What's the process for doing this? I'd love to get this result with my oak bedroom furniture.

Wow thts a nice transformation. Can i do that on the doors?

hey @ziggy_138 i used general finishes java gel stain (and general finishes satin top coat) it was easy to do however it was pretty tedious because it takes 3 coats of stain and 2 coats of the top coat. the most difficult part was finding a way to stain and let them dry without being touched! (if it helps to give you an idea you can see the DIY in the links I posted below)

@7768 I actually painted the window trim white like the rest of the house (that you can't see). It looks WAY better!

@Melanie I actually detailed the process on the blog my husband and I are using to keep an account of everything we've done to update our house (since it's our first home we thought it would be cool!) so if it helps I detailed how to do this in a couple posts

http://www.fromrentingtoremodeling.com/2012/10/labor-of-love.html
http://www.fromrentingtoremodeling.com/2012/08/gel-stain-diy.html

@leilakgabo you could totally do this on doors! our cabinets are all wood and it took the stain super well, however if you have doors that are a composite or are a laminate sheet of "wood" it works as well! the side panels to our cabinets were the false laminate sheet and it took the stain just as well!

we are adding hardware to the doors / drawers and we've already painted the trim white so once i have time to take an updated photo i'll add it on here! thanks so much for the love everyone!

Beautiful job! The color turned out amazing. It looks new.
I like the suggestion of a backsplash. You can take off the back 4 inches of counter and run it from cabinet to countertop and it would look amazing. An island would be a great addition also at some point. For a contemporary look an IKEA stainless steel freestanding would be nice or a furniture grade piece for a traditional look.

Awesome job! I was wondering though, did you opt for a lesser gloss finish for the black cabinets? Maybe I can't tell or if it's the lighting, but it seems almost like a semi gloss and wanted to know what type of finish you used.

@hmschoolmom you are basically typing out my to-do list! we are in the process of looking into new countertops to totally redo them (and we won't have the 4 inch backsplash thing) and then add a more modern backsplash (i already have a few picked out!). we are ikea junkies and we actually looked at a few islands there and decided we're going to build one to match the cabinets and then i'll stain that as well. we just can't get started on the island yet until we know what the countertops are going to be! thanks so much for your suggestions!

@ryancl the cabinets are actually a super deep brown, i used general finishes 'java' gel stain ( http://www.amazon.com/General-Finishes-GEL-JAVA-QT/dp/B001DSY50Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357738449&sr=8-1&keywords=general+finishes+java+gel+stain) and for the top coat i used general finishes gel topcoat in the 'satin' finish ( http://www.amazon.com/GF-Gel-Topcoat-Satin-Quart/dp/B001F7N0JU/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1357738499&sr=1-1&keywords=general+finishes+gel+topcoat) which is slightly glossy, but not much. the lighting is definitely playing tricks. hope that helps!

Dramatic and gorgeous.

Absolutely gorgeous. Looks like a different kitchen.

Huge,wonderful difference. Congratulations!

I love the Generals finishes. I have used it to give my midcentury furniture legs a "new' look.

@theresajdiy I LOVE that you used it on the legs of the sofa / chair. That's such a good idea - I was thinking of using it on some wooden kitchen chairs we have that are already a dark espresso and need a little touch up, I think I'll try it now!

Good job. I may need to do this instead of painting cabinets white!

Ive used gel stains and they reccomend that you have to remove all the clear finish to achieve penetration. All stain product have to penetrate to achieve adhesion. And applying that many coats its liking painting them you lose alot of the grain and character.

@Rockin' Fine Finish - you are absolutely right! we sanded down the original cabinets to get all of the clear finish off but we were sure to stop soon as to keep the grain of the wood!

Lovely! An island would really bring it together

wonderful transformation; you could try using the space too

I love it!

@damndrose that's part of our plans! the overall gameplan is for new countertops, brushed nickel hardware (which we already have!), a matching island (post new countertops so it all matches), and a medium wood floor! we already painted the window trim white so it's already looking better than this photo!

Great Job!

Omg I love it!! What a difference.

Such a difference!! Looks Great!

very nice!

The blog link does not work. Looks awesome!

I am very interested in gel staining out 1980 Oak cabinets and because the floor is tile and counter/backsplash are both neutral, staining seems to be a good option for contrast. I tried your blog links above and they did not work. Do you have an updated link that we may use to read about your process? Thank you!

Looks great. I'm a fan of gel stain. It covers well and can be applied over another stain. Plus, not a drippy mess.

No idea you could apply over another stain. that's exciting!

Rockin Fine - I see you are a specialist but the GF gel stain does not require a sanded finish like other brands. It went on like thin paint and dried beautifully, leaving the wood grain. It looks fantastic on the fake wood on the side of the cabinets. I'm doing it in my own kitchen right now. No sanding, cleaned with a little Dawn in warm water. I'm using a light touch with a quality paintbrush, two coats of the gel stain. Easy change for not much money.

Your kitchen looks nice. But as Rockin said:

If you go over another finish (no matter what the propaganda says) you are not "staining" anything. If you need 2 or 3 coats to cover it you might as well have used paint that was thinned down, result will be the same.

Sorry, facts are facts. I don't have any skin in the game here because I don't refinish cabinets.

Wow love the transformation. Funny we went the same oak to dark color, however I redid mine.

Great job.

the darker stain adds some sophistication to the new kitchen. Nice choice!

Perfectly Perfect!

That is fantastic.

Looks Great!!

Nice job! It looks like you replaced the cabinets pretty much with the same foot print. Very nice update!

Excellent transformation! Very dramatic and total mood changer (for the best). Congratulations! Hope you have many great moments and revelations in it.

Looks amazing...i used a chalk paint on my island in this color. Lots of work w/chalk paint though so I'm anxious to do my cabinets with gel stain. What color did you use?

Amazing job - what a difference!

Nicely done!

Gel staining can make a significant change in a kitchen transformation! Very well done. You should consider adding a back splash I think it would be a nice finishing touch to your already beautiful kitchen.

I'm wondering how the gel stain has held up after all these years?

Looks great!

Love the after, the colour on the cabenets is awesome. The kitchen is beautiful.

Great job! The space looks lovely.

Much better - looks fantastic!

Nice job! The new stain gives the space a great new look!

What a difference. Nicely done.

beautiful!

Love the updated look! Nice job

Awesome transformation!