topic Re: White vs Dark cabinets? in Home

White vs Dark cabinets?

granddi — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 20:49:15 GMT

I'm having my first experience with white kitchen cabinets. I always had light oak(?) finish cabinets. This is a new to us home.

The white painted cabinets do not seem to be as forgiving or durable as my "wood" finished cabinets. They were probably cheap to begin with bc they do not wipe off well and show chips at the places of wear near pulls.

Do you think white painted kitchen cabinets are durable?

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

JYWilliams — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:01:36 GMT

I've never owned white but I'm thinking about getting mine a off white or light cream color.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

gulf coast girl — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:07:09 GMT

I live in a house that was built last year, it came with white cabinets and ugly black granite. I can't stand any of it. I didn't have any choice in them, it was the only house availble to purchase in thae area we wanted.

They show fingerprints, smudges, you name it, every single day I see a coffee drip going down one of them because the person I live with drips coffee and leaves it for me to wipe clean. The coffee doesn;t necessarily stain but I see, it, I don't care for the white cabinets.

But we can't afford to change any of it out so I'm stuck with a white and black kitchen. I would prefer a pretty maple cabinet.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Imaoldhippie — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:08:31 GMT

I have had dark, medium and white cabinets. If you get good quality of any of them they are durable as any.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

SilleeMee — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:31:35 GMT

My cabinets use to be dark solid walnut until I had them refinished with a matte off-white formica laminate. Boy are they easy to clean and very durable. I'll never go back to dark wood cabinets. Those were a pita.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

kaydee50 — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:35:35 GMT

I like wood cabinets. We currently have maple cabinets in our kitchen which were here when we bought the condo. Love them! Not sure I would want white cabinets.

@gulf coast girl We have black granite also. Hate it! Shows every crumb and never looks "clean." Would love to replace it with either quartz or Corian but not up to doing any sort of "renovation" right now.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

geezerette — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:48:44 GMT

@SilleeMee wrote:
My cabinets use to be dark solid walnut until I had them refinished with a matte off-white formica laminate. Boy are they easy to clean and very durable. I'll never go back to dark wood cabinets. Those were a pita.

@SilleeMee

My mother did the same thing years ago for the same reason. She hated dark wood.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Meowingkitty — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:49:44 GMT

I have maple cabinets. Can't stand white cabinets. Every little mark shows and I'm not a fan of white kitchens in general. Give me nice real wood cabinets in a maple to cherry color and I'm happy.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Shelbelle — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 21:50:54 GMT

White is the only way I would go, I never get tired of my white kitchen cabs, but I have dark countertops. .

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

GingerHead — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 22:08:04 GMT

@granddi

Right now we have very light dove grey cabinets (factory finish) and I find them very durable and clean looking. We have drawer and cabinet pulls so no need to put our hands on the actual cabinets which keeps them cleaner.

In our old house I refinished our old oak cabinets, and painted them a pretty ivory color. As long as you prime and put a durable finish on them they will be very durable and long lasting. Ours were.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Pezzie — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 22:26:13 GMT

I have off white/vanilla cabinets, and they are a breeze to clean. Damp microfiber cloth wipes off everything.
In my last home I remodeled the kitchen, from dark walnut cabinets which. I hated to white, and didn't have an issue with them either. It appears the cabinets were not finished/painted properly. Do you have any recourse?

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

stevieb — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 22:36:39 GMT

Painted cabinets, no matter the color, are durable depending on how professional the paint job was. If the cabinets were properly prepared, painted and sealed, they should be fine. That said, it seems no finish is as durable as the original, no matter the color stain or paint. One might also suppose that stain is longer lasting than paint, though I prefer painted cabinets to most stains.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

ruthbe — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 23:31:41 GMT

I think it is a matter of personal taste. For me I have never liked white. I much prefer wood stained cabinets. I have never cared for whited cabinets.

But as I stated...it is a matter of personal taste.

