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Homafez Designs Changing the colour of your kitchen cabinet will make the kitchen look almost brand new. Also change the cabinet door handles to sleek and contemporary ones,above all declutter the kitchen: this will give you and the kitchen a breath of fresh air. Hope these ideas help? Goodluck!

orangecamera As budget allows:

Paint the brown part of your cabinets to match the cabinet doors, or at least a color that's not such a big contrast.

Replace the overhead light with something updated. (You will probably have to paint the ceiling, so budget for that)

Roman shade for the window. If you see the window from another room, decide if you feel it needs to match/coordinate.

modernhome2000 Thank you both for your suggestions. Im posting two inspiration photos; the challenge is to translate the concepts into a small space for around $2,000. Anyone have suggestions for flooring material/color? Tiling? Counter top? My priority is to update the oh-so-dated 1980s cabinets. (I like the suggestion for the Roman window treatments; but won't the space above the window look bare? Add valence, more cabinets, other?). All suggestions welcomed and taken seriously. Thanks everyone! :)

orangecamera There *is* a lot of blank space above your windows. You could put a shelf there. But I think it would look nice to have roman shades in a great pattern to go with your style, and hang them very high (possibly with a cornice). It will give the illusion that your windows are taller (just don't pull them up past the top of the window).

AFC inc You can repaint the kitchen . Paint should be oil an enamel only. Latex enamel will looks good but not for long.
You can change new drawer boxes and drawers guides , as well as install the door knobs.
These could be relatively inexpensive but will greatly improve the general look and future durability .
You may consider new counter top ( manufacture prefabricated granite slab can make sense )
New back splash . Generally tiles , natural stone or slate.
The above make sense if your kitchen structurally strong only.
If the kitchen made out of low quality MDF or particle board and structurally not durable in that situation probably can be cheaper to replace for new one .
Because it is small kitchen sometimes it could be cheaper to install new cabinets than try to '
restore existing one . I mean quality restoration .
Flooring . Solid Manufacture finished HW or quality engineered may be choice .
There are big selection of different materials.
The quality of engineered floors mostly depended from wore layer ( how thick upper layer of hardwood ) . The brand name in most situation not such important for long term durability but it will cost you extra money.

modernhome2000 thank you all for your comments. if i remove the box lighting as suggested, what can you suggest as a more modern option?? I'm at a loss here. Sample photos might help. (Ill certainly declutter, consider granite counters, wood floor, cornice.) Ill paint oak trim on cabinets white; and replace entire cabinets if it doesn't turn out good. Any other suggestions are welcomed.

M Designs how tall are your ceilings ?

modernhome2000 I believe the ceilings are 8' in height.

ShamikoDesign Just make your kitchen all white. Change your cabinet doors to those colonial style surface at Home Depot. Cheap n good! Add splashes of Color later.

Kris I would make the window wall a focal wall, and use a great color on the wall, maybe a green or aqua. I would also paint the cabinets, as long as they are worth salvaging. I painted my dark brown wood cabinets (not quality wood BTW) a 2 tone, with the frame of the cabinets a light cocoa and the doors a milk white. They were fabulous. I would also put cute pulls on the doors.
As for the window, a roman shade would be great for privacy, as well as a pop of color. The floors maybe a good idea to look into the vinyl tiles that you can grout. We put these in our new bathroom and you can't tell the difference between them and real tile. They were easy to put in and you can put them over the existing flooring too. AND very affordable. Check them out to see if it is what you would like. Otherwise maybe some great wood from Lumber Liquidators, they have fabulous stuff for great prices.
The lighting is another issue. Depending on what you find underneath the current lighting, I would look for a great mini chandelier, or a drum light. Neither should hang too low, but they would both look great.
Good luck w/your project. Post after pictures if you get them.

Kelly I believe it will be hard to paint those cabinets yourself, what about getting new doors? Naked Kitchen Cabinet doors- you can get doors for under $25 with the hinges. They are made to be painted and they come in a week. They make any size. A floating cork floor would be gorgeous. Frame out the kitchen window with molding. And a new ceiling light.

modernhome2000 Thanks for the Naked Door referral. I hadn't thought of cork; appreciate everyone's tips--helps me to think outside the box!

modernhome2000 I agree with framing the window in moulding. Will do!

Harrut Hi
I guess it depends on your meaning of small budget . Mine might be a pot of paint, whereas granite work top, tiles, new lighting a whole lot more....from your "ideal" photos I'd guess the wood trim on your cabinets are possibly jarring to your eye so I'd be inclined to paint those and go for the re-framing of the room features as you have suggested.... Cornicing,wood flooring,and white tiles

Harrut PS! Do you need all the tall wall cabinets? They seem to be drowning the room a bit..

modernhome2000 I don't need the tall cabinets and you're right about them not balancing the room. Good eye! (my small budget is $2,000.)

ShamikoDesign Then you can dress your window according to the style of your new cabinets doors.

John Seiffert For that budget I would call out to kitchen contractors or GC's and have them call you when they upgrade their clients kitchen s. They could be free. The contractors save on dump fees and time.