Walnut is fine for cabinets. Unaltered walnut is much lighter than the walnut in furniture or that used in home decorating. Most walnut used in those areas is stained. The reason for staining/multi-stepped finishing is because the plain wood has a lot of different colors and differences in grain from one board to another. So, putting several boards together to make a cabinet or a cabinet door will result in a striped effect.

Walnut can be stained a little darker or very dark. Or many shades in between. The darker the stain, the less the grain differences show.

Thanks handymac.
I was hoping to hear that. The variance in colours will make me crazy so staining it will be!

"Unaltered walnut is much lighter than the walnut in furniture or that used in home decorating. "

You need to see some actual samples.
Walnut varies greatly from a medium brown to very dark with black tints.

Walnut varies greatly from a medium brown to very dark with black tints.

I have seen walnut from almost white (very blonde) to very dark.
The sapwood tends toward the lighter colors.
The heartwood yields the darker colors.

Walnut can be bleached out and stained to get the desired color.
This is not as easy as it sounds.

Pooh Bear

I think kitchen cabinet doors would need to be plywood, but walnut plywood is available, of course. As mentioned, find a sample.

Walnut ranges is color, from near purple, to tan. Sapwood is cream colored. And some folks mistake butternut (also tan) for walnut.

Walnut is a fine cabinet wood, because of its strength, workability, and look. The smell of walnut sawdust is also nice, up there with good chocolate.

The kiln drying process (steam injected) makes the wood more homogeneous in color. On the other hand, air-dried walnut boards keeps their distinctive coloring.

Air dried walnut:

{{!gwi}}

Some folks keep wine in the basement. Other folks, well...
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