First, let’s start with a bit of a perspective adjustment… oak or wood cabinets need not be removed or painted. They are trending back in, and that makes it so much easier to update the kitchen without a complete overhaul on your cabinets. Here’s the thing, take some oak cabinets with a laminate countertop, complete with a several-inch backsplash, some country-looking knobs, fluorescent light fixtures, and one of those carved wood valences connecting the wall cabinets above the sink… and you have a very dated kitchen. Take those same cabinets, but update the counters and add some modern knobs, a classic tile backsplash, and some updated lighting, and the entire feel of your kitchen can change. Removing that valence as well as possibly replacing an upper cabinet with some shelving, and your kitchen will look brand new, and totally pinterest-worthy!
via Simple Stylings
First, take a step back and look at your kitchen. Take note of all the materials, lighting, and details that, when taken in together, read “Dated!” Then keep those in mind while reading down this list.
My kitchen was dark, and even though the window was small, its size was diminished further by being flanked so closely with the wood cabinets. If you do have a window, make sure it’s getting its due. If you have upper cabinets suffocating it, as I did, think about possibly moving or removing them – at least those closest to the window. In my kitchen, I was able to replace one set with shelves, and swap out the cabinet on the other side to allow the window some breathing room.
If you’re still not digging the idea of so much wood in the kitchen, look for easy ways to tone it down. In my example, I brought down one of the upper cabinets. I actually wanted to take down both cabinets on the sink wall, but we didn’t want to lose too much cabinet space. But the bigger impact was in planking the back of the peninsula with white planks (check out my tips for this here!). It was inexpensive and easy but very impactful. It’s a good trick to use on an island or a peninsula, even if you don’t paint the cabinets on the front.
Embrace the wood look and pick a paint color accordingly. Before I had done anything else, removing the creamy countertop and painting the walls a cool gray-white really made a huge difference in the look of the cabinets. Find a cool, light neutral you like, even a cool white, and your cabinets will feel much more modern. Also watch for other colors you use. In my kitchen, the pops of green paired well against the warm cabinets.
In terms of the cabinets themselves, they really rang orange…. and not in a good way. To tone them down and bring them more into the realm of brown, I waxed them with Briwax in Tudor Brown (check out this post for more details). But in short, it’s easy (no sanding or top coat), it makes your cabinets look and feel new and clean, and it brought out the natural woodgrain. Oh and one container costs about $20 – I did the whole kitchen, the stair railings, shelves, and I still have a good amount leftover. Talk about budget friendly.
I can’t say enough about hardware. Find statement pieces. You never saw black cup pulls, like these, on 80s or 90s cabinets, so just adding them brings the cabinets forward a couple of decades. Find something modern – like some statement-making square bar pulls and go for it. Here’s a great place to start!
Ok, so maybe you don’t need to replace the cabinets, but if you have a laminate countertop with a matching 4 inch backsplash, it IS going to be hard to bring your cabinets out of the 90s. Now, I’m not a materials snob… laminate countertops can be awesome. But if they’ve been around since the kitchen was built, you probably will need to replace them anyway. Sometimes, with labor, laminate can be almost as expensive as solid surface or stone, so go shopping without preconceived notions. Find something simple with minimal action, and don’t even think about adding a matching backsplash! Keeping the edges simple gives it a clean look, and helps the budget.
Depending on the layout of your kitchen, you may be able to find premade laminate countertops that will work beautifully with your décor and your budget. IKEA sells premade countertops that range from $50 to $100 for an 8 foot length. A simple white would look awesome with the warm wood cabinets.
If you have an island you need to top, consider a butcher block top that would complement your cabinets. If necessary, in this case you could paint just the island cabinets, but at least you’re not painting all the cabinets!
Go simple and classic, like white subways and a contrasting grout. Avoid the mosaics trying to call your cabinets back a decade or two. Not only do simple and classic, by definition, have more staying power from a style perspective, but they are also budget friendly!
Lighting options are aplenty. Amazon, Target and Lowe’s all have awesome budget-friendly but stylish options. Here are a few of my favorites (sources here).
Open shelving, in moderation, can also update the look of your kitchen. Unless you’re a neat freak or don’t mind a more cluttered look, limit them, though, to what you can style easily if for show, or keep looking neat if you’re using them for storage.
via Bigger Than the Three of Us
from the skinny house
I hope I’ve given you some great inspiration to tackle your budget-friendly kitchen reno! Let me know your tips – I may need them very soon on our next flip 🙂
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Hi ,
Loved this post UPDATING A 90S KITCHEN – WITHOUT PAINTING CABINETS! Sharing it on my Facebook and Pinterest profile.
Cheers
Yay! Happy to help!
Hi! Love what you did to your kitchen it gives me hope! Could you tell me the color of wall in your kitchen I’ve been searching Pinterest for a great color and I love yours!
Thanks Jackie! The wall color is Olympus White. It's a very light grey/ pale blue. Good luck!
Love what you did. Im curious about the briwax on the cabinets. Do you think you can only use that if you want to darken them. I have 80's honey oak and not sure what color to pick.
Hi Jamie, thanks! I don't think there are any waxes that can lighten the cabinets. I do think the darker briwax does at least help change the tone of the cabinets so they are not so orange-y... takes them more to a brown. If you're nervous about it, you could always grab a container and try on the back of a door or two. Good luck!
