I would get a price for a repaint from a painting contractor, and a refinish price from a refinishing company. Refinished, you could get something close to white, but without the built up look of the varnish layer underneath, and then paint globbed on top of that. It could end up looking too thick and an obvious re-do. It sounds like you are ready to spend some money, so while the difference may be 2000 or so, I would at least look at the types of finishes that are lighter as a point of comparison. With tile and cabinet update, you may not touch the kitchen again for 10 or more years, so the difference in price would amount to very little per year. Good luck!

With the right primers anything can stick. If you like white cabinets and something fresh feeling than I think staining is not going to give you the look you want.

@Nick Dellos thank you for your ideas. Can you tell me more about the finish you are talking about? Is it stain that would look like a solid white or off white?

Thank you everybody for your ideas! Lots to think about. I really like the look of painted cabinets,but I want it to look like the cabinets came that way not like they were painted to save $. I also wanted to know you opinions on the arched doors, do they scream 90's?

Sanding and staining will look less than professional. Painting will be better but not last as long as a painted finish on new cabinets and the oak grain will come through the paint and look a little funny. The arched doors are also out of fashion now. Really your cabinets looks fine now. Save your time, money and efforts, and do the kitchen right when you can afford it. Everything you do now will need to be redone if you ever decide to replace the cabinetry

If you want off-white, my opinion would be go for it. How you accomplish it, whether it be, have it professionally done, or DYI just depends on budget. Either way you can get a great new look.

I think it looks nice with the black granite and black appliances! It looks like a lot of light comes in from the opposite direction. That's what you need! Maybe get some res accents; towels, teapot, potholders, etc.

Painting oak is tricky as you will always see the grain

red...

I like Nick Dellos suggestions.

I do think that you're not going to get a look like 'factory painted' cabinets no matter what you do or who does it. I DO think though that you'll get a great look and hopefully a look that will thrill you. There are grain fillers out now that will mask a lot of the grain that you see with painted oak.

A stain could be interesting too. I don't really think a light stain would be the look you're going for but it's still a neat look.

Re: the current cabinets... I think the arch in your door is so moderate it's barely noticeable. I don't care for arches at all...and I think your doors look fine! Personally the one thing I would change is the rope trim molding. That's probably a personal taste thing though. If YOU like it, that's all that counts!

If you like your cabinets and they're solid and you like the layout of your kitchen, I think painting would be a great idea.

So sorry I did not see the question posted previously. The process I am talking about is from a cabinet refinisher. It's not amateur hour stuff. The cabinet doors are removed and taken to a shop where they are stripped and cleaned in a controlled setup. Then any type of glazed or new stain can be applied. Just painting them will leave them looking too "heavy" in my opinion. Search kitchen photos (traditional to start) and add glazed cabinet to your search parameters here on Houzz! Good luck

Subway tile would look amazing with a white cabinet. Please let us know if we can help you at all with your project.

I know so many people who have painted their cabinets, and they look awesome. You just have to use the right deglosser and/or sand and paint carefully. Rustoleum even makes a cabinet-painting kit now: http://cabinets.rustoleumtransformations.com/

Your kitchen is ripe for a two-tone look, or even three with the island being stained a darker, medium-cherry color. Grey/green and soft white cabinets would look great with your dark countertops.

Thank you Kellyography! I like the grey-green cabinets in the pic!

NO, They are beautiful.

Great idea to paint the cabinets. It will transform and update the space. Huge bang for your buck! I have had great success with Ben Moore's Advance paint line.

You might want to take a look at the questions & answers on this Houzz photo, these are oak cupboards. Sherwin Williams Gauntlet Gray SW 7019 with a light gray glaze applied afterwards.

It's a 2013 post people...

@zgdia17: Did you end up painting them ? An after picture would be helpful.

