The cabinets I think were Cypress. I live in Louisiana & I have the remodel plans from the person that built the pool house addition & they call for cypress. That is a wood that is native to here but, the grain is much like an oak so maybe it is cypress or maybe it is oak. Anyway, there is definitely a grain to it. DH and i argued about the primer coats & how many to put. I won that won (not that it got me anything) because the ones I did don't show any graining with 2 coats of primer. The ones he did do. So if you have thick coat of stain and/or any top coat on oak, you have to sand really well first. Then 2 coats of primer are a must - IMHO. I can see the grain in the ones that DH did and it drives me nutso. Like the underneath of the upper cabs for example. If he had sanded better & done 2 coats of primer, I don't think you would see it since I don't see the grain on the other surfaces. Who knows though because they were custom cabs, the cabinet guy could have used other woods too. They are 8 years old. Don't be afraid though. It is a lot of work but, if you follow the advice on this forum, the result is worth it. The cabs are not that shiny, it's just the lighting in the pool house is not great. They are very pretty. To the poster that asked about DIY cabs, there are some, mostly though people rip out old and put in new. I think that totally depends on the age of the cabs and the condition. If you can save what you have you are technically "going green". How in vogue is that? If they are nasty and have no character to them, then you have to start over. I have seen several posts for people that re-did therofoil or whatever it is called. It is more detailed what needs to be done but, nonetheless, less than new cabs are. I have friends and have seen many posters whose cabinets were $75k. Wow, that's a ton of money. So if you can figure it out, use what you have! Go for it. A little at a time is fine too. If you hate your cabinets, paint them. There are many posters here that have black, blue, brown or white cabinets. All look good. If you can use what you have then a little paint is so cheap compared to new. To be honest, I have the same types of cabinets in my kitchen, laundry, DD bath in my 1950s/remodeled in 2000 house that are 8 years old. All of those cabinets, I will either paint or have painted professionally, the wood is not really nice enough to restain. The ones in my Master bath & guest bath that are original to the house and then painted from 1950, they are out. They are just flat front wood nothing cabinets. There is no saving those. Anything in the last 20 years thougth might be savagable. There are so many options for colors. I can post some colored cabinets from my inspiration file if you would like to see them. that will show you paint grade cabs that are just beautiful.

I just painted my bedroom and master bath SW Alabaster with SW High Reflective White trim and doors. I LOVE the look, both colors work beautifully together. Depending on the time of day (morning sun) it looks white without being too stark white, as the day progresses it warms up turning into a vanilla cream in the evenings. My bedroom is west facing with more windows and a small south window. My master bath is west facing. The High Reflective White stays pretty true to color at all times. Unfortunately they were not able to do the cabinets in HRW as the paint I used on the cabinets could not be mixed in that color. HRW is a color that is funny at Sherwin Williams and kinda' tricky and definitely takes more coats to cover. I used Emerald paint in Alabaster on ceilings, walls, and cabinets in different finishes and Super Paint in Semi Gloss in HRW for trim and doors. I was nervous about using Alabaster on the cabinets in the bathroom but it worked perfectly. I will say, for those that are using a white on walls that is not as warm as Alabaster/White Dove, or more cooler grays (think grays that aren't greige) the Alabaster or White Dove warm soft whites are going to go yellow/cream. I would recommend going with Pure White for cabinets and trim. It is still a soft white without the creaminess of Alabaster. High Reflective White is also a good white it's not as soft as Pure White but still not so white that it looks cheap, but again HRW is hard to cover and cannot be mixed in many sheens and paints. I decided not to go with Pure White with my Alabaster walls because my husband wanted more of a contrast with the doors and trim, I wanted to use Alabaster on everything, but made a compromise with my husband, and went with HRW. I am not at all disappointed with the look. I know I spent countless hours agonizing over the choices and hopefully this will help others that are in the same position.

Mary, how paint will read is determined by many factors, including what direction a room faces, the furniture in the room, the light factors in both the room and outside , how each person sees color, and of course, the paint itself. I normally do not recommend toning paint (adding white) to achieve a lighter look. The reason is that it is that, as Lori points out, it is a guess as to whether or not it will work and I can predict better from a paint chip. However, sometimes clients want to try it. Ironically, I just had a client paint a room SW Requisite Gray. She is one of a only a few of my clients willing to paint her ceiling. She wanted to try Requisite Gray at half. It turned out perfectly. Does that mean it would work in your space? You cannot be sure. I always recommend painting on a piece of lightweight drywall instead of on the wall or ceiling itself. That way, you have the opportunity to move the piece of drywall around the room at different times of day to see if it will work for you. Much success to you in your project!

I have White Dove Cabinets, they come off rather creamy to me too, although I didn't want stark white. I had Gray Owl BM walls and was having walls repainted a couple of days ago, painter made a mistake and paint SW Agreeable Gray instead! They of course offered to repaint but family Said they like the AG better, so I had them paint the same up the stairway and large loft room instead. Im no color expert so Im hoping the AG looks as good with my cabinets and quartzite countertops!! I have a subway tile that I found from someone on here that goes really well with WD cabinets. Subway is classic and timeless IMO. I have 5 recessed lights in my kitchen and also tried several bulbs, LED looked to bright and sterile to me, but I my give them another try! Sorry I can't help with suggestions, but will be following your post to hear what others recommend.