So you would like to refinish your kitchen cabinets -- now what?

In our last few blog posts, we talked about the benefits in terms of cost and time of refinishing existing kitchen cabinets as compared to refacing or replacing.

So what type of finish? Well basically you have to first decide whether you'd like to restain, paint, or put a faux finish on them.

If you still have a crush for the wood grain showing through, then you should restain. First you have to strip off the old finish and stain. This will require a fair bit of mess and labor to strip and sand back to bare wood. Then pick a new stain color. Lots of choice there these days. Then top coat with a sealer.

If you are tired of wood grain or if the cabinets just look shabby, painting is a way to go. There are a lot of advantages to painting. 

• You have tons of color choices which allow you to use colors that complement the rest of the space. 
• You also have sheen options from soft matte or satin or semi to high gloss depending on use and preference. 
• Prep work is considerably less labor intensive. Usually you just need a light sanding followed by a very good primer to bond with the existing surface well. (This is important in terms of long term durability, not chipping etc.) 

Then you just need a couple of coats in a high quality enamel such as Cabinet Kote for a satin finish or Benjamin Moore's Advance for a glossier look. Typically these will be sprayed on finishes which if done right should look terrific. There are still many purists who still go for using lacquer. We purposely no longer use lacquer or versions as an option,preferring low VOC, healthier greener solutions that provide hard durable finishes.

 

Benjamin Moore Kendall Charcoal and Simple White

Faux finishes on cabinets are a specialty item.  A good decorative artisan can come up with a custom look using stencils, glazes, metallics,crackle, etc. to create a unique look. The prep work would be about the same as painting The key to faux finising is ensuring durability.  If the materials used for the finish itself are not durable, you can spray a couple of clear coats over the finish. This will help ensure that the look holds up under the hard use kitchen cabinets get. 

Most artisans will have samples of your different options. Once you decide on which way to go, you should have a good sized sample (such as a cabinet door) made up to give you a good idea of the final look. Then take it for a test drive by putting it in your kitchen for a day or two to check out how it looks at different times of the day, under different lighting. This way you'll know what to expect for a final look. Same should be done for a paint or stain finish.

Belgian Pearls design