How to Update Your Kitchen Cabinets without Replacing Them | Real Estate

Let’s face it: Buying a new house is expensive these days. And remodeling your existing one? That’s costly and time-consuming.

Fortunately, a full revamp isn’t your only option if a kitchen facelift is on your agenda. There are actually many ways to refresh your space – and specifically, your cabinets – without investing a ton of time or resources into the task.

Are you looking to give your kitchen cabinets a new look without breaking the bank? Try one of these six simple, yet impactful strategies.

Refacing your cabinets essentially gives them an entirely new look and feel without having to tear them out and replace them.

With this strategy, you remove the existing drawers and cabinet doors, add a new paint, stain, veneer or laminate to the cabinet boxes (there are even peel-and-stick options available), and then install new drawers and doors to match.

“Cabinet boxes experience far less wear and tear than the doors, so it is often a waste to replace them along with the doors,” says Teri Simone, head of design and marketing for Nieu Cabinet Doors. “It’s actually a more sustainable and cost-effective solution to reface the cabinet boxes and drawers with new doors and give the existing boxes a fresh coat of paint to make everything match. New doors can be custom ordered in whatever style and color suits your design vision, and the project can be completed within a weekend. Refacing can make your kitchen look completely refurbished without the cost and inconvenience of a total renovation.”

If you want an even easier way to refresh your cabinets, a new coat of paint will work. You’ll still need to remove the doors and drawers to make sure no spots are missed, but aside from this, all it takes is some sanding, painting and a few hours of work, and your cabinets have a whole new look.

“Paint is always a great option for a dramatic change to your existing cabinets,” says Rachel Robarge, head of design at June Homes. “Once you remove the doors, all surfaces that will be painted need to be sanded thoroughly so that the paint sticks well. Typically, you want to use an acrylic paint that has a semigloss or gloss finish. If you are able to use one, a paint sprayer will give you a seamless look with no streaks.”

When you remove your doors and drawers, take off any handles, knobs or other hardware, too – and make sure to keep good track of them.

“A great tip for staying organized is to label each door so you know which cabinet box it matches, and store the hinges and hardware in labeled Ziploc bags,” Simone says. “This will make it far easier to reinstall everything in the right place once the paint is dry.”

If you have wood cabinets, giving them a new stain can offer a similar facelift. Even better? As long as you’re going at least a shade darker, you don’t even need to fully sand the cabinets.

“You don’t have to strip the finish to apply a new stain color,” says James Cork, a longtime remodeler and project editor at Family Handyman. “You just lightly scuff the old finish with some steel wool, clean them thoroughly and apply the stain on…