Cabinet Care 101
Cabinets. They can come in natural grain, painted, melamine, laminate. They neatly hold our belongings or, alternately, desperately hold in those treasures to keep them from spilling out onto our floors.
I’ve found through my years working in the design world that most homeowners are unhappy with their cabinets (no matter what age, type or style), and it is a top home component that people want to replace. The thing is, they’re just so expensive, and the plethora of options can be daunting.
Having formerly worked as a kitchen designer, I can tell you that replacing a kitchen is one of the biggest and most common expenses you might have after a home and car and kids and college/trade school. And frankly, this purchase can take a lot of life savings depending on the size of your kitchen.
Cabinets hold emotions. And plates, and that one lid that doesn’t go to anything- But lots of emotions. Why? Because spending the money on a big purchase can be fraught with stress and worry.
One thing to consider is this: When choosing new cabinets, and kitchen materials, you might want to try going for classic over trendy. A white kitchen, subway tile, neutral counters, all mean you might not get tired of a kitchen, or feel the need to keep up with your friends as they change for each trend.
The flip side of this is trying a trend that you love and that you think you won’t get tired of. The kitchen we inherited with our house has a glass tile backsplash which dates it to a certain trend period, but it matches the cabinets and floor and counter and you get the idea. The homeowner made a cohesive look, which we enjoy and decided to keep as it was in great condition.
If you live in an area where the housing market is good and people live comfortably, you could easily make any selections based on your personal preference, timeless or not (unless you plan to sell in a year or two). Why? Because in areas where people can afford it, buyers can and frequently do knock down perfectly good kitchens (even brand new ones) to make it to their own taste. So don’t wait to do your renovations until someone else will get to have their way with them: do them so that you can enjoy the finished project.
If you could postpone needing new cabinets, would you? What if there were a way to bring aging natural wood cabinets back to life? Even if you do decide to change them out later or paint over them, a wood polish and sealer can revitalize your existing wood and give it a new glow.
Some people believe their wood cabinets are dull and beyond help, when in fact if they’re stained wood cabinets they might just be thirsty. Thirsty for beneficial liquid (not water!) to reinvigorate them.
This discovery was made by my parents shortly after my husband and I moved into our home. I told my parents the cabinets would eventually need to be replaced because the stain finish appeared in bad shape. They came to visit, and whipped out a bottle of cabinet cream and explained that while there were some issues with the stain in places, the cabinets were also dry, which was causing a good amount of the discoloration.
Sink cabinets before polishing. Not sure how well the cabinet locks work for kids, but they sure do keep out big dumb dogs when attached to the faux drawer fronts.
Cabinets before polishing
We all worked the cream cleaner/polish into the cabinet doors, drawer fronts, and stiles/rails, and wow were they right!
Sink cabinets after polishing.
Cabinets after polishing
It only takes a little bit (and I mean a little bit, much less than you’d think) on a microfiber cloth to gently bring the wood back to life. I can’t stress this enough- don’t slather it on like Country Crock on a stack of pancakes. I have done this before and I regretted it. It didn’t soak in for a really long while. Country crock on the other hand, I will never regret.
The cleaner we first used is no longer made (it came from the Fuller Brush Company, if that gives you an idea of its age), but I have used this product above with success in recent years.
It does need to be done at least yearly. The difference is amazing!!!
What is your favorite cabinet trend or timeless look? I love so many different looks, I don’t know if I could choose just one. So I am sticking with my golden stained wood for now!