Glazing Painted Cabinet Doors
Advice for applying a dark wipe-off glaze over paint. June 10, 2006
Question
I haven't done many painted finishes on my cabinets before. What process do you use for putting a darker glaze on white doors? I'm trying to get that older look with distressing and glaze buildup in the low points. I am spraying the doors with an off-white acrylic, and brushing in a taupe color for the glaze. I have been told to mix the acrylic glaze with a bit of oil stain to improve the workability, because it seems to dry too quickly, and it's difficult to wipe off excess where I don't want it.
Forum Responses
(Finishing Forum)
From contributor R:
There's about as many ways to do a glaze on a white finish as there is to make a stew. You might want to try the way I do these types of finishes, as they are tried and true. Obtain door, spray one coat of vinyl sealer, sand the vinyl sealer with 280 paper, spray on some good primer (2 coats), sand it with 280 paper, spray on your color coat (2 coats), spray on one coat of clear, apply glaze to your heart's content. Wipe it off and leave it in the architecture. Seal in the glaze. Wisk it with some 320 when the sealer dries. Enjoy a dark brew and topcoat it with two (2) coats of clear.
From contributor H:
There are a lot of ways to get that distressed, rubbed out look. Often, a dark coat is applied before the paint. This can be a dark primer or a sealed stain. The paint gets abraded to expose this dark underlayer. I prefer using oil based glazing liquid mixed with universal colorants or artist paints. Much more working time than acrylics. I always had to use a wet rag with the water base glaze, as it dries too fast.
From contributor C:
If you're trying to stick to a waterbase system and you need a good waterbase glaze, Polyvine makes a scumble glaze that can be tinted with universal colorants. They also make a glaze called Classic Color that can be mixed with latex paint. Both glazes have great open time if applied over a good acrylic semi-gloss. Allow it to dry overnight and topcoat with waterbase poly or lacquer.
From the original questioner:
Thanks. I wasn't sure if you sealed between paint and glaze coat, but that makes sense - it makes it easier to wipe off. I found a glazing medium that I can mix with acrylic paint to increase the open time, and I use Oxford USL for clear coat. I'm using satin. Do you usually use this sheen on painted doors, or go with flat? Or is it just personal preference?
From contributor C:
It is purely preference, however the lower the sheen, the more realistic, in my estimation. In an antiqued finish, you want a glow, not a shine. But that's just my opinion.
