Knowing What Cabinet Finish is Right for You

I have worked with many clients over the years who have really struggled in selecting the finish for their kitchen cabinets.   This can often be a great source of stress for the homeowners.  Should the cabinets be stained wood?  Or painted?  Or a combination?

In my experience many homeowners know right away that they want a cherry kitchen, or a white kitchen.  Then there are others who are really fighting with themselves to make the right choice.  Men frequently prefer stained wood on the cabinets, and yet many women prefer a painted cabinet, white or  cream, with or without a glaze.

I often find that homeowners have a "dream kitchen" that they have had in mind for many years, and if you ask them what their initial gut response is to finish selection, they know instantly.  Homeowners can get into trouble if they over-think their initial concept.  Trying to select something that is more current, or different is not a great idea on cabinets.  When you remodel your kitchen you want it to last for many years.  So going with a trend is not a great plan, unless that trend is what you would have selected in the first place!  My rule of thumb is that if you have liked a particular look for the past five to ten years, you will probably still like it for another ten years.

I once had a client select a taupe color paint for her kitchen.  The cabinets were actually being painted when she changed her mind and experienced some panic over making the wrong choice.  I called the Amish cabinet makers and had them pull her kitchen cabinets out of production and let them sit while she evaluated her selection.  In this case she changed the cabinets to white, which is what she had intended to select in the first place.  She is now very happy with the kitchen.

It is very common to mix finishes within a kitchen.  Often the perimeter will be painted with a wood stained island.  This can often meet the needs of both the stained wood lovers and the painted cabinet lovers.  It can also be done in reverse with stained perimeter and painted island.  I think the practice of mixing finishes in a kitchen will be here for many years.  When it is done tastefully, it can be a timeless look.  I also think that furniture like pieces in a kitchen are here to stay.

In making finish selection I try to help my clients make selections they can live with long term.  Classic finishes that will look just as good in fifteen years as they look today.