I think also with appliances...never again stainless steel...horrible to keep clean. I watch these home shows (ex house hunters) they always say they want stainles steel. I have and have had stainless steel. I hate having to clean it...and keep it clean.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Sunshine Kate — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 23:38:03 GMT

My cabinets are solid wood dark brown. I don't care for white cabinets. I know some like them. I'll refrain from what I think of white cabinets.

Get what you love no matter what kind.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Desert Lily — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 23:46:30 GMT

My house was built last year. I have ivory/cream cabinets on top & muted navy on the bottom. My backsplash tiles are small patterned tiles with navy blue/ivory/gray/white, and my quartz countertops are white/off-white with some small strands of gray.

The kitchen appliances are stainless but the laundry room washer & dryer are navy blue.

This is supposed to be my "forever" home, and so I got what I wanted. I'm very happy with the kitchen. It's my favorite room in the house.

White appears to have been popular, but it wasn't what I wanted.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

bmorechick — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 23:49:00 GMT

@SilleeMee wrote:
My cabinets use to be dark solid walnut until I had them refinished with a matte off-white formica laminate. Boy are they easy to clean and very durable. I'll never go back to dark wood cabinets. Those were a pita.

When we built this house 22 years ago, off white Formica laminate were the cabinets I chose. I never did like dark wood for any room. Just not my style. And you are right @SilleeMee they are so easy to clean. I have to see the dirt. I have kept them new looking all these years with a solution of Dawn and warm water. The only thing I have changed are the handles from gold to pewter to update. They seem to last forever.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

SaveTheTurtles — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 01:43:21 GMT

I like the way the white cabinets look and they are hugely popular but imo not practical for keeping clean etc. I will stick to wood color cabinets.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Lucky Charm — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 01:55:45 GMT

I've had them all---over the years.

From in stock white cabinets (in our rental next door and which are perfect) to gorgeous cherry stained wood when I had a huge kitchen that adjoined a huge formal dining room with cherry furniture.

Our kitchen here is tiny. Dark anything would make it seem even smaller. I have cream colored (solid wood) cabinets and the paint on the walls is perfectly matched to the cabinet color.

I do have stainless appliances, which I'm not wild about, but then I'm not wild about any other options. And I have them all, too....

I never had issues with the white cabinets staining from anything. Easy to wipe clean with just a soapy paper towel.

Look at pics online or flip through a home reno magazine to get ideas.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

Oznell — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 02:57:12 GMT

@granddi , I'm sorry you've had problems with your painted cabinets.

We had our vintage solid wood cabinets painted by a locally recommended ( but it turns out, rather happy-go- lucky ) painting team, about 5 years ago, in Benjamin Moore's "Baby Fawn", which is a pale creamy greige. Loved the way it lightened the kitchen.

The sad story is this: ours have some of the durability problems that you've experienced, including some chipping near pulls.

We had carefully researched the best type of cabinet paint to use, and Benjamin Moore makes a heavy duty one, pricey but worth it, we thought. It came with very specific instructions for its application, which my husband went over with the paint guys. The bottom line is, they ignored the prep instructions, and it's clear they just blithely slapped on the paint.

I have no doubt that it would be much more durable if the proper procedures had just been followed. To answer your question-- many painted cabinets hold up beautifully, if only they're done with care.

It is so disappointing-- so I fully understand your concerns.

Re: White vs Dark cabinets?

CANDLEQUEEN — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 14:47:47 GMT

@Desert Lily wrote:
My house was built last year. I have ivory/cream cabinets on top & muted navy on the bottom. My backsplash tiles are small patterned tiles with navy blue/ivory/gray/white, and my quartz countertops are white/off-white with some small strands of gray.
The kitchen appliances are stainless but the laundry room washer & dryer are navy blue.

This is supposed to be my "forever" home, and so I got what I wanted. I'm very happy with the kitchen. It's my favorite room in the house.

White appears to have been popular, but it wasn't what I wanted.

@Desert Lily Sounds beautiful!!!!