You have been living in the same house for a number of years, and your kitchen and bathroom cabinets are starting to show it. Even when you give them a good scrubbing, they never look completely clean. They are dreary and look more than their age. So what do you do?

One option is to replace your kitchen, but that is very expensive and unless you are fortunate enough to have the funds available that is often the last option for many people.

Another option is to reface your cabinets. In other words, rather than ripping them out and buying new ones, you simply change the doors and fronts of drawers. If the actual cupboards and countertops are still in good condition, this can be a very suitable option. However, it is difficult to do this yourself unless you are very good at carpentry and it can also be quite expensive (though still cheaper and less messy than getting your entire kitchen remodeled).

The third and easiest option is to refinish your cabinets. What this means is that you can repaint the doors and then add a professional touch by applying a good coating of glaze or stain. This is the cheapest option by far and it also doesn’t need to take up too much of your time or make too much of a mess.

Here are some tips to help you:

• Take a look at your kitchen in general and decide what kind of look you want. A lot depends on the general style that you already have. For example, painting your cabinets in a space-age silver color might look a bit odd if the rest of the room is in an antique, country style.
• Before starting, clean the cupboards very well, as ugly grease stains could really spoil the finished product.
• Make sure to buy everything you need first and make sure that it is right next to you as you work. If you have young children, try to do this work either when they are sleeping or at kindergarten. Make sure that all dangerous materials are put away out of their reach by the time they come home.

If you are not sure exactly how to refinish your cabinets, you might like to look up some interior designs on the Internet or go to your local library and read some style books or magazines. Maybe ask your friends what they did. There are some great ideas and looks out there.

• For example, maybe you would want a faux antique look, or perhaps you would like a glaze or a crackled finish.
• Perhaps you don’t have time to repaint, in which case, staining may be enough. A good stain over an existing painted surface can be enough to change the look to make it appear like new.

Whatever you decide, the main thing is to work very hard and do the best you can to make it look good. Once you have done the work and put the cabinets back together, your friends probably won’t believe that you did this yourself because it will make your kitchen look like new!