I have always loved working in my kitchen, but its drab upper cabinets were not inspiring. The cabinet faces were too light and contrasted the darker trim and frame, and the handles had broken after years of use.
At a hardware store, my husband and I discovered some interesting wood moulding. The carved pieces actually looked like Native American Conchos. Seeing this trim inspired an upper cabinet makeover.
I am fortunate that my husband loves woodworking. Here are the simple steps we followed to give our cabinets a face-lift.
1. We took down the cabinet doors and removed all of the old hardware.
2. We cut the new trim at a 45-degree angle and stapled it to each cabinet door. My husband masked off the Conchos and painted them with a high-gloss turquoise blue paint, then waited for it to dry. A quick sanding took off most of the trim's blue paint, giving it an antiqued appearance. My husband then masked off each side of the trim around the Conchos and stained both the sanded Conchos and the borders in dark walnut. This enhanced the antique look.
3. We then masked off the stained portions of the trim and spray painted the entire doors an antique copper that would match the new door fixtures we had selected.
When we removed the final masking tape, we were really impressed with the results. The hint of turquoise and stain complimented the cabinet frame.
The moulding ran about $12 per 8-foot length and it took seven lengths to complete all eight doors. The paint was under $50. After purchasing hardware and other supplies, the total cost of the project was less than $250. We could have completed the project in one day if we had done all the doors at once. The majority of the time was spent masking and waiting for paint to dry before we could mask and work on the next step.
It is amazing what a little paint and woodworking can do to give kitchen cabinets a makeover. I am very inspired by my kitchen today and enjoy creating meals for my family and friends in this unique setting.