Try Annie Sloan paint - it's quite easy - apparently! :-)

You can get a lovely distressed look but you'll have to wax it frequently to avoid stains. I've used it on several dressers but found a piece of glass was necessary to keep the top in good condition. It's expensive and does cover as it says but I think you might be disappointed in how distressed your cabinets will look in a short time. If you could coat it with something like a clear acrylic it would be okay but I don't know if this can be done.

I would just used paint, antiquing glaze, and a satin clear coat.

what did you decide to do Krystine?

You can make your own chalk paint. Lots of ideas if you google same.
I just did a $10.00 garage sale find coffee table with home made chalk paint as an experimental piece before doing a buffet.

Was quite surprised that when I wanted to distress the table more, I couldn't get the darn paint off ! I used BM paint for the project which is a v good quality paint.

I have seen that! I'm just afraid to try that on a whole kitchen as my first project. After this I prob will make it from now on for any other projects.

Here's a website that shows some kitchen cabinets painted with Annie Sloan chalk paint and wax finish. Scroll down to the section on "Cabinet finishes".
http://www.methenyweir.com/gallery/

Wanted to update. I ordered annie sloan chalk paint and redid the cabinets and LOVE how they turned out. We still are waiting for the counter top but here's a before and after pic so far.

Wanted to update. I ordered annie sloan chalk paint and redid the cabinets and LOVE how they turned out. We still are waiting for the counter top but here's a before and after pic so far.

What do you think about painting the wood shingles above the cabinets?

Did you end up using wax or poly?

I used wax. Here's was the final pics. We love it! We have 4 kids and it's standing up to them beautifully!