at about 2 am. You also don’t have to buy everything new. Even though I completely gutted and added on to my kitchen we reinstalled the dishwasher and kept the fridge. I don’t love the fridge, but it was an easy way to save $2000. I’ll replace it eventually. I did splurge for a six burner professional style stove and fan and I love cooking on it.
It’s not hard these days to find a good DW, that isn’t loud, and isn’t expensive. Look for stainless interiors
I have purchased 3 DW’s in the last 12 months…all with stainless interiors, all quiet, none expensive.
Yikes…I am SO yesterday with my glass top! We built in 2000 and emotionally I have trouble seeing how things are becoming outdated, but intellectually I know the time is coming!
I have a very large kitchen with custom cherry cabinets so we are thinking about having them painted a warm shade of white and possibly changing the door style. Also I would like the drawers changed to self closers. I can’t wrap my arms around replacing the granite - on the countertops maybe, but the island is a solid 2" thick 7 1/2 X 6 foot dark slab.
I agree with those above who say go for the 42 inch uppers. The top shelves are like a gift.
I must be the only one on the planet who likes a glass top stove. We don’t have natural gas around here and we also don’t have propane for anything else. The flat top sure beats coils!
I’m also the only one on the planet who doesn’t like stainless steel appliances. I have white. I like them…and really, this house is for me. The next owner can get stainless and gas.
If glass tops are out- what electric stove is in? Can’t do gas- too expensive to get the line to our street. No to needing to buy all new pots and pans. Reality is a standard 30" freestanding electric stove. Glass tops are much improved over when they first came out.
More importantly- who cares what styles are in fashion!!! It doesn’t matter what the rest of the world likes, it matters what you like. The exception being able to get replacement parts and ignoring significantly improved designs. It does not matter what the other 90% likes- you have to live with your kitchen. Think practical first then you will love it.
Consider the budget for appliances. Is it worth the extra $$ to get brand X? Kitchen Aid makes a reasonably quiet dishwasher- Bosch has tines that don’t work well for our many soup sized bowls. Take some dishes with you and see how things would fit. Agree with stainless interior. There is a balance between quietness and price.
Think of your getting older lifestyle. Having the third dishwasher rack means no bending down every time we want to put in dirty silverware that won’t get washed for a few days.
Home Depot now has Kraftmaid as their top of the line cabinet brand- and it is sold other places as well.
Soft/self closing cupboards and drawers seem pretty standard now. Pay attention to quality of roll out shelves.
Flooring depends on where you live. In Florida cool tile floors can work. We avoided wood because our neighbors’ toilet fill line leaked while they were gone and ruined theirs. And- how slippery is the wood (even dry)?
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If glass tops are out- what electric stove is in? Can’t do gas- too expensive to get the line to our street. No to needing to buy all new pots and pans. Reality is a standard 30" freestanding electric stove. Glass tops are much improved over when they first came out.
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I agree.
Yes, coils are OUT! But for some properties, only an electric glass-top stove can really work. I bought a lovely Samsung electric stove in March for a property. I’m kind of coveting it now for myself, even though I prefer gas.
“More importantly- who cares what styles are in fashion!!! It doesn’t matter what the rest of the world likes, it matters what you like. The exception being able to get replacement parts and ignoring significantly improved designs. It does not matter what the other 90% likes- you have to live with your kitchen. Think practical first then you will love it.”
I agree with the above sentiment UNLESS you have thoughts of moving in the next 5 or so years- kitchens are the first thing that women look at, and can make or break a sale.
Appliances now have a lifespan of about seven years. I figure by the time mine are ready to be replaced, I’ll be ready to move on.
For the record…I also like my oak cabinets.
I like oak as well- had it in our old house. Used similar finish on maple here, partly for a change- same honey colors… Our contemporary wood pieces go well with the family room beams original to this house. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for oak to be “in” again. Someone I knew up north told me her kitchen floors were made from oak trees removed from the lot when the house was built.
“I’m also the only one on the planet who doesn’t like stainless steel appliances. I have white. I like them…”
I love white appliances. Could not find a white replacement for the dead oven… 
Now have a gloomy hunk of steel in the kitchen. Sad…
“What style electric cooktop is “in”?” - “Elementary, my dear Watson, induction cooktops are still the rage!”
@kajon are you looking to update your kitchen for your own pleasure, or for selling the home?
