The main living space is an open concept with cathedral ceiling - an L
shaped kitchen with a curved island looking over into the living room
with the dining room off to the right. The north end of the room is
almost all windows with another large window on the east leading into
the L shaped kitchen. So there is really only one wall for our t.v and
wood stove (the west wall).
Sounds beautiful! I hope you've set aside a good budget for window coverings!..
My starting point would be my kitchen cabinets - they're a natural oak
color, not my first choice but since we're trying to do this on a
budget and they were on sale...
You can always paint them down the road if you don't like them.
We've installed in-floor heating, so I need to decide on a color for
the ceramic tiles. I have a black couch and 2 matching chairs with
gold accents on the cushions (sewn into the chairs). I really like
contemporary, modern design. I've been thinking of a dark floor, maybe
a matte black (shiny would be nice but I think it would be difficult to
keep clean with 2 cats and a baby), it would go into the entry and down
the hall as well.
I'm hesitant to go with really dark floors. I've seen them, and I think they're very pretty; but I also think that they may look dated down the road. What if you went with a medium or more neutral tone, but put down dark area carpets? Also, it's been my experience that the darker the colour, the more dirt it shows. Shiny floors can be hard to keep looking clean too... same with counters.
One piece of advise that I got about tile that I think is very useful is to get as dark of a grout as you can that still blends with the tile. Grout will get dirty over time. If it starts off dark, the change will be less obvious. Also - and this is a personal preference - don't use contrasting grout. The tiles are supposed to be the focus, not the grout.
Good luck!