Solid colour finishing/refinishing

Solid colour cabinet refinishing is our core service. Usually costing only about half of the cost of a reface, it is also our most popular option.

Any cabinet can be refinished in a solid colour, though depending on the type of cabinet you have, you may be limited to the colour you can select. If you cabinets are smooth grained wood such as maple, birch, fir, poplar, alder or the like, then your finish colour options are virtually unlimited. If, on the other hand, you have oak or ash cabinets, then you may wish to review this page for more information on the finish options available to you.

Solid colour finishes look great on any type of cabinetry. Whites and cremes work well on shaker style doors to give a casual, comfortable appearance, while going black on a shaker looks sleek and stylish. On a raised panel style door, black looks more traditional and mysterious, while white tends to wash out this type of door styles detail (unless the door is glazed, enhancing the recesses). But you're not limited to just blacks and whites - we have over 1200 pre-formulated colour options available, and if you already have a colour in mind, we can always match it

Staining - the classic wood finish.

The purpose of a stain is to enhance the beauty of the wood it is applied to, so it follows that stains tend to look best on wood with good figure -such as maple, walnut and mahogany, and other exotic species of wood such as brazillian cherry.

Certain colors can be applied to inexpensive woods to emulate the more expensive wood types. The trick is to use woods with similar grains. For example, maple can be stained to appear as cherry, poplar can be used as a substitute for white oak, and alder is often employed to imitate birch or walnut. A distressed, vintage look can be created by staining a surface and then removing the stain from selected areas, particularly edges and corners.

The stain finish option we offer is called a "multi-step", and is used on interior centerpieces like built-ins, railings, interior doors and casings, and exterior features such as front doors.

A multi-step finish is an involved stain process that ensures a uniform, beauiful wood finish - even across multiple species of wood.The difference between a multis-step finish and a simple stain finish is, as you've probably guessed, the number of finish steps involved. While a simple stain application requires no more than adequate sanding before application, a multi-step involves sanding through multiple grits, applying washcoats or conditioners, wiping or spray stains and dyes, toners, glazes and clears. The specific steps required, and the order they are completed in, depend on the wood species and colour selected.

There is really no limit to what stain colour you can choose for your woodwork. Practically any colour can be custom made to your liking. You stain finishes can also be enhanced with dimensional effects like glazing, or faux effects like crackling.

Glazing works beautifully on stained or solid finished surfaces, or when used in combination with crackling and distressing.

A glaze finish serves to add dimension to a piece. On traditional styled raised panel doors, a glaze enhances the look of both stain and solid colour finishes.

Glaze can also be used to create an aged or antiqued effect, making the piece look old and worn. However glazes are normally used to enhance the underlying colour, or to add definition to recessed areas of doors.

Another form of glazing is called "chalking", only the difference is in how it's removed from the surface. While traditional glaze is wiped on, chalking is done by spraying the glaze and scrubbing it off to leave straight streaks of glaze. The chalking effect can be either pronounced, or it can be washed out and barely visible. A single glaze colour can be used, or multiple glaze applications in different colours can be chosen to give a truly custom apperance. There are virutally unlimited variations of the glazed and chalked effects to create a truly unique and personalized finish.

Rub through is a unique finish that works great with raised panel doors.

A rub-through finish is a finish where (usually) the underlying wood is stained to any colour, and a solid colour topcoat is applied over the stain. The solid colour topcoat is "rubbed through" on the edges, revealing the stain beneath, then clearcoated to protect the stain and solid colour layers.

Stain/topcoat colour options are virtually unlimited, though certain colours tend to work better together, such as espresso stains with white topcoats, or cherry stains with black topcoats. To enhance a rubthrough finish, a glaze can be applied over the finish for even more depth and character.

Crackle can enhance a glazed finish, or use to create an antiqued effect.

A crackle finish is used to add an aged look to cabinets or other wood pieces. The crackle can be applied heavily, to reproduce a very old and 'weathered' look, or it can be applied sparingly to give only a hint of aging.

Crackle finishes work best when combined with a glaze to enhance the effect and give it some depth.