1970s cabinets with heavy face frames
Cabinets from the 1970s often have wide face frames and small door openings. Full-overlay doors cover more of the frame and make the cabinets look current.
Serving Northbrook & nearby Glenview, Highland Park
Cabinet Refacing in Northbrook, IL
New doors, drawer fronts and matching skins on the cabinet boxes you already have in Northbrook, with your counters left in place.
- Serving Northbrook ZIP 60062
- A new look without tearing the kitchen out
- Clean, protected work area every day
Cabinet problems refacing solves in Northbrook
Refacing keeps the cabinet boxes, countertops and plumbing in your Northbrook kitchen and replaces everything you see: new doors and drawer fronts, veneer or laminate skins on the face frames and end panels, and new hinges and pulls. The result looks like a new set of cabinets without a tear-out.
Can't be without a kitchen for long
Your sink, range and fridge keep working during refacing. We work cabinet by cabinet and clean up each day.
Peeling thermofoil
Vinyl film lifting near the oven or dishwasher cannot be glued back for long. Refacing replaces those doors and fronts and gives the frames a new matching surface.
Need a few extra cabinets
We can add a matching pantry, a cabinet in an empty corner or a small island and reface everything so it looks like one set.
Good boxes, worn-out finish
When the cabinet interiors are dry and sturdy, replacing them is wasted effort. Refacing covers the outside and keeps the boxes that still work.
Door style that dates the kitchen
If the door shape is what bothers you, paint will not fix it. Refacing swaps in a new style and covers the frames so everything matches.
Laminate cabinets with loose edges
Peeling edge strips on flat laminate doors are a common reason to reface. We check how well the surface will hold a new skin before quoting.
Old exposed hinges and loose doors
Surface-mounted hinges from earlier decades look dated and loosen over time. New doors get concealed, adjustable hinges, often with soft-close.
What's included
- Box inspection and repairsDamaged sink-base floors, loose frames and broken shelves are repaired first, so the new surfaces sit on solid cabinets.
- Removing doors, fronts and hingesOld doors, drawer fronts, hinges and pulls come off and leave with us.
- End panels and exposed sidesVisible cabinet sides get new plywood or laminate panels in the same finish as the doors.
- New doors and drawer frontsEvery door and drawer front is built to your sizes in the style and color you chose.
- Concealed hingesWe install concealed soft-close hinges and adjust each door for even gaps.
- Drawer boxes and slidesDrawers can be rebuilt with smooth slides while the fronts are being changed.
- Final adjustment and cleanupDoors and drawers are aligned, the kitchen is vacuumed and we walk the job with you.
Options to choose from
High-pressure laminateA tough plastic laminate in wood grains and solid colors, often used for slab-style refacing.
Painted MDF and solid wood doorsPainted doors use MDF panels that will not crack at the joints; stained doors use hardwood.
Rigid thermofoil (RTF)A vinyl surface pressed over MDF, easy to clean and good for solid white and painted-look colors.
Soft-close hinges and slidesSoft-close hardware stops slamming and takes stress off the doors and boxes.
Real wood veneerThin sheets of oak, maple, cherry or walnut, stained and clear-coated to match solid wood doors.
Cabinet Refacing before and after — Northbrook homes
Before
In progress
After
DetailBefore and after: a postwar Cape Cod in Northbrook
A postwar Cape Cod near Techny, a typical kitchen for Northbrook. The kitchen as it was: dark walnut-stained flush-panel cabinets with brass pulls. The reason for the call: heavy wood frames that made the room feel old. After: new five-piece shaker doors in soft white on the existing boxes, matching face-frame veneer and satin brass pulls. The job covered end panels and exposed sides, concealed hinges, plus drawer boxes and slides.
Before
AfterHighland Park kitchen, 1960s ranch: cabinet refacing
This one is a 1960s ranch in Highland Park. The kitchen as it was: 1970s dark pecan-stained cabinets. The main complaint was heavy wood frames that made the room feel old. Finished kitchen: new five-piece shaker doors in creamy white uppers and navy lowers on the existing boxes, matching face-frame veneer and unlacquered brass knobs and cup pulls. The job covered new doors and drawer fronts, drawer boxes and slides, plus final adjustment and cleanup.
Cabinet Refacing in Highland Park →
Before
AfterA Buffalo Grove two-story colonial from the 1990s: before and after
This one is a two-story colonial from the 1990s in Buffalo Grove. What we started with: golden-oak cabinets with oak soffits above. The reason for the call: dated wood doors on solid boxes. The result: new five-piece shaker doors in warm white on the existing boxes, matching face-frame veneer and satin brass pulls. The job covered box inspection and repairs, end panels and exposed sides, plus concealed hinges.
Cabinet Refacing in Buffalo Grove →
Before
AfterBefore and after: a 1960s ranch in Northbrook
What changed: new five-piece shaker doors and drawer fronts in sage green with matte black pulls.
Cabinet Door & Drawer Front Replacement in Northbrook →
Before
AfterNorthbrook kitchen, 1960s ranch: kitchen cabinet installation & replacement
New cabinets in warm taupe with brushed nickel bar pulls, installed level and ready for charcoal concrete-look quartz counters.
Kitchen Cabinet Installation & Replacement in Northbrook →Day by day
- Visit and box checkAt the visit we confirm the boxes are worth keeping and take exact measurements.
- Choose style and finishYou pick the door style, material, color and hardware from samples in your own kitchen.
- Doors are madeProduction happens off-site; nothing changes in your kitchen until the parts are ready.
- Install on siteOld doors come off, frames and ends are skinned, new doors and hardware go on, usually over a few days.
- Adjust and walk-throughFinal adjustments, cleanup and a walk-through to check every detail.
Cabinet Refacing questions from Northbrook homeowners
Refacing or just new doors?
The difference is the frames. Door replacement keeps them; refacing skins them in the same material as the doors.
What affects the cost of refacing?
The number of doors and drawer fronts, the door material and style, the amount of frame and end panel to skin, and add-ons like new drawer boxes. We give a written, itemized estimate after the visit.
Is it worth it to reface kitchen cabinets?
Yes, when the boxes are solid and the layout works. You get new doors, frames and hardware without tearing out cabinets, counters or plumbing.
What is the downside of cabinet refacing?
You cannot move cabinets or change their sizes much, and worn interiors stay unless we add new drawer boxes or shelves.
Can you reface laminate or thermofoil cabinets?
Usually. Peeling thermofoil doors are simply replaced, and laminate frames are prepped for a new skin if they are in good condition.
Northbrook contractor registration: do kitchen contractors need it?
Village contractor license required, good for one year: general contractors $100; electrical $70. We take care of that before work starts.
Do I need a permit for cabinet refacing in Northbrook?
It depends on the scope. Northbrook's rule in short: Village lists separate permit types: Single Family Alterations - Interior