Erin Napier's Budget-Savvy Tip For 'Wood' Cabinets Without The Hefty Price Tag

The ultra-modern monochromatic kitchen has had its moment. Experts like HGTV's Erin Napier are indicating there's another trend making a comeback this year, and it's something you might want to use to warm up the interior of your kitchen. It's wood tones. From light-colored wood like white oak, alder, or beech to dark wood such as walnut or cherry, wood has a textured, organic look from its grain and minor variations in color. These are two advantages if you're trying to make a room naturally welcoming and cozy. A wood tone that's not trending is honey-colored cabinets. However, there are ways to update this look.

Cabinets made from wood are the most expensive since they are solid, stylish, and rich with genuine grain plus deep natural color. Expect to pay $50 to $150 per square foot for wood cabinets. Expensive, yes, but consider it an investment in your home for when it's time to sell.

However, if you're on a budget, engineered materials that mimic the look of wood run as low as $15 per square foot. In this case, consider alternatives such as medium-density fiberboard (MDF), a sturdy product that doesn't have knotholes or grain. Instead, its smooth, dense surface is ideal for painting. Laminate, another synthetic product, also comes in various colors and patterns, some of which simulate natural grain for a cost-effective, durable wood lookalike. Cabinet materials to avoid include particleboard and melamine, which look cheap and can hurt your resale value.

Erin and Ben Napier from HGTV's Hometown show how plain cabinets can be transformed into hardwood look-alikes. "When you see the kitchen cabinet color against white, it looks like they're orange. They're not orange at all," Erin states in this video. "Because it didn't work in the budget to give her an all-natural wood kitchen... the kitchen cabinets are painted the color of natural wood." Later in the video, the delighted homeowner refers to the smooth, mellow cabinets as "caramel-colored." She's not wrong.

Using orange or a warm light brown such as Pecan as the primer color guarantees the cabinets will have a warm glow, despite the fact the cabinets are not hardwood. Using easily learned techniques, primer, and gel stain you can get the look of true wood with a few simple DIY steps. Even if your budget is next to nothing you can fake gorgeous wooden surfaces in the kitchen from countertops to cabinets, painting over ordinary laminate or MDF. Before painting check the manufacturer's recommendations. MDF, for instance, does better with oil-based paint. 

If you decide on real wood cabinets, a light coat of clear varnish is probably all you need to bring out the grain and natural beauty. Note that varnish helps protect the wood's surface, so cabinet makers recommend using it. But also note there are different types of varnish, so check on which is best for your cabinets. The most popular variations of hardwood cabinets right now are mid-tones, found in beech, maple, ash, and oak. Mid-tones lend their rich color, and versatility to blend in but not be overshadowed by white or bolder colors.