Custom Cherry - are they nicely finished? Is the hardware outdated? What don’t you like - or are you just wanting a new/different look?
We have custom cherry but the cabinet makers applied the stain too heavily so we don’t see the nice wood look that we have with our custom kitchen furniture that was done correctly in my dad’s OOS cabinet shop. Still contemplating if a purchaser would appreciate refinished, or not really notice? Will update counter-tops.
A neighbor’s home with a lot of cabinetry - has oak cabinets but they look dated in the photos. Having trouble selling the house it seems - maybe some of the rest of the house is a drawback.
We have wood floor in our kitchen and love it. However if water pressure is not regulated, or have a malfunctioning dishwasher. Have had people’s water line to refrigerator be a problem.
Living up North, cherry cabinets are still quite in, often paired with soapstone. In FL, I would have been happy with a white kitchen, but went with a maple, as it fits my house.
I just came back from a friendS new condo on ocean. She did a white kitchen with marble countertops. Everyone told her not to,use marble, but she wanted this piece. It’s white with a bluish gray lines , the prettiest marble I’ve ever seen. I would have been more prudent and used soapstone. Her walls are blue/green. It all has a light, be achy feel
@SOSconcern - Our potential kitchen redo started because we need to replace the floor tile and the cabs are built over the tile. H wants to stay here another 10 years and feels the white would “modernize” the look of our house. The current cabs are a beautiful solid wood natural cherry and we swapped out the hardware a few years ago and went with the European bars. We have 3 door fronts that need refinishing. It is a great kitchen, but I think he is looking for a WOW kitchen.
I know the trend is to have a 2 different surfaces on countertops and island…not sure what I think about that concept.
I like my butcher block island table and soapstone counters. I’m a fan of white kitchens and had one before they were in. If you like the cherry, I’d keep it, it will be in again sooner or later!
I like stainless steel appliances, but right now only my new stove is not white.
White kitchens are my strong preference, not a contemporary white look, but a vintage/classic look. It has to fit the house, of course. My house is over 100 years old, and if I ever get to redo the kitchen I will go for painted cabinets, probably in a slight off-white.
I love soapstone, but I think butcher block is too impractical for me, although it looks nice. I would also worry about marble. I am tough on counters. 
At the moment I have oak or maple cabinets, I’m not sure which. The stain has a yellowish cast that I really don’t like. In general, I find most dark wood kitchens gloomy, although there is no doubt that some cherry cabinets are very attractive in and of themselves, and can see why people go for them, especially in situations where the kitchen is open to the rest of the house and they want a furnished look, versus a working kitchen look, which is what I want. I would make an exception for Arts&Crafts style houses, where dark-stained oak lightened with glass fronted cabinets and rich colors can look great.
I would love to have a real butler’s pantry between the kitchen and the dining room, but our configuration wouldn’t allow it.
One thing that I really don’t care about is under-cabinet garbage storage. I’d rather have a good-looking can and use the space for something else.
Even with the cabinets over the flooring - we had a water flooding in our home (water heater blew out on main level) and stopped just short of the built in cabinets. We did have wood floor to start. The shoe mold covers the match up so cabinets were not torn out. There may be a height difference or too difficult to tear out the floor tile? It depends I guess on particulars.
I love beautiful wood and only would consider painting if the wood just doesn’t look good.
SOSC, I think I would try to remove all the stain on your cherry cabinets. The natural wood is not so dark and is lovely, IMHO.
One thing we love about our kitchen is that we have a range hood with an external vent motor (it hangs on the side of the house). It is a 1500 CFM unit, and it helps dissipate the heat from the stove, plus if you accidentally burn something, or want to get a smell out of the house, works great, and with the motor outside it is a lot quieter. The units aren’t cheap (Broan makes decent ones, you don’t need to pay vent-a-hood prices) but we found it really worth it for a lot of reasons.
The kitchen I did last year was cherry, but not the traditional red cherry stain look. It definitely has more of a brown color…the finish was called Autumn Blush (Kraftmaid). I’m not sure anyone would guess cherry except for maybe the grain?
Oh if you have butcher block you have to be willing to accept it’s not going to be pristine. I like my kitchen to look like it’s being used. It only took me a few days to get rings from the balsamic vinegar bottles in my butcher block! Theoretically you can sand most marks out, but why bother?