Best Wood To Stain For Kitchen Cabinets

Maple kitchen cabinets could use a nice opaque stain that brings out its reddish brown color while a semitransparent or transparent stain could compliment cherry cabinets.

Best wood to stain for kitchen cabinets.

Mahogany gives warmth while walnut which is similar in cost and hardness to mahogany happens to add elegance to cabinets. The oak cabinet shown here will receive a red chestnut stain that darkens the wood and adds a warm red tone while bringing out the wood s natural beauty and pronounced grain. Ash pine and oak absorb stains evenly. But there s no rule that says you have to use oak.

A pine kitchen cabinet system would be better stained with an alcohol or oil based stain that is rubbed on to bring out the knotty veins. If you want to add additional definition to your cabinets a trick is to glaze corners and lines in an almost black stain and wipe off excess stain. As the below swatch illustrates the espresso stain almost dulls cherry s inherent luminosity and makes. If you want a lighter look that stays close to oak s natural color a golden oak stain is a good choice.

If you want to tone down your cabinets because they are too red or warm look for ash colored stains or even test the gray colors. Cherry is quite dark on it s own. Gray wood tones with a very slight hint of warmth are stunning.