You will want to sand off the gloss and use a tack cloth or rag that won't leave lint behind before staining.
Be sure to wipe away excess stain after waiting the recommended time on the instructions on can.
They have stain sponges sold in big box stores, or use soft rag or brush it on.
Good luck to you. It's a lot of work, but well worth it if you achieve the look you're going for.

You'll get the most depth of color from the stain (and in fewer coats) if you use a brush to apply it, if you're not sure quite how dark you want it, use a cloth to wipe it on and off and you can control it better.

Try to do it on a dry day, gel stain takes a bit longer to dry than regular stain since it's a lot thicker and the more humid it is, the longer it'll take to dry between coats.

Make sure the cabinets are cleaned well before roughing up the gloss finish on them with a sanding block or sand paper.

Have mineral spirits handy for clean up.

Thanks!! Should I use the mineral spirits on the cabinets first then stain them? Or just use the mineral spirits for places the gel stain might accidentally get on.

Just use it if the gel stain gets where you don't want it, the only thing I've used on wood before staining (with regular stain) is denatured alcohol, but I didn't use it when I gel-stained the bathroom cabinets, just a good thorough cleaning and light sanding with a sanding sponge to rough up the finish.

Good luck, and post pics when you're done. :)

Test it on back side of the sink cabinet door :)

Good luck and wear gloves!

I did 1980s walnut cabinets by

1 - Washing them with soap and water to get the grunge off
2 - Wiping them with mineral spirits to get rid of soap.
3 - Wiping on the General Finishes Gel Stain (smoother and spreads better than minwax)
4 - Wiping on a coat of GF urethane gel top coat.

Thank you! I will post back when I finish it! I start next weekend!

Good luck!

Here's the thread where Buehl reposted celticmoon's gel stain instructions. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Celticmoon's gel stain instructions

P.S. I see it says "please don't respond to thread", meaning that if you respond, it will go to Buehl, and she was just doing a favor reposting the instructions. She won't be able to answer any questions and celticmoon won't see it.

(and...sorry Buehl, I actually posted this in the wrong thread myself as I was re-reading celticmoon's great instructions! Sorry!)

P.S. I see it says "please don't respond to thread", meaning that if you respond, it will go to Buehl, and she was just doing a favor reposting the instructions. She won't be able to answer any questions and celticmoon won't see it.

(and...sorry Buehl, I actually posted this in the wrong thread myself as I was re-reading celticmoon's great instructions! Sorry!)

OO Thanks for that link!
They don't sell that 'general' brand anywhere by me. That is why I have the minwax brand gelstain. So far I did the upper frame and I am starting the doors tomorrow. I am wondering, how does one go about cleaning the brush after with the mineral spirits? Do I leave it sit in a cup to soak? I had a HARD time cleaning up I would get clean then use water and seem worse off again.
I also wonder, if anyone used the Minwax Gelstain - does it need a coat of that urethan gel? it seems to look pretty finished - but maybe the clear coat is more for protection?