I bought unfinished kitchen cabinets and i am primering, painting, and glazing them. they are to be white with a dark colored glaze. how do i use the glaze to achieve the "border" around the inside of the doors? I was told to treat it like stain...just rub it on and wipe it off, but I am not sure what I'm really doing and the directions on the bottle are pretty much non-existent. just says to follow the directions in the lowes faux how-to guide, and i don't have that. thanks for any detailed help you can give!
I have some glaze from lowes. it's in a jug, so it's not going to be sprayed. it's a colored glaze that is supposed to settle into the "crevices" in the edge of the doors...the lady told me to treat it just like stain, but i have practiced with it and it leaves color on the paint also, do i need to wash off the excess?....


My husband and I bought all new unfinished kitchen cabinets. They are oak. I bought a colored stain. Since they are oak, they don't absorb a whole lot of stain, but that's okay. But when it comes to applying the polyurethane, is a foam brush okay our should I stick with a regular brush? Also how many coats of finish should I apply? 2 or 3? I understand that with each coat I need to let it dry 4-6 hours and with the final coat, it says 24 hours. Also, why do we need to sand between each dry coat? If anyone has done this before and has some helpful hints, I would appreciate it!


When considering a kitchen update on a limited budget there are several ways to achieve a brand new look without breaking the bank. One of the cheapest ways to do this would be to buy unfinished kitchen cabinets. These are simply the basic cabinets that you can buy ready assembled or as a flat pack for self assembly.

6 each: Parker & Bailey Kitchen Cabinet Cream (580469) 6 each: Parker & Bailey Kitchen Cabinet Cream (580469)
List Price: $38.94
Sale Price: $27.70

Sold as one unit. (1 unit = 6 each.) 8 oz. Removes dirt, grease, fingerprints and grime from cabinet surfaces. Cleans and polishes wood to renew surface. Contains no waxes or silicones. Non-toxic, safe around food...

Prepac Elite Collection 32-Inch Storage Cabinet Prepac Elite Collection 32-Inch Storage Cabinet
List Price: $215.86
Sale Price: $129.99

This Storage Cabinet is 16 inches deep instead of the standard 12 inches for 34% more storage! It has two adjustable shelves and one fixed. Use alone or add the optional 32” Topper (WEW-3224) to vertically expand to 89” high storage...

Howard FW0016 Feed-N-Wax Wood Polish and Conditioner, 16-Ounces Howard FW0016 Feed-N-Wax Wood Polish and Conditioner, 16-Ounces
List Price: $6.99
Sale Price: $5.44

Household Essentials StowAway In Wall Ironing Board, Unfinished Oak Household Essentials StowAway In Wall Ironing Board, Unfinished Oak
List Price: $209.99
Sale Price: $161.35

Discover the efficiency of the StowAway In-Wall Ironing Board (see Presentation Video). This easy-to-use board installs between the framing studs in your wall, so your ironing board stays out of sight but close at hand...

Winsome Wood Baker's Rack, Natural Winsome Wood Baker's Rack, Natural
List Price: $187.49
Sale Price: Too low to display

Need a convenient place to store all those cookbooks? Wish you could have an indoor garden in a tiny studio apartment? Wondering what to do with the kids' latest art projects? Winsome Wood's baker's rack makes attractive and space-efficient use of otherwise empty spaces...

Wood Linen Cabinet Wood Linen Cabinet
List Price: $269.91
Sale Price: $103.05

Closet space can be hard to come by, so when you need a little more room for bathroom and bedroom extras, consider a wood linen cabinet. The plain white wood design allows it to fit in with many decorating schemes, and can even be made to match such things as wallpaper, by decorating it with dried flower wreaths or crepe paper bows...

Home Styles 5023-95 Wood Top Kitchen Cart, Natural Home Styles 5023-95 Wood Top Kitchen Cart, Natural
List Price: $555.00
Sale Price: $324.69

Finish:Natural Three separate storage areas with raised panel doors and adjustable shelves Heavy duty locking rubber casters Two utility drawers, towel bar and kitchen tool caddy Brushed steel hardware

Prepac Elite Collection 16-Inch Broom Cabinet Prepac Elite Collection 16-Inch Broom Cabinet
List Price: $154.20
Sale Price: $114.69

This slim cabinet has no fixed center shelf, making it ideal for storing brooms and other tall items. At 16 inches deep instead of the standard 12 inches, it holds 34% more storage and has two adjustable shelves...

Sunco Inc 60' Sink Base Cabinet Sb60rt Kitchen Cabinet Finished Ready To Assemble Sunco Inc 60' Sink Base Cabinet Sb60rt Kitchen Cabinet Finished Ready To Assemble
List Price: $236.00
Sale Price: $300.43

Randolph, 60' Wide x 24' Depth, Raised Panel Light Oak Base Cabinet, 4 Doors With 3/4' Solid Doors, Drawers, Face Frame, 1/2' Plywood Sides, Standard Overlay With 1' Reveal, Integrated Finger Pull On Drawers & Doors, 2 False Drawer Fronts & 2 Working Drawers, Ready To Assemble.

J.K. Adams WSR-1025 Stemware Rack J.K. Adams WSR-1025 Stemware Rack
List Price: $32.00
Sale Price: $29.95

Organize stemmed wine glasses tih the J.K. Adams WSR-1025 Stemware Rack. This way, your stemware collection is out of harms way and you are able to free up valuable shelf space. This J.K. Adams stemware storage rack mounts directly onto kitchen or pantry shelves...

Your choice will probably depend on how skilled you are in assembling these DIY flat packs.  Most unfinished kitchen cabinets would come without the hardware such as knobs and hinges. This is actually a good thing because you can then match the hardware to your kitchen design.

For instance, if you are aiming for a modern feel, then hidden hinges and smooth, sleek handles would probably be appropriate. On the other hand, if you are going for a farmhouse kitchen look then chunky wooden knobs and maybe fancy visible hinges would look great.

You can purchase unfinished cabinets from your local store or online. The beauty of shopping online is that you can compare prices and styles from several sources without having to trail around all the different stores to find exactly what you are looking for. Alternatively, you could simply do your research online, then go and visit stores that sell unfinished kitchen cabinets, armed with some knowledge about price and the style that you want to buy.

When you have bought your unfinished kitchen cabinets and your chosen paint, stain or glaze, you will first need to test the finish on an unseen area of your cabinet. What looked like the perfect shade of yellow for your kitchen on the can may quite easily look totally different on the wood of the cabinet. It is better to test before you start so you are absolutely sure that the finish you want is the finish that you will get!

The professionals recommend that you use a primer on your unfinished kitchen cabinets before you move on to the actual finish. But, be sure to check out any manufacturers instructions that come with your cabinets first, before even opening your cans of paint, stain or glaze.

There are lots of books on the market that will give you some great ideas on all the different types of finishes available to use on unfinished kitchen cabinets, along with detailed instructions on how to achieve them.

Buying unfinished kitchen cabinets to revamp a tired kitchen is a simple and cost effective way to produce a new kitchen that will give you a lot of years service at a very reasonable cost.

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