I would not do the glaze I think it always looks dirty in my opinion and I think a very dated finish. As far as wood any fine grained wood will paint well, maple is always a good choice as is birch or since you are painting why not save the money and just do MDF it paints extremly well.

My husband said the same thing about them looking dirty. LOL I will think about it.

Sandra, Patricia is correct...we bought our condo (built seven years ago) three years ago and it has the off white Schrock cabinets with an antique glaze. Yes, they do look "dirty" and yes, they are dated. Can you imagine how dated they will be when they carry us out of here? (many years from now, I hope)

I'm a lover of white cabinets but have seen some beautiful white w/glaze ones as well. If you are set on that look, unless you plan to move in the near future (say 5 - 7 years) go ahead and do it. Do what you want for your home now while living in it rather than doing something for 'resale' later. After all who can honestly predict what the future homeowner will like? ;-) Some glazed cabinets have a lot of glaze and thus do look 'dirty'. Some are barely glazed at all and you can only see a teeny amount of glaze in the detailed areas.

However, since you're mentioning a glaze, you may want to think about a white that's not a true white but rather one with an undertone that works with other features in your home (eg. flooring, wall color, etc.) I used SW Decor White in our former home's kitchen cabinets because I wanted white but a more pure white would not have worked with our wood trim, etc.

Wondering what you'll decide ;-)

There is a process of glazing the cabinetry in a more pinstripe type application to add depth yet eliminate the dingy look of antiqued cabinetry. The glaze only stays in the recesses. A lot of ready made cabinet companies do not do this as there is added steps to achieve the look which can often equate to added cost.

Yes, O'Carroll Custom Cabinetry, that's the look I was thinking about. Thanks so much for mentioning the correct name of the process. Maybe you could attach pics for our Houzz member here.

I will do. There are examples on our home page for quick reference. Thanks for your comment.

example

Do you have any suggestions? It's a large kitchen and I plan on doing a dark wood for island and maybe one side of cabinets.

That's a lot of white! I think too much for me. How about biscotti with no glaze?

I like it just be weary of age and light exposure to the cabinetry.

Sandra, depending on the flooring you choose, a dark wood-toned island would be pretty. Also you haven't mentioned the style you're thinking about. Although if you're thinking of a white w/glaze that makes me tend to think cottage possibly leaning towards a little rustic as opposed to something more contemporary. So how about doing a color painted island? It could be any color that you like and probably something that would tie in to your family room beyond...although in your floor plan it appears that wouldn't be as crucial as if the room was completely open to the family room.

Also, since you'd only be painting the island, if you decide to change it anytime later, it's a small and easy area to repaint.

Oh....forgot to ask, what are your countertops? That's also something you need to factor into your cabinet color with or without a glaze.

slightly creamier than white.

Connie my style is traditional but since the house is in the woods we should make it slightly rustic. As far as flooring and counter tops I haven't gotten that far but granite counters for sure. So many decisions!
ProCraft the cabinets in the picture are gorgeous. Do you have someone that does this work in Delaware?
O'Carroll your picture is nice too. How does light and age effect the cabinets?
I hope you all will be around when I have to make the other hundred decisions.

Sandra. Thank you for the compliment! We are based in Missouri but can ship our cabinets to you. Feel free to email me! linda@procraftcabinets.com

If possible ask for a hand laid glaze. It is done with brushes and is a skilled operation. Glazing pens tend to look thin and often cross corner directions due to the inability to remove excess. Hand laid glazes require and added step to ensure flawless application.