As a retired architect and interior Designer i pray you pay close attention to the valuable advice Nick Delllos is giving to you, If you must do the island I suggest you go for a Medium Grey color. If Oak is professionally refinished it is fine to see the grain of the Oak Many people love Oak wood and prefer it over say Birch which has almost no grain at all especially when spray painted.professionally. If you go to any cabinet maker you are going to find painted oak cabinets as a choice among many different woods. Personally i would do what Nick says then next start replacing those dated black appliances. Chose stainless and you can replace things slowly. In todays world everyone wants instant everything When i grew up it was not a sin to show you could not replace all your appliances at once. Start with the range then the dishwasher next the microwave in other words high end then lower end and keep repeating this pattern..Especially with that black, white, touch of grey pattern, adding stainless slowly can even be made to look like you planned it like that..Its just one suggestion among many given, but of them all listen to Nick first...He has given you valuable advice...

I'd worry about chipping if you painted the lower cabinets. I'd consider painting the upper cabinet boxes white and replacing the upper doors with replacement doors that match the lowers. Possibly a couple of glass doors for the uppers. Then subway tile backsplash with grey grout. Replace the appliances as you can. I have Dove White uppers and white oak lower cabinets and I personally love that look.

YES!!! Paint them. A warm white/off white would be great.

How about changing the door fronts to something flat to be more modern . Then oh can afford if change the counter tops to something lighter.

Thank you for the recent advice! I have not tackled my kitchen yet, although I have recently contacted a few local professionals in my area for some advice and prices. I think I was a little overwhelmed by the whole project, so I put it on the back burner for a while I am still deciding what to do, I have started to replace some of the appliances with stainless. I love the idea of staining, toning or glazing the cabinets, because I am not opposed to the grain showing.i am also going to change the backsplash. I am a little concerned about toning or glazing the cabinets as far as the durability. If anybody has recently updated their oak cabinets can you please post some pictures? Than you!

I kept my oak cabinets oak:)

I have a more vintage, cottage style. Last year I changed out the range hood and retrofitted the cabinet with the plate rail and the spice boxes. This year I had new countertops, farmhouse sink and backsplash installed. Many years ago I painted the trim white - it was dark stained pine (70s house)

I did refinish my oak cabinets - but kept them the same light color. The new finish is not as thick as the old, but I did it myself. My mother had a refinisher refinish some of her worn oak cabinets, but only the damaged ones and they look great - I cannot tell them from the original - but again she did not change the color.

My kitchen is in my idea book. Here is one pic:

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/57579129/thumbs/my-pics-work-in-progress

A contributor here named auntthelma also recently did a lovely kitchen with wood cabinets - possibly maple, but mid tone wood. You might check her idea book too.

Because this is an older post, you might want to resubmit your question if you get few responses because some never check the older post.

I know this isn't an answer to your post, but I'm writing a blog post about ideas for updating the look of oak cabinets in RV's, and I was wondering if it would be okay for me to include a photo of your kitchen to demonstrate how your beautiful cabinet handles looks against the oak in comparison to 1980's gold?

If you do decide to do them over or paint them since they are Oak i strongly suggest you talk to a professional painter before tackling this yourself Oak is different to refinish then many woods due to the grain in it, which is natural to this wood and it requires special treatment if you are going to refinish it yourself. This is the best advice i could give you. Yes it can be done and done with many different choices but to do it right requires professional help. i have an unusual background so i know what i am telling you. I was trained in classical oil painting and Fine Arts starting at 7 years old then i have degrees in Architecture and Interior Design plus Fine Arts also so I know a lot about paints and color. I wish you well with this project but seek professional help for advice before you begin to know what choices are best for you and how to achieve them using the cabinets and paints or stain and colors.. Blessings on your project

I would keep the bottom cabinets as is. Make the top cabinets white with new doors that match the bottom doors (square no arch) but keep a couple of upper cabinets open (no door). Remove the rope trim. Change backsplash and all of the cabinet handles. I think it will give you a bright modern look that still includes some wood tone. It will also give you opportunity to still change bottom cabinets to white if you wish.

