more pics...

more pics

If the cabinets have already been refaced once, then painting them now might not work so well. The veneers applied to the face frame don't have the strongest adhesion, and you'd probably have to do an oil based sealing primer in order to avoid having them unstick themselves. If you're DIY and up for all of the WORK of painting them, that's one thing. If you don't have the skillset or just the TIME needed to do that, and would need to pay a pro, then save your money for a more extensive redo. Spending 5K on a paint job now would't be a smart investment in that kitchen. It has a more extensive redo in it's future. The only question is how far in the future?

Gel stain (my preferred brand is General Finishes) can go darker easily. It's EASY to do, too.

Remove doors and drawers to stain them, do the frames in place, masking off the walls anf floor as needed.

1 - Clean the wood well with soapy water, rinse and dry, then clean it again with mineral spirits and steel wool. Wipe them well.

2 - Spread on the stain with a soft lint-free cloth

3 - let it dry

4 - wipe on a couple of coats of General Finishes gel topcoat.

5 - Put the doors back on.

If you want to go lighter, use paint.

Here is a link that might be useful: gel stain

you cabinets look great to me.
buy new ones for your kitchen
send the old ones to me!

Thank you to all of you that replied, when someone tells me they love the cabinets.. I am like why waste my money.. we are not going to stay in the house forever want to add some life to the kitchen any help/advice would be appreciated..

Thanks
Mike

nosoccermom, do you have any pictures to show the difference btw the two cabinet transformations options? i am not sure which to do: Rustoleum's Cabinet Transformations (I have a friend who did this and is willing to help me) or General Finishes Gel Stain. thanks!

They are both still going strong, but I don't have any pictures that would show the difference. (One's a rental, and the vanity just looks black.) I used black Rustoleum and GF Java, respectively. The GF was easier to apply and less work. It probably also depends on what look you want to achieve, i.e. what color.

thanks, nosoccermom!!!! my main concern is to try to find one that doesn't look like a cheap, thick coat of paint. we were once given a desk that someone painted over with brown paint and it looks like just that, cheap brown paint (as opposed to a nice dark wood.) if i am trying to achieve a HIGH END look to upgrade our 90s oak cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms in order to sell our house for higher than average, do you have a suggestion on one versus the other? MANY MANY THANKS!!!

Sorry, but I think that the gel stained cabinet makeovers usually look like crap.

From what I can tell it generally results in a streaky mess like below

Or to cover the fact that it is streaky so many coats are needed that it might as well be brown paint.

I gel stained some furniture and it looks beautiful. However after the first coat it looked just like that awful example reese has posted up there. Took three coats plus another two or three of sealer. I applied it with white socks, a foam brush, which was recommended, gave a streaky look. Can't find a better picture but this little table was orange oak before. Surface is smoother than is looks in this photo.

Remember that gel stain IS basically translucent "paint", and not a stain. It's got a lot of pigment in it, and it sits directly on the surface without penetrating that surface. It takes several layers of buildup to a more opaque level in order to not have the unattractive streaks that show in the single coat pics. You can basically do the same thing with a deep color base paint and your choice of tints added to it. It works best on oak, or other prominent grained woods that allow the grain to show through the opaque buildup of layers. It's less successful on maple or other fine closed grained woods, as it does look more like the opaque coating that it actually is than a translucent stain.

I have a friend who used Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations and it looks awful: blotchy, streaky, dull. It transformed them all right, but not in a good way.

I freaked out after the first coat of gel stain, but two coats later it looked great. The Rustoleum really does look like paint, which is fine because it's just a black vanity now.

There was a recent kitchen reveal in the decorating forum with GF Brown Mohagany.

I had a horrible experience with a General Finish paint several years ago. Their customer service was rude, told me their product was wonderful, and it was my own fault. And then took the product off the market within a year. Stuff I've used of theirs that wasn't utter garbage wasn't fantastic. So, I'm skeptical when anyone raves about their gel stain.

The Rustoleum includes all the products you need for every technique, even if you don't need them for the look you're going for. That makes them really expensive if you don't need all the products.

I have used BM Advance paint on cabinets and furniture (and doors and trim) and been very happy at a fraction of what the Rustoleum stuff costs. The caveat though is that it takes a LONG time for the paint to cure fully. Like, several weeks. It'll be dry to the touch in a few hours, but it can scratch off if you bump it before it's fully cured.