Refinished and Transformed Golden Oak Woodwork
Recently, we had the opportunity to complete a painting & cabinet refinishing project for Tom and Michelle Cheatle in Elkhorn, NE. They wanted to update a magnificent 8,000 sq. ft. home that had golden oak woodwork throughout the entire house. You can see before and after photos in our video and here on the site.
We used Magna Max lacquer from Oharco to refinish all the woodwork and repainted all the walls with a Cashmere Flat paint from Sherwin-Williams. For the kitchen cabinets we used a lacquer undercoater, Van Dyke glaze, and a clear lacquer top-coat. The basement kitchen and entertainment section are now a colored lacquer as well. This job was a lot of fun to be a part of and shows how golden oak can be transformed into a beautiful modern look. I hope you enjoy!
Refinishing Light Colored Cabinets
One option Kevin recommends for light colored kitchen cabinets like golden oak is to use a shading technique. Shading is a process that uses a colored clear coat or seal coat over the top of the existing finish. In the case of golden oak cabinets, shading can take out the yellow hues and emphasize the brown tones in the wood as seen in the picture to the right.
To create a cherry wood appearance for your cabinets, Kevin suggests that you treat your kitchen cabinets with a dye stain and shading combination. Dye stains give a transparent color that will allow the wood’s characteristics to show through, and they penetrate more deeply than pigment stains. The shading will add depth and richness to the new color.
Refinishing Dark Colored Cabinets
If you’d like to refinish a dark cabinet, you can cover up that dark color with oil paint, latex paint, or a colored lacquer. Utilizing a contrasting glaze over the top of the painted surface gives a custom appearance that really makes the cabinets stand out. Sanding and priming prior to these treatments will help ensure that your new color will cover adequately. They might also require multiple applications in order to give uniform coverage of the dark wood. You can use a variety of color and shading combinations to get just the right finish for your kitchen
For a dramatic look, consider refinishing cabinets in black and adding chrome hardware. This combination looks especially sharp with stainless steel appliances and will give any room an ultra-modern feel. Also perfect for your wet bar or man cave …
