https://www.rockler.com/general-finishes-water-based-stain-reducer-stains?country=US&sid=V91040&promo=shopping&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=&utm_content=&utm_campaign=PL&gclid=CjwKCAiAsOmABhAwEiwAEBR0ZgtzCUZVx0jzTSoXua28Rtr6luOve4nrcDJh_PpeL3FVjWY4r3-ucRoC5-EQAvD_BwE

Have you considered stain instead of paint?

Oak has such a heavy grain, it will show up even with primer and paint. Please do proper prep before you paint, or you will have chips and nicks and will be constantly tryng to touch up. Also use a paint that is meant for kitchen cabinets.

Thank you!

BeverlyFLADeziner,

I was thinking stain would be better for the grain to show through and I love the color you posted! I will look into that

Jodi, I've stained oak blue using an aniline dye. but to properly do it on oak cabinets, you will need to completely strip it down to bare wood (if you want them to look like the ones in the picture).

If you notice, that dye that bev posted is water-based (as are most dyes) If there is one scrap of leftover oil based finish on those cabinets, the dye will repel against it. i can't stress it enough, if you want to use a dye like that, you must completely strip the wood. Actually, you should strip it anyway even if you want to use a stain. But the dyes come in those cool colors.

I've dyed w/black, walnut and a turquoise

This is mandatory if you want to use a dye

raw wood. ready to dye

this is just one coat of the dye. (these dyes in the powder form are cheap, easy to mix and dry quickly. Or, you can buy the pre-mixed ones that GF sells. up to you. Aniline dyes come in a wide range of colors and can be custom mixed)

I actually cerused this oak piece so the grain really stands out, but this isn't the look you want.

For something like the dark blue, I'd completely strip, sand, apply 2 coats, and seal w/a satin varnish.

if you use primer and paint, you will still see some of the grain, but not like this using the dye

The diff between a dye and stain, is the dye is water based and actually absorbs into the wood. a stain barely absorbs, but mostly sits on top. (think nail polish) the dye penetrates a bit better and actually imparts more of a color. If I want something really black, I'll dye it black first, and then go over it with a gel stain in black. the color is a beautiful, rich deep black that stain alone can't get. (if you want the wood grain to show). they do have a stained poly, but it obliterates the graining.

Check out addicted2decorating.com....she had a great tutorial on painting oak cabinets....very helpful and informative.....lots of pictures etc.

We wanted a quote on re-staining our kitchen cupboards vs painting them. The paint quote was expensive, and he wouldn't even quote on staining because he said that the work involved in stripping the cabinets to bare wood was not realistic.

It wasn't until I re-stained a oak kitchen table last year, taking it down to bare wood, that I really understood what he meant.

Let's see that 20 year old kitchen , before you invest the time money effort to do this? Post the existing kitchen : )

Best is a pro job, out side your home. Sprayed in a spray booth/conversion varnish. . Ben Moore Hale Navy

Kitchen redo with butler · More Info

Kitchen redo with butler · More Info