Cabinet painting & refinishing
If your cabinets are solid but the color or finish feels dated, you may not need new ones. We can paint them a new color or restain the wood, and you keep your counters and layout.
Is your kitchen a good fit?
- Cabinet boxes and doors are solid wood or wood veneer and structurally sound.
- You like the layout but not the color or the dated oak tone.
- You want to keep visible wood grain (restain) or switch to a solid color (paint).
- Built-ins, vanities or display cases need to match.
Oak cabinet restain
A full wall of oak pantry cabinets and glass display cases restained from a light honey tone to a deep brown, keeping the wood grain visible.
What’s included
Your written estimate lists exactly what we’ll do, so you know what you’re paying for.
Typically included
- Kitchen cabinet doors, drawer fronts and visible box faces
- Built-in display cases and pantry cabinets
- Bathroom vanities and other built-ins
- Restaining to a new wood tone or painting a solid color
Good to know
- Peeling thermofoil or laminate doors don’t hold paint well. We’ll tell you at the estimate if yours are like that.
- Cabinet replacement, new boxes and layout changes are not part of this service.
- Interiors of cabinets are not finished unless agreed in the estimate.
How your project will go
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Assess the cabinets
We check the material, the existing finish and any damage, and confirm paint or stain, color and sheen.
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Empty and protect the kitchen
You empty the cabinets being finished. Counters, appliances, floors, windows and lights are covered and the work area is sealed off.
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Doors and boxes
Your estimate says how the doors, drawer fronts and boxes will be handled and where they’ll be finished.
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Clean and degrease
Kitchen cabinets carry grease that stops new finishes bonding; every surface is cleaned first.
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Sand and prepare
Surfaces are sanded and repaired so the new coating has something to grip.
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Apply the finish
Stain and topcoat, or primer and paint, applied in thin even coats with drying time between.
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Reassemble and walk through
Hardware goes back on, protection comes down, and we walk the kitchen with you.
Choosing the right finish for your cabinets
Each one makes sense for a different kitchen. We’ll tell you at the estimate which fits yours.
Restain
Keeps the grain visible and changes the tone, usually darker. The oak kitchen above went from honey to deep brown.
Paint
A solid color that hides the grain entirely. Best on smooth, sound doors; oak’s open grain will still show texture unless it’s filled.
Replace
The right call when boxes are damaged, doors are peeling thermofoil, or the layout has to change. We’ll say so if that’s what we see.
Your kitchen during the project
- Expect limited use of the kitchen while surfaces are prepared, coated and drying. Plan simple meals.
- Empty the cabinets being finished before we arrive.
- Finishes are dry to the touch well before they’re fully cured. For the first few weeks, close doors gently and avoid sticking bumpers or shelf liner to fresh surfaces; we’ll give you the cure guidance for the product used.
Products and finishes
- Cabinet finishes need to be harder than wall paint; the specific stain, primer and topcoat are listed on your estimate.
- Choosing new hardware? Tell us before work starts, because new hole positions need to be filled or drilled before the finish goes on.
What affects your price
Every house is different, so we price each job after seeing it. This is what we look at when we write your estimate.
- Number of pieces
- Most of the labor is in the number of doors, drawer fronts and panels.
- Glass and detail
- Glass display doors, raised panels and crown moulding take more time.
- Condition
- Grease build-up, worn edges and damage need extra preparation.
- Paint vs stain
- Different products and steps; color changes from dark to light are the hardest.
- Extras
- Interiors, vanities, built-ins and hardware changes.
Payment: 30% deposit when you accept the estimate; balance due after the final walkthrough.
At the end: Final walkthrough; anything not right is corrected at no extra cost.
Questions homeowners ask
Is painting cheaper than replacing cabinets?
Usually, if the boxes are sound. You keep the cabinets, counters and layout and change only the finish. We don’t publish price ranges because the number of doors and their condition vary so much; the estimate is free.
Can oak cabinets be painted?
Yes, though oak has an open grain that shows through paint unless it’s filled. If you like the wood, restaining darker, like the kitchen on this page, is another option.
How long until I can use my kitchen normally?
You can use the kitchen carefully once the finish is dry, but cabinet coatings take longer to cure fully. We’ll give you specific timing and care instructions for the product we use.
Do you paint bathroom vanities and built-ins too?
Yes. Vanities, built-in shelving and display cases can be included in the same estimate so everything matches.