Expert: Eileen Cronk - 2/21/2008

Question
Hi there,

About 3 years ago we purchased a 'new' house. The people that built the house chose really unusual colors for the flooring throughout and the counter tops (blue) in the kitchen. The most horrible thing about the house (for us) is the oak! I can not stand the honey oak color.. but we really like the layout of the house and all the space it offered.  
SO my question is... can we re-stain the oak trim? Do we need to sand it down first? What about the cabinets? Do you have any suggestions? The front of the doors are wood and the sides are laminate!

Thanks for you help :)
Rachel

Answer
Hi Rachel
Nice to hear from you.
Yes you can restain your oak trim.
I have to agree with you on the color. Never liked it for trim and for cupboards its "iffy" LOL.
In order to change the color, all existing finish must be removed.
It would be ideal if you could remove the trim as doing this job with it in place would be monumental.
And I really think it would be worth the effort.
They make a handy little gadget for removing trim without breaking or denting it but darn it all the name escapes me (its an age thing).
But I have two of them in my shop and I can tell you they work.
Just ask at the hardware. Tell them what they are doing.
The cupboards of course will need stripping too.
Having said that, there is a product available that I rarely recommend using.
Its varnish with colored pigment added to it.
Perhaps it might work for the trim but I would never put it on the cupboards.
This is available at the hardware too, but keep in mind I am not struck on it. Perhaps a test is in order.
You know Rachel, if this was my home and I loved it, I would make every effort to remove the trim and do the job properly.
The same with the cupboards.
And think about this...if this happened to be that awful painted trim that most every house you see has, you would be painting it every year. It just does not stand up to the normal wear and tear the way that oak trim does.
Your going to do this oak only once. Its worth it.
Good luck and a great question.
Regards
Eileen