Never: what a great transformation! Really great info on the process. I'm sure you are going to be putting ideas into a lot of heads w/ this!

Not to hijack the thread... but I LOVE your sink!! Is it newer or older? It's everything I want: SS, marine edge, one piece back splash.

Wow. I can't think of a place to use gel stain in my house but I may just have to invent one! Your results are fabulous. Congratulations!!

***** 5 stars! Oh wait, I forgot, we don't rate things here!

Great transformation. Gel stain is one of my all time favorite products. Think I might post my favorite transformation, too. Maybe we'll get a gel stain commission check ;-)

I love what you've done with your cabinets! I've never heard of gel stain. What brand is it? What sort of protective covering did you put over it? Sorry, I'm just excited about the possibilities!

Wow, they look like cherry or mahogany! You are one clever woman. . . BTW, how does your "hate to change" DH feel about them now?!!

Thanks for sharing, they look great. This is a good example of cabinets that looked okay before but wow...much better afterwards!

What a difference! You didn't mention how you dh thought about it. I also have one of those "don't change anything" dh's. I've heard him tell others that he's always happy with the outcome when he sees the end result. You did a beautiful job, one to be very proud of :-)

Wow!! Beautiful!!! I have been planning to do something similar to my light maple cabinets, but I have never heard of gel stain (I was going to use regular stain). I have been putting it off out of fear, but you have given me courage!

A couple of questions:
1. Did you lightly sand the surface so the stain could adhere?
2. What did you use to seal it, and how did you do it?

Again, congratulations on a job very well done!

Wow! They look so warm and rich with great depth! Please let us know how you did it. How much prep did it take?

Oh, have to mention -- love the sign in the window on your first pic! Truly funny!!

Thanks guys! I am happy with them, enough so that a kitchen reno doesn't seem so pressing! Although I have not said that out loud to my DH- :)

Syllabus- sadly it is old, but if you can find one it would be worth every penny, I love it and would never get rid of it even when re-model time comes. It is 42" wide, and the second basin is about 18" deep.

Bama- apparently gel stain is designed for depth of color and evening out grain. Fiberglass doors use gel stain to give woodlike effects. There are many different manufacturers of gel stain but I used Minwax because they had it in stock and I was ready to get it done. General Finishes has a nice line of gel stains, I've learned through this forum. Sorry to make "protective coating" so mysterious, it is a semi-gloss poly.

Teeda- a big kiss to you, thanks I was really aiming for a cherry, mahogany look!

Marcia and Nccmama- As far as prep, no I did not sand, I only washed them down. I would hesitate to sand because I would worry about gel settling into the fine scratches? Others who used gel stain, went over existing finishes too with no trouble.

I did take off the doors and hardware though. I really have to give credit to a gal over on HGTV, she really coached me on what I would need to do in order to have them read faux wood, because they were painted. I think if you have regular wood cabinets already all you need to do either wipe on or use a foam applicator. I would love to help answer any specific question, because it really is easy and so worth it.

In comparison to painting cabinets gel staining was a breeze, a walk in the park, tons of fun and fast! It does take about a full 24 hours for it lose its tackiness so you can re-coat. Each coat darkens further so you could go over your cabinets several times to get them quite dark. When they dried I applied a coat of poly to seal and threw them back up.

Oh yes... DH of course loves them as he loves all finished projects, but only after much "frickum-frackum" mumbling, grumbling, and carrying on! It is a great bone of contention here, why must I change things!!! I don't dwell on it anymore, I just do it!

Anyway while you are all here, any ideas on window treatments? The house is old and I am a traditionalist at heart.

Your cabinets turned out fabulous! I too love the sink. As much as I like copper, I think the beadboard was a good change. It blends so much better with your counters and sink. I've used the gel stain on a picture frame and found it easy to use and I'm sure I will use it again.

Nice work!! Kitchen looks fresh and less-country, and that's a good thing!

Now...I have a gold framed mirror over my fireplace, I wonder what would happen if I put gel stain over the gold??

Fabulous, they look like new cherry cabs........great, inspiring job you've done and I think others will follow in your foot tracks on that one. Bead board goes so well with all of the other aspects of your kitchen. Curtains..lighter or more grey in them, they go but not really!

