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fnzzy

White or Antiqued/Glazed White

fnzzy
16 years ago

I'm trying to decide - I see all these beautiful pictures of white/black kitchens and I can't tell if everyone has pure white cabinets or something that is just shy of white. I'm looking at maple, painted white - but the company (kemper) offers a glaze called Amaretto Creme which has slight dark rub on the edges. I'm not sure if that would give the older style kitchen look I'm after(probably dark soapstone counters, darker wood floor), while still appearing overall to be white or if I really should just stick with pure white. I'm afraid pure white will look too stark and antiseptic but I'm equally afraid that doing anything but white will not give me the look I want.

Any thoughts?

For instance, these are some kitchens I like the style of from the FKB

http://s115.photobucket.com/albums/n283/rotag5/

http://finishedkitchens.blogspot.com/2005/06/orchidluvrs-kitchen.html

And this is the cabinet style I am probably getting, the first is the glaze, the second is the white :

{{!gwi}}


{{!gwi}}

Thanks for humoring my obsessive nature!! (DH just nods and says "whatever") And for helping me out! I'm so glad I found this forum. Everyone here is the best.

Comments (15)

  • california_dreamer
    16 years ago

    I'm getting very similar doors and am going for a similar look as you. After much back and forth I finally settled on no glaze. My paint color is not "pure white" though- it is more creamy (I think it is called Buttermilk).
    As much as I liked the idea of the glaze I eventually decided that I would likely get tired of the "faux" look of the darker edges. I also thought they had a slightly dirty look to them up close. This is just my personal preference. As I said, I went back and forth on this for weeks!
    You probably can't go wrong either way.
    Good luck with your decision.

  • rmkitchen
    16 years ago

    I love those kitchens, too! And like you, we'll be doing a black & white kitchen: white perimeter, black island. I really, really wanted a clear, true white (like your latter) for our cabinets; my husband did not. I KNEW I had to get what I wanted, otherwise I'd always begrudge the "dirty-looking" cabinets.

    Well, we brought samples home and all the clear, true whites were just too bright, too blue for our space. We tried many different whites. Many.

    It turns out that for our space a creamier white (not a white with a glaze, as you mentioned) is the way to go. They'll be Sherwin Williams' Dover White.

    You might also want to check out this gorgeous kitchen. It's a bright white (Sherwin Williams' Pure White) and I think it looks great there, with their lighting conditions.

    Have you brought the two samples home to see how they look in your space? I'll be interested in hearing what you think.

    Good luck!

  • fnzzy
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    I do adore that antiqued look, even if its faked and yes, it can look dirty, but it saves me from cleaning a bit lol. So I know I would like the antiqued doors if we go that way and i know I would like the white if we go that way - that's my problem - I like them both. But mostly I want "THE" look, and don't know which way would best get me there. And it IS hard to tell in any of the pictures that I see. I ask myself, "Is the lighting like mine, is the natural light like mine, is the camera taking the picture changing the color, is it brighter in person, is it warmer in person."

    I love the "somethings got to give" kitchen pic - I saw that yesterday but couldn't find it today again. I actually made DH come stare at it as an example as to why we should go with pure white. Again he looked at me and said 'whatever'. To him white is white is white is white. haha.

    The white from this company is pure white though not as bright as laminate, but still, unmistakably white. I've got both in the house and I still can't decide.

  • Fori
    16 years ago

    White! Antique them yourself with dirt and wear. :)

  • rmkitchen
    16 years ago

    After reading your follow-up post, I think I understand better.

    I believe (but don't know) that most of the kitchens you're seeing (and loving) are not glazed but rather a brighter white. That being said, I'm not sure if they are as bright as the sample you have pictured above.

    I also think that if they're not a bright white, then they are a slightly creamy white, but only slightly creamy. I really think that's "'THE' look" of which you wrote.

    However, it reads that you really love the glazed door. Did I understand you correctly? In that case, then I think you should obey your lust and go with the glaze. Or, like fori wrote, get the white and let time give you a glaze. If it bugs you, you'll always be able to TSP them back to white.

    Only you know which is more important to you: achieving "THE" look (with the clear white) or getting to love on a daily basis the glazed look.

    It's not easy, is it?

  • beth35
    16 years ago

    I understand your dilemma all too well--this post could have been mine 8 months ago! I, too, wanted "the look", but also absolutely adored the island in my old kitchen that was glazed with a butcher block top and was set on doing a glaze on my cabinets. I went through a lot of magazines looking for glazed cabinets with black granite and the shaker inset cabinets and they had a completely different look and I realized I had to decide which of the two styles I liked the best--the something's gotta give look or the Euro-country/old world look. (Fortunately that post of mine as rolled off! LOL) Like one of the other posters, I was afraid that mixing them would end up looking like a dirty something's gotta give kitchen.