Thanks. I did try the lime wax from briwax because I had tried another brand where I had to strip the wood and I didn't have to with this one. This was so much easier and a better result. I'm going to try a dark brown on the other side of my scrap wood too. I feel like any color will enhance the grain so that's why I'm trying to figure out which way to go. Thanks again for turning me on to briwax. Now my kitchen seems less daunting.
I'm glad you like it. Sometimes it just takes that little "aha" to get things rolling!
Hi Jamie, I am in the same boat as you with orangey oak and lots of grain so I am torn between liming wax and using the briwax. I am curious if you would share what it is you do not like from the results of the liming wax? Thanks!
Jamie & Angelica - same boat here too! I just came across the wax idea today and I'm curious how it turned out? This might be the answer to our dated cabinet problem!
Also Marianne - How did you do the island? Is that bead board or painted planks? The whole kitchen looks amazing! Thanks for sharing.
Hey Becky,
Thank you! I covered the peninsula in painted planks. I first painted it white, then planked over top.
I love the tip about the wax. My home has a lot of orangy oak cabinets.....throughout the whole house. I love the wood look but it is very dated. Thanks for the tip. This is something I think I could tackle and my husband will approve.
Happy to help, Nancy! Good luck!
Love your kitchen! It’s the inspiration for our latest remodel. Briwax tip was huge as I️ didn’t want to get into painting cabinets.
What countertop did you put in? And flooring? That’s our latest search and I️ love your look!
Thanks
Ali
Ali,
I'm happy I was able to give you some inspiration! Our countertop was solid surface - LG Hi-Macs in Arctic White. The flooring was Shaw Resilient in Resort Teak. It's a great click-lock vinyl flooring available at Lowe's. Hope this helps and good luck!
Super helpful! Thanks :)
Hi! I tried looking for the flooring and I couldn't find it. Not sure if it's discontinued? Are you able to share a comparison? Same style and color? Thank you!!
Hi Moranda, It does look like it may be discontinued unfortunately. I don't have anything that to offer in comparison but I do know Lowe's and Home Depot offer a very wide selection of vinyl plank flooring. Your best bed would be to go pick up a couple of their small samples and hold them up to your cabinets to get the best match. Good luck!
It looks great! I was going to use general finishes gel stain to make my orange oak cabinets look better but I will check out the wax. I love a warm kitchen with wood cabinets. I was thinking of making some of the cabinet doors clear glass to break up the wood a little. I also have soffits and it might look better without them.
Thanks Sue! Yes, making some doors clear glass is a great way to break up the wood. I just added clear glass in the kitchen in my current flip house, and it was pretty cheap - only $22 for a decent sized door.
I am thinking about putting glass in 2 of my doors, but curious if you cut your wood out, or who did you take it to do it professionally? If you did...how did you cut it? Thanks!
I would personally take it to a professional, as I wouldn't want to mess up the door. But it should be a very reasonable cost. I had recently switched out stained glass for a clear glass, and it was maybe $20 - $30. Good luck!
Love your help! I have tiger wood cabinets in kitchen and bath. I am probably going to go darker but have the pulls are all 3 inch from screw to screw and there is a blackplate with each one - times 34 and are all the Same on doors and drawers. Also partial outside hinges. They are old antique brass and ugly. I would be happy with flat black - there is little out there to pick from, especially since there are sooooo many to replace.
Thanks in advance for you expertise/help. Sincerely Bee Meske
Good luck Bee! What shape is the backplate? There are quite reasonable ones out there, though I realize it adds up when you multiply by 34! Have you tried taking them off to see how bad the discoloration is? I've spray painted hinges before, but it's tough to get a really good finish that will stand up to the movement of the hinge. I just decided to replace the antique brass hinges for the kitchen I'm doing now (also with briwax) and it made such a big improvement! My pulls are also 3" center to center, but I didn't have to worry about the backplates :)
My briwax arrived but I didn't get to try it out yet. Can't wait to see how the cabinets look after they are waxed. Did you take all the doors off as well as the hardware before you waxed them? Do you have any pictures of your glass front cabinet doors? Did you cut your cabinet doors yourself and replace with the glass or buy new doors? Thanks!
Hi Sue,
I did take off the doors. It really helps to put the doors on a horizontal surface to help with the buffing. I did not take the hardware off the door since it was attached to a surface I wasn't waxing. I wouldn't wouldn't recommend waxing around hardware... it would really make it tough! As for the glass door, I was replacing glass with glass. The glass came right out of the back. There was a vinyl sealer, almost like weather stripping. I had the glass out in under a minute. However if you are taking out a wood panel and replacing with glass, I would seek out a glass store and have them do it for you. Good luck with the briwax!
I just looked through your pictures of your flip and saw the glass corner cabinet! Thanks. The house looks great. Also removing the granite back splash really updates it too. This kitchen lay out is very similar to mine.
Thanks Sue!
Doing the exact same thing to my kitchen, love it! What was the name of the color grout you used?
Hi Colleen,
The grout color was Light Pewter by TEC. Good luck with your update!
This reno has inspired me to get going on our kitchen update.
We’re going to try the briwax.
Just wondering, where did you find the black brackets for the new wood shelves?
Susie - Awesome! My brother-in-law made the shelf brackets for me. But you should be able to find very similar options on Etsy. Good luck with the update!