Mpdwmom,

I would try the gel stain on the mirror, I think it would age it or tone down the gold to more of a bronze. If you don't like it mineral spirits will wipe it right off, or even a rag if it doesn't sit too long. Part way through my project I decided I didn't like the look of my doors and went back and wiped them off with a rag and mineral spirits and re-did them.

Thanks Susan209, I'm not happy with the WT's either. At this point I've taken them down all together, which is fine for the winter but come summer I will need something to block the sun. I am considering a shade of some sort or panels. A valance does not work well because we have beautiful veiws of the lake from this side of the house and I hate to block them. I've been all over the internet and still haven't found anything that strikes my eye. I hate it when you are searching for something like a piece to a missing puzzle and nothing is coming up!

Wow, you did a great job. I'm going to take the plunge and buy some gel stain this week and begin to tackle a few projects I have in mind. I can only pray mine will come out half as nice as yours.

You mentioned a foam brush. Can gel stain also be rubbed on with a cloth? Also, if you use the foam brush, do you wipe any off?

Thanks for your help. Your cabinets are beauitful.

Beautiful transformation! And only $31.00 and one weekend? Very impressive!

What color red did you start out with? This is SOOOO gorgeous. I'm thinking maybe there is hope for my kitchen after all! Thank you so much for posting these pictures. I never would have believed it if I hadn't seen it!

Cindy M

Wow! What a great change, and a wonderful job you did. I can understand why you must be thrilled- bet you smile every time you walk into the kitchen!

Syllabus, here is a sink from Elkay that is similar to the one Never ending has. I did a search on commercial sinks and ended up at this site after looking in a couple of places, but I am guessing there is more out there.

double sink

I love this place, you guys are so kind!

Brutuses- yes you can wipe on. I layered my gel stain. The first coat was aged oak that I slapped on in a light layer, and then before it could dry I dabbed it back off with a washcloth to leave it mottled and textured...so you can wipe it off also. Sometimes on the corners I would blot off excess.
Next after the "oak" stain dried, I used the foam brush to draw down the wood grain in a "mahogany" gel stain. I did three doors with the mahogany stain and foam brush when I decided that the streaks looked "Too Heavy and Rustic" panicked,and wiped them all down with mineral spirits(took the stain right off) and redid them. I stepped back and still didn't like them, panicked again...started over and suddenly the gel stain was flowing smoothly, due to the mineral spirits thinning out the gel a bit. So I would like to point out even though I had read the gel stain could be thinned with mineral spirits, I didn't understand why you would want to until I saw why- thinner, more spreadable, more translucent in color. From that point on I did thin out the stain a bit for the rest of my doors. This is just some thing you guys may want to play with, like adding more milk to pancake batter or frosting!?! And if you were wiping on and wanted a more even all over color I would thin down a tiny bit. Hope that long winded explanation makes sense.

Clmeisen- the cabinets were originally painted with "Brick Dust" by Olympic at Lowes. I think any red would do, because it would only serve as a base color, with your gel stain providing the wood tones, let me know if you need any further advice I will post more detailed instructions for you.

Les, thanks.It means a lot coming from you, our resident expert!

I'm already thinking of my dining room table too, I'm telling ya besides mascara and concealer, gel stain is a girls best friend!

HOLY COW and WOW!! That ranks right up there as among the best of the best DIY cabs posted here! They look so rich! Well done, what an inspiration!

Could you post the pertinents? Paint color base? Stain color? Brand of poly used? Need details, this is a keeper! ;D

While you're at it, never_ending, was it a huge pain in the rear to get those tiles off? How'd you do it, and how long did it take you, and how did the drywall look once you finished?

Congrats on the finished product! Wonderful!

WOW!!! THAT is one a.m.a.z.i.n.g transformation!

And your new window valance also looks very pretty. Looks like you've unearthed a new talent :)

Wow! That looks great! Congrats.

DS just bought a condo with a looooong painted orange wall. Do you think he could use gel stain on painted sheetrock? Would end up looking like a wood wall?

