kitchen design advice!

[tankerdale]

Feeling a bit flummoxed.

We're halfway through a kitchen extension, adding on about the same again to the existing kitchen to make a kitchen diner. The final room will be about 6m by 8m. We're keeping our existing kitchen which is solid wood with blacky grey granite top (inherited if) the units are quite a traditional style. We're having a new island in the middle 1.6m square. It was going to be granite too to match but now is going to be wood worktop - natural oak because we've been offered an ex display one at a really good price. Questions in my mind I can't work out:

• we were going to have off white painted kitchen units but island in a strongish grey blue. But now the worktop island is different - if it's a different colour too will it look too incongruous?

• we like karndean for the flooring throughout and were going to go for wood effect. But now will it be too much wood with the wooden worktop on the island? If we go for it do we try and match the floor to the tone of the island or go contrasting?

We could do karndean stone effect but I just don't love it as much.

Any design pearls of wisdom appreciated!

[wowfudge]

You could paint the base units - or even a section of them depending on the layout - the same colour as the island to tie everything in. A mid to dark grey tile Karndean would look good with everything or, as you prefer the wood, gets lots of samples and try them in situ, preferably with a sizeable chunk of wood worktop so you can see what does and doesn't work. I don't think I'd try to match wood worktop to floor. What about something a bit darker on the floor?

[tankerdale]

Thanks for your thoughts. Yes was thinking we could paint more of the units or a bit of wall behind them to tie in with the island but then I think we'd need to go for a lighter shade than we were planning as the blue we had in mind (fired earth bamiyan blue or similar) would be too strong for that.

[downwardfacingdog]

I wouldn't do different colours as well as different tops on the island as I think will look too busy. I think you can go quite bold on the units esp if you have light walls. Darker colour is more practical too. Re the floor you need a really good match or a total contrast. A bit off will not look good.

[bouncydog]

We've just installed a solid maple kitchen with black star galaxy worktops. All of the wood in our house is hardwood so we went for Amtico signature in washed teak. Not sure if Karndean have something similar, but there are loads of different shades in the floor so it ties all of the other types of wood together without matching any of it. It looks fantastic.