I love, love your kitchen!!As a matter of fact, it looks like mine except for the floor. I have been contemplating a redo myself, also thinking of painting the cabinets an off white, however, must of my kitchen is painted off white. I have spoken to friends who have painted their cabinets, one of them did it themselves, the other was professionally done, and believe me you can tell the difference immediately. The price to have a professional do it is expensive, however, the result is undenying

I see a lot of opinions above about painting or not painting and whether or not you'll be happy with the results. Also, someone else pointed out that the arched doors are dated. An alternative then, and one that you might find more cost effective than trying to get the doors professionally refinished would be to get new doors and veneers for the existing cupboards. If you are happy with your layout and the functionality of the kitchen this could be a good solution for you. Updated doors and drawer pulls, plus I think you'd want to change the crown molding too, plus new hardware and if it is in your budget, new appliances in stainless and your kitchen will be spectacular. For the island, a dark stain would be gorgeous, or you could consider a dark paint colour if you decide to go with new painted doors on the perimeter.

Also a new sink and faucet, plus your choice of new backsplash and you will have a winning new look.

Please let me know if you decided to paint. I want to exactly the same and I'd love to see the end result

Paint the lowers GLOSSY BLACK, and leave the uppers alone. Why tear out a perfectly acceptable backsplash?

@Christian Garia, I have not decided yet but if I have them painted I will be sure to post pictures!

Finally got up the nerve to go for it. I have custom solid natural oak cabinets for 25 years. Not a thing wrong with them, except the color. Tired of all that oak. Needed an update. Painted the island Benjam Moore Gargoyle and the perimeter Ben Moore Revere Pewter. Currently in progress by a professional company. Will send an after picture.

Sandra,,,cool color combo! is the company taking the doors back to their shop to spray? did they sand and prime? just curious as to a ballpark figure they're charging you. between 3-5K?

Yes. The doors and drawers are being done at the painters shop.

90$ a drawer and door. Came out to about 4300$. I have 44 doors and drawers total.

Cant wait to see the after! What are the new floors? Love them.

The floors are actually vinyl plank floated over my existing white tile. Absolutely love them! No mess and expense of tearing out tiles! Easy to maintain, waterproof, won't warp like laminate or wood. Perfect for the kitchen. Tons of colors to choose from. Matched my existing granite perfectly.

Im so jealous! can't wait to see when it's finished.

Kitchen finished!!! Very happy with the colors I picked. Good decision to paint the cabinets. Looks updated without a big price tag. Just need the new stainless refrigerator!

looks really nice Sandra! What paint did you use on cabs? Advance?

The painter uses a high quality paint. The colors were Benjamin Moores Revere Pewter on the perimeter and Gargoyle on the island.

yes, that's why I asked if it was Advance. it's BM's top line for wood.

I don't know the name of the brand he uses.

Sandra, what area do you live in? I wonder if pricing is the same where we live in Southern California? We are in the process of remodelling my mother-in-law's home. It needs updating but we don't want to spend a fortune. She currently has whitewashed oak cabinets with at rather small kitchen so I'm thinking of going white and replacing her green formica counters. Just got a quote on replacing the cabinets for $7800 for cabinets alone (the cheapest we could get) and that doesn't count installation. If we could paint without the oak grain coming through it would definitely be worth the savings. Her kitchen is half the size of yours from the looks of your photos

debbie, we're also in so cal. where did you price out your cabs?

we may be able to help out if you aren't in the valley! send me a private message on here if you wish.

I live in Pennsylvania. My painter charged 90$ a door and drawer. I had a total of 48. Came out to 4300$.

My sister in law has the same name and similar hair style and wood cabinets - I asked my mom last week when I was visiting if Sandy was painting her cabinets. Mom thought not, and since she does not live in Pennsylvania, you are not her:)