They Painted These Oak Cabinets Sherwin-Williams Big Chill Without Changing the Kitchen Layout
Dark honey-toned oak covered almost every cabinet surface in this kitchen, from the long run around the sink to the cabinets surrounding the refrigerator and microwave. The raised-panel doors, crown molding, counters, backsplash, appliances, and cabinet arrangement were all already in place.
Instagram creator @duartpainting changed the room by working with those existing cabinets rather than removing them. After preparation and sanding, the solid oak cabinetry was spray refinished in Sherwin-Williams Big Chill (SW 7648), a pale gray neutral that replaced the former wood finish.
The layout stayed intact through the project. Even the dark countertops, stainless steel appliances, tile floor, and hardware remained part of the finished kitchen, making the cabinet color responsible for most of the visual change.
Honey-Toned Oak Covered the Original Cabinets
Oak cabinetry ran across both sides of the kitchen, with raised-panel doors, matching drawer fronts, crown molding, and decorative trim all carrying the same honey-brown finish. The wood continued above the refrigerator and around the microwave, so it occupied much of the visible wall space.
Dark countertops created a strong break below the upper cabinets, while a pale backsplash, gray floor tile, and stainless steel appliances were already part of the room. Changing the cabinets meant working around finishes that were staying.
Raised-Panel Doors Gave the Cabinets Plenty of Detail
A closer view of the sink wall shows that these were not flat cabinet fronts. Each door has a raised center panel surrounded by routed edges, while crown molding finishes the cabinets near the ceiling.
Those details gave the existing cabinetry a profile worth retaining. The project could change the dominant wood color without changing door styles, cabinet dimensions, or the storage already fitted to the kitchen.
Cabinet Doors Came Off Before Refinishing Began
Doors and drawer fronts were removed from the cabinet boxes before paint went on. The kitchen was also cleared for the painting work, with protective tape, paper, and plastic covering the countertops, backsplash, appliances, floor, and cabinet openings.
The creator behind @duartpainting says the oak received proper preparation and sanding before the spray application. With the doors removed and surrounding surfaces protected, the cabinet boxes could be refinished in place while the doors and drawer fronts were handled separately.
Big Chill Replaced the Honey Oak Around the Microwave
Sherwin-Williams Big Chill covers the cabinets surrounding the stainless steel microwave, replacing the former honey-brown finish with a pale gray. The raised panels and molded edges remain, but their appearance changes once a single painted finish runs across them.
The stainless steel microwave, dark countertop, and backsplash were not swapped out. Big Chill puts those existing surfaces against a much lighter cabinet backdrop.
Spray Application Covered the Detailed Door Profiles
The removed doors were sprayed apart from the cabinet boxes, allowing paint to reach the center panels, routed edges, and surrounding frames. The Instagram creator behind @duartpainting describes the result as a smooth, factory-like finish with long-term durability.
Spraying also suits the amount of molding on these doors. Instead of changing the traditional raised-panel design, the new color follows the contours already cut into the oak.
Big Chill Changed Both Sides of the Kitchen
Once the doors returned, Big Chill extended from the refrigerator wall to the sink run and across the cabinets around the range. Using one color above and below the countertops replaced the broad field of honey oak without introducing a two-tone scheme.
Dark countertops now create the strongest contrast in the room. Stainless steel appliances sit between pale cabinet fronts, while the existing gray floor works with the cooler cabinet color.
Original Cabinet Layout Stayed in Place
The finished kitchen still has the refrigerator, microwave, range, sink, dishwasher, drawers, and cabinet doors in their original positions. Crown molding also remains along the upper cabinets, preserving the fitted appearance of the original installation.
What changed is the surface covering all that cabinetry. Big Chill carries across the doors, drawer fronts, frames, end panels, and trim, so the room reads differently even though its footprint did not move.
Same Oak Cabinets, Different Color
The comparison makes the transformation easy to trace. Honey-toned oak dominates the original kitchen, while Sherwin-Williams Big Chill covers the same cabinet arrangement in the finished space.
Countertops, appliances, backsplash, floor, and major cabinet proportions remain recognizable between the two views. Instead of rebuilding the kitchen around new cabinetry, the project used paint to change the largest continuous surface already in the room.
Would you pair Sherwin-Williams Big Chill cabinets with these dark countertops, or change the counters too?
All credits go to Instagram creator @duartpainting.