Skin in the Game

We had purchased white cabinets without door and found out to purchase and cover them in wood and wood doors was crazy high, two to three times the cost of the cabinets themselves.

Thankfully, I have brother who is a skilled woodworker with his own home shop. He was willing to work with us to help us build what we needed. Our regular doors are solid knotted alder, so our hope was to continue that theme. My brother was able to purchase what we needed for a mere fraction of the cost. Jer made the three-hour drive to start the process. What a blessing this was. Unfortunately, both my brother and his wife got very sick that weekend. He was only able to help Jer a little and coach him from time to time.

A month or so later we both went back to finish the process. I stained while Jer continued to build. Then my brother would lacquer and we would sand. This process was repeated three times. We loaded up the doors and skins (exposed areas with no doors), along with a couple chairs we purchased, and headed to our home.

We were excited to get a door or two up, but they were not pre-drilled for hinges like the ones we could have purchased. It took Jer some time, but he figured it out. Adjustments were made, even modifications to the doors but the end results turned out great.

You might be thinking this we a quick job, but it took us several weekends to complete the work. We also had drawer fronts that needed to be fit, with no directions.

Our white cabinets no longer look white, and we are thrilled with the outcome. A big thank you to my brother and his wife for making this possible.