Update. The kitchen in my rental house is fairly complete. I was able to "paint/poly" the cabinets to give them an updated look. I added longer Ikea stainless looking handles. I also found some great contemporary light fixtures from Ikea and Home Depot. They really change the feeling. The inexpensive under mount florescent lights from Ikea really add a warm glow to the work surface. New black appliances blend in for a cohesive look (to be added later this week). I painted the walls in a warm Navajo White and the ceiling and trim a pure white from
Benjamin Moore. Finally a great easy to install laminate floor grounds the space and gives an updated clean look. All this for $1500 and a bit of time. I am so happy with the results. Check out the before and after.
Here are the steps I took to change the cabinets. The first coat is a glaze mixed with ugly orangy red paint. The second coat is a glaze mixed with a dark brown. The third coats are a
Minwax Poly Stain. I mixed their Black and Antique Walnut. Their Tudor color would work as well. I applied the third coat thin. I then applied a fourth coat of the same Poly Stain and that is the result you see in the after shot.
