Hello!

I am in the process of buying a home that was built in 1990, and I love a lot about it, but I am just not wild about the 90's style cabinetry in the kitchen. I think the color of the cabinets is alright, but I just do not like the decorative groove in the doors.

A whole kitchen remodel is out of the question financially and will be for a long time, and I'd like to try to update the cabinets relatively inexpensively since there are few other expensive and more pressing projects in the house that will require the use of our funds up front.

One of the problems I see I'm going to have is that the cabinets doors are not solid wood. They are either a wood or laminate veneer over a particle board core, so I am guessing that this will limit the types of alterations I can do with them???

My husband isn't wild about painted cabinets, but he may be pursuaded if the color combinations weren't too out there (he's a pretty reserved guy)..but he is VERY against white cabinets.

I am not afraid to get in there and get my hands dirty and put a bunch of elbow grease into updating the kitchen. I just don't think my budget will allow for thousands of dollars worth of updates.

Any suggestions you have would be appreciated!

Our kitchen table is farmhouse style (blondeish wood top and white legs), so any suggestions you have about how to tie that into an updating job, let me know!


Thanks!

 

Just so you know, no cabinets are mads out of solid wood with the exceptions of the doors, drawer fronts and face frames. They will be made out of particle board, MDF, or plywood with a veneer over it. Yours do appear to have veneer panels for the doors as well, which I agree, are not that nice. If the boxes of the cabinets are in good shape you might want to look at just getting door and drawer fronts.

Painting is an option but it is tough to get a professional looking job IMO.

 

Painting would be about my last resort. I agree with Tolyn, I would look at replacing the doors first.

 

I prefer a wood finish rather than paint but if you decide to go that route, the right prep and correct coatings is key - http://www.doityourself.com/forum/pa...ml#post1114013

 

Nice reference, Mark - I stuck that thread for easier future reference.

 

If you want to keep the look of wood while changing the style and upgrading the quality of the doors. many companies, including big orange, do what's known as kitchen cabinet refacing. This typically means installing overlay material on the face frames, and replacing the doors and drawer fronts. The crew at TOH (This Old House) have also written a DIY guide for doing this, if you're really itching This could let you match the cabinets to your table, if you wanted to do that, for example.

 

I'm using Bondura brand counter top mat set, purchased at Lowes, to cover my 1960s laminate counters with black granite tile. If you're looking to change the look of the green counters without too much cash or man power check out Bondura countertop matset.

perhaps a nice light creamy/honey toned stone on the counter, update the light fixture and new 12x12 floor tile would give it a fresh feel without having to change the cabinets.

 

I think wood cabinets can look good if they're just flat paneled doors with decorative flourishes.