Refacing Kitchen Cabinets: How to Reface Your Cabinets

Cabinet refacing involves reskinning the cabinet boxes and replacing the cabinet doors. If you don’t want to replace the cabinet doors, give them a new look by refinishing the existing cabinets to match the refaced cabinet boxes.

While some people use the terms interchangeably, refacing involves placing new material over the existing product while refinishing can refer to more minor cosmetic changes. Learn how to refinish kitchen cabinets yourself.

As a DIY project, cabinet refacing has numerous advantages. For one, refacing costs less than installing new cabinets, and if you’re planning a kitchen remodel on a budget, it’s an option to consider. Even if you opt to replace the cabinet doors, it’s still less wasteful than a total cabinet replacement since you’re putting material on top of your existing cabinet boxes rather than sending the used cabinetry to your local landfill.

That said, refacing does have its limitations as a remodeling technique. It doesn’t allow you to change your kitchen layout or functionality since you’re only adding a new veneer to your current kitchen design. So if you find that your cabinetry doesn’t provide you with enough space or isn’t situated where you want it to be, refacing won’t be helpful. It can only change the look of your kitchen, not the functionality.

Additionally, veneering requires careful attention and precision to achieve a high-quality look, which can be a challenge for a first-timer.

If you plan to gift yourself a new kitchen through refacing, here’s what you’ll need:

• Carpenter’s glue: You’ll need heavy-duty wood glue to affix the plywood bases to the boxes.
• Drill (optional): If you’re adding new hardware to your cabinets, you may need to drill new holes in the doors and fronts.
• New cabinet hardware (optional): You can keep your existing hinges, pulls, and handles, but switching them out is an easy way to add to the transformative effect.
• New doors and drawer fronts (optional): Buying brand new doors and fronts is one of two options when undertaking a kitchen cabinet refacing; the other is refinishing the current doors and fronts.
• Plywood: Plywood is the base you attach to your cabinet frames, which the veneer or laminate will affix to.
• Polyurethane (optional): If you’re refinishing your existing doors and fronts rather than buying new ones, you’ll want to finish them with polyurethane, a plastic coating used to glaze wood.
• Sandpaper: Sanding your cabinet sides and faces before gluing on the plywood will help your new cabinet surfaces stick.
• Saw: Whether it’s a table saw or a handsaw, you’ll need a tool to cut the plywood to size.
• Screwdriver (optional): Your screwdriver will be handy for removing the old hardware and installing your new hardware.
• Wood stain (optional): If you're altering the appearance of your current cabinet faces to go with the veneer, you’ll need a wood stain to make them match. Learn more about how to stain wood.
• Tape measure: A tape measure is essential for accurately measuring your cabinets and the veneer material. Learn how to read a tape measure.
• Utility knife: Utility knives are helpful when cutting strips of veneer or snipping overhang once it’s attached.
• Veneer or laminate: Choose a self-adhesive veneer or laminate option to guide the look of your new cabinets. Veneer is a thin layer of hardwood attached to another, less expensive material, while laminate is an artificial material designed to look like hardwood—both work for refacing cabinets.
• Veneer applicator: A veneer applicator tool can be handy in smoothly affixing your new veneers without getting any air bubbles.
• Veneer cutter: Investing in a designated veneer cutter tool will help you achieve straight, even cuts.

Here’s how to go about this straightforward but impactful home improvement technique:

1. 1. Evaluate the state of your cabinets. First, determine if your kitchen is a good candidate for refacing. Are your cabinet boxes solid and in good condition? If not, refacing won’t fix them. Similarly, examine your hardware piece by piece to determine if it all works and if you’re happy with the look.
2. 2. Assemble your materials. Once you’ve planned out your kitchen’s new look, buy the materials you need to achieve it, including veneer or laminate for the boxes and new doors and drawer fronts or materials for refinishing the existing doors.
3. 3. Remove and store the contents of the cabinets. You’ll want everything out of the way since undertaking a cabinet refacing project can get messy.
4. 4. Remove the hardware, doors, and drawer fronts. Keep your materials organized, so you know where they go later on.
5. 5. Clean and sand the cabinet sides and faces. Sanding will help the plywood and veneer stick more effectively later on.
6. 6. Measure your cabinet faces. Get accurate measurements of all facets of the cabinet so you can reskin it precisely.
7. 7. Cut and affix plywood to the cabinet sides with wood glue. You only need to use plywood as the base for the vertical sides of your cabinet, not the horizontal pieces that go across. Cut the plywood using the measurements you took and check it against the side of the cabinet before you affix it.
8. 8. Cut and apply your veneers. Apply the vertical veneer pieces first, cutting the pieces large enough to have an overhang when sticking them to the plywood. Then apply the horizontal veneer pieces, check for fit, and trim the excess with a utility knife.
9. 9. Prepare doors and fronts to match the veneer (if necessary). Skip this step if you purchased new cabinet doors and drawer fronts. Otherwise, sand, stain, and finish your doors and faces to match the reskinned boxes.
10. 10. Reattach your doors and hardware. Start with reattaching the hardware to the doors. Next, install the hinges in the cabinet boxes. Finally, reattach the doors to the hinges. The project is now complete. Clean the cabinets and start using them when everything is completely dry.

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