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There are many areas of home improvement that can be undertaken as a simple upgrade or re-working that will provide nearly the same end result as replacement. Kitchen cabinets are one of them. Unless you are doing a complete layout or radical style change, replacement may yield the same end result as an upgrade, maybe better for a lot less time, labor and money.

Re-staining natural wood is a chore, but older painted cabinet doors and frames can be taken back to natural wood using any number of chemical products on the market. Stain permeates the wood, but paint is only skin (paint layers) deep and easier for the frugal re-modeler . Once you get past the smell, some paint removing products tend to lack in the odor department, you’re ready to paint. In fact once you are back to natural wood staining is now an option.

Choosing a stain or paint color might be influenced by your cabinet door hinges. If your planning to replace them, then hinge and cabinet finish, paint or stain can be chosen to complement each other before the work begins. If the old hinges will blend with your color choice and can be just cleaned and left as is, and you are handy with masking tape, you can save the labor of removing and replacing the doors and hinges while you paint or stain.

This might be especially prudent if this kitchen improvement project is a stop gap measure to “brighten up” the kitchen while you save for that total kitchen remodeling job in the future. If you’ve studied all your choices and the quick and cheap paint job comes out the winner you only need to get the right paint and an assortment of brushes.

Most modern enamels will easily cover all but the most gaudy awful bright colors with ease. What it won’t cover, at least not well, is the accumulated kitchen grease. Use a strong degreasing detergent cleaner before you add your bright splash of Lemon Yellow or Bright Apply Red to the wooden cabinets and frame.

If you’ve gone the quick and frugal route then the hinges are still up. Before you clean the cabinet doors, use a stiff scrub brush and really clean those hinges. After doing so, this is the point where many people decide to spend a bit more and replace the hinges. However if they are not pitted and corroded you may be surprised at how nice they clean up.