    After agonizing over it to the point of obsession, I decided I wanted the look you are talking about and went with a creamy white cabinet that looks white until you put it up against a true white, literally "Creamy" from Sherwin Williams. I thought if I really felt my kitchen wasn't complete without the glaze, I could always add it later or just add it for a different look in 10 years.

    My advice would be to look at as many pictures of kitchens as possible and see which ones you respond to the best and then see what color their cabinets are. No reason for me to have an exclusive on the insanity! :) But really, the end result will be worth all of the agony of the process. Good luck with your decision!

  • zoey_neohio
    16 years ago

    My kitchen is on hold because I can't decide on the color or tone of white for the cabinets either. My dream kitchen was white cabinets, dark counter and wood floor just like yours, but there have been kitchens posted here that are creamy white that I am loving. So, should I stay true to my dream or change? Sometimes I think the white are just too stark.

    I guess the question here would be to those who choose white... Why white and not creamy white? And for those that chose Creamy white...why not white? What made you pick the color you did?

    Buffetgirl, when I saw the url's you posted, I knew exactly whose kitchens they were. I have them saved, also!!

    Here are some more of my favorites. What to do....what to do??

    What's not to like?

    Sooooo cottegey

    Love it!!

    Oh, and this is very nice!

  • fnzzy
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    it sure isn't easy! I need to make a decision on this because we're going to start construction in a few weeks (hopefully) and I want this done and off my mind. Unfortunately, unless I want to start from scratch with a different kitchen designer/company those are my two options - there are no other white colors, so I can't go for an almost white paint without the glaze. ARGGG.

    Maybe that's what I need to do though - except this designer/company works well with my GC and so they work out all the nitty gritty amongst themselves.

    ARRGG again. I'm so torn. I want to LOVE what I pick. I'm not there yet. I try to explain to the hubby that this is something we have to like for a long long time.

  • dianalo
    16 years ago

    Hey,
    Personally, the pure white looks crisp, perky and clean. I think the glazes may look dated in a few years whereas white is always classic. I also get bothered with glaze in that it can look dirty to me, especially on white cabs. The whiter white also matches better with appliances and linens.
    Add in the fact that one pays more for glaze and the decision gets really easy for me. If you were deciding between off white and white, then the decision might be harder as those are apples and oranges. I don't know if there is any way you can find a less bright white by encouraging your KD more to find you another option, but I would skip the glaze unless you are 100% certain you want it.
    HTH

  • kitchendetective
    16 years ago

    Where is the source/sources of light in your kitchen? Northern light? Western light? What will the light in your kitchen do to your whites? For instance, I have natural east and west light in my kitchen, but I am partly in the woods, so even bright white gets dulled down a bit during the day time. If I had bright, open natural light, I'm sure bright white paint would show up whiter. How the whites look in your specific kitchen conditions is important in your decision.

  • twoscoops
    16 years ago

    Have you taken the Sweeby test yet? It may help with your decision.
    I'm not a pure white person, my cabinets are a creamy color with an espresso glaze because it was important to me that the cabinets read warm. Can you live with varitation? Glazing isn't uniform and while I love the look, I know my sister will think they look dirty; to me they look warm and the glaze picks up the tones of the red oak flooring and wainscotting. I'm not worried about my kitchen looking dated because of the glaze~it harmonizes with the style of our extended cape, and its part of what makes this kitchen mine. Go with your gut and you won't be disappointed.

  • fnzzy
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Thanks for the Sweeby Test but google brought me right to the page. (I didn't' know it had a name lol) but that's what I was doing in my head, so when I think of my dream kitchen, I see it as warm, cozy, antique, casual. So I think I've just solved my problem. White will be too white. I think the glaze still reads white, just white as if its been there for 100 years. Our floor will be a darker, warmer wood. Our island counter top will be wood to warm it up as well, with the dark granite or soapstone counters. I keep using the word warm and old whenever I describe the kitchen. So white isn't warm and old.

    YAY! I think I've made a decision!

  • linley1
    16 years ago

    Buffettgirl -

    Not to confuse things more... but have you looked at Kemper's Pearl finish? It's not a glaze. It's an off-white creamy painted finish. Looks very clean and warm.

  • fnzzy
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    linley - yes, that was my first choice. Online it looks creamy but it looks nothing like that in person. I actually liked it better at home - its much greyer - online it really doesn't do the color justice. Anyway, we were settled that we were going with the pearl color - a month ago. And I kept thinking that I should be EXCITED about it, but I wasn't. And the more I looked at the pearl color the more I hated it. I just couldn't make it work in my mind and I thought "this is stupid, you're looking at the color and you don't like it" And that's what started this flip flop in which I started over with the white/antiqued finish issue.

  • longislandinnj
    16 years ago

    I skipped glazing; it was 10% less $ and my husband didn't like it. I am very happy with my off "soft" white - it matches Benjamin Moore "Navajo" white. I think the look is soft yet still traditional with lasting power.