Okay Here is a new one on me.

Wife wants all my old birch plywood cabinettes redone and so do I. We don't have the money to replace them. I am thinking of painting them but most of the painted cabinettes i have scene look cheap and most look bad. I want an improvement not the other way LOL. She wants cherry finished cabinettes. Thinking of sanding a lot and trying cherry stain and poly. Any ideas? Has this wroked for you?

Your biggest problem will be the fact that the present finish has sealed the wood and even after stripping and sanding typical stains will not penetrate evenly. To get a cherry stain look you will have to use a "gel" stain on completely sealed wood to create a "faux finish". The application of the stain "creates" the "grain pattern" not the wood. Such work is an art and takes practice.

A friend of ours learned to do this kind of finishing by taking a course at the local community college, she has produced some beautiful pieces of furniture -- I personnaly would not attempt it.

But if you are game, get some scrap plywood, sand it smooth, seal it with sanding sealer and give it a whirl. For techniques ai suggest you search the net for "faux painting" or "faux finsihes".

If you like your results and go ahead and strip your doors you MUST be sure to strip off all the old finish evenly, then seal it all up or the stain may find some porous spots and penetrate creating a blotchly look.

Have you investigated the cabinet refinishing companies that save you money by putting new doors and thin wood veneer on your existing cabinets? This might be the best way to get your Cherry cabinets on a tight budget.

painting your cabinets with a soft white, then applying a umber glaze over that, then poly will give your gorgous faux finish, not to mention a updated kitchen

"decorator", if I do that, how do I prepare the cabinets? Mine are oak, in very good conditions for being from the 80's era. --Liz
(your idea is EXACTLY the look I've been wanting).

I can give you directions on doing a fairly easy cherry finish, however you are going to have to purchase your products from here. www.aquafinishing.com

After initial prep work, apply primer using Aquabond in a Woody Yellow or Terra Cotta depending on the type of cherry you wish to achieve. Use Aqua Stain & Seal in either cherry or antique cherry. Apply with a regular or foam brush. Check out their topcoats for the one you think would be appropriate for your usage.

This makes a beautiful cherry finish in itself, no need to add any wood graining. There may be a distributor in your area. If you are interested email me and I can get you a list of people who are closest to you.