He was going to pay someone to paint. No way he could glaze (I mentioned this to him already and he shot it down). Wonder if gel would work. I need to google. lol

Love the new look! Looks like you tore off the scalloped valance over the sink too? Makes a huge difference.

I would like to know how the beadboard is working out for you. I have a white tile backsplash AND counter (and it's on the end walls and over by the built-in desk, and, well, you get the idea, PO must've got a deal on it, LOL). Have wanted to replace it with something else, NOT tile, LOL. The beadboard looks perfect!

I love your sign too, and the chalkboard. So true...

HI All!

Moonshadow, certainly! I will be glad to post step by step instructions, can you hold on a few more days? I start vacation next week and I actually have a few pieces of moulding at different stages so I can show you how the color progresses with each step. Just need a minute to take pic's, I won't forget you I promise!

Walkin, lucky for me those copper tiles were put up in the early sixties and they were double sided tape-I really lucked out! The pain in the butt to remove them is the reason I'm hesitant to tile my backsplash, that has to be a mess.

Alison, thanks. I'm sure the paint would provide a barrier so the gel stain would sit on top and change the entire tone of the wall, I wonder if he'd be up for it because that would be such a cool design element!

Prairiegirl, so far it seems fine, and it is in a lot of kitchens. I did paint ceramic tiles in a bath once and they held up wonderfully til we moved. My in laws got me the blackboard and I remember opening it thinking"...princesses never cook?...hmm I cook. I wonder why they got me this. And then it dawned on me-I am not a princess! I always joke in a previous life I know I was a princess! lol

Wow, that transformation looks like a million bucks! What a good job you did! I love the beadboard too.

I'd like to know how you applied it, and if you wiped it off? How many coats did you put on?

Yes I have ideas galore for window treatments. Here is a link for you. See the Picture Gallery there for tons of gorgeous pics. You can buy the patterns there and the hardware. I understand the patterns are easy to follow. Enjoy!

Here is a link that might be useful: Southern Living WT patterns

Very rich looking! Amazing transformation....congrats!

Beautiful! I love the fact that you didn't just give up after painting the cabinets red. The red paint saved you from applying countless coats of gel stain. Serendipitious!

I just bought my gel stain. I had planned it before but seeing your pics gave me even more hope! Love it!!!

I saw your post on HGTV and came by to view the pictures. VERY NICE! They came out GREAT!

Minwax is offering a rebate for purchases through May 4 - see link below:

Here is a link that might be useful: National Woodworking Month Rebate

Was it hard to cut the beadboard for electrical outlets and light switches?

Hi, I want to do the same thing!!! Did you use a wood graining tool after application, did you sand your cabinets before? I am trying to find step by step directions. Is there a link or source I should look at? Thanks so much and they look wonderful.
Laurel

Hi All!

Here is my lists of supplies:

2 inch foam applicator brush
Minwax gel stain in Aged Oak and Mahogany
Minwax poly in semi gloss

Mineral spirits on hand

I DID NOT sand my cabinets prior to staining, I only cleaned them.

I did not use a graining tool. I just used the foam applicator brush to "pull" down the wood grain.

Here is a picture that shows the paint color, the stains, and how each looks with the different layers of color.

Color changes with one and two coats of stain:

Love the yard- I don't know since my husband did the cutting, but I would think there is way to do it. Maybe score with a utility knife?

Galvin, I think the post pretty much explains most of it. I used the red as my base coat, brushed on the aged oak, kinda mottled it with a wash cloth to add texture, let dry. After the first stain dried, I went over the cabinets with a thinned (thinned with mineral spirits) Mahogany in a painting motion to resemble wood grain. Cherry has a very fine grain so a graining tool would have looked out of place. I let that dry and followed up with poly. Anything in particular you were wondering about? I know it sounds simple, and it was.

Mary-Ruth thanks! I love how your painted chair turned out(hopefully that is you) I am doing mine now!

Thanks so much for the quick response. I am going to try it this weekend. I have white and this awful blue/purple color on my cabinets, will it work similar to the red? Your blog has been so helpful. Thanks for the time in explaining.