They make it look so easy on TV

Thanks to the DIY and HGTV channels I think I can do anything! They magically do whole room make overs in 2 days, do backyard landscape complete with outdoor kitchen in 3 days, and never make a mistake that would set them back. Okay so it's the magic of 
television but they make me believe! They made me believe I could transform my 1980's cabinets into a modern work of art with nothing more than a few gallons of paint and a little glaze. Maybe not a work of art and it sure wasn't over night, but I came up with something I'm happy with. This is what I started with----------->
Luck for me I did have real wood cabinets. I was able to sand all the cabinets so they would accept the paint. We also reconfigured the layout of the cabinets. We had to figure out how many existing cabinets we could still use. For the Island, we just bought unfinished stock cabinets. We were able to use most of the old cabinets with a few modifications. I can now say I have custom cabinets! We cut some in half, cut the bottom off others, and just rearranged others. We got very creative. 


My "new" dining room became the work station with a make-shift work bench. I had mountains of cabinets and cabinet doors. It felt never ending!! 

 It was sanding then painting then sanding then painting again, sometimes it took a third cycle. I used Behr Premium Plus Ultra paint from Home Depot. It has the paint and primer in one. It's very thick but easy to work with.

 I just used a Purdy brand brush and brushed all the cabinet doors to get a nice smooth finish. I used a fine nap mini roller to paint the sides and shelves. I used a spray paint to finish the insides of the cabinets.

I was very pleased with the final finish of the base coat of the cabinet doors

Chocolate colored glaze was applied

Once this was done we glazed all the cabinets to achieve a "antique" look. We added new hardware and we are one cabinet away from being totally finished. Even though this was a long process and a lot of work, I saved a $2,000-$3,000 or more on cabinets. I will post photos later of the completed kitchen and island when everything is done. I plan to do a before and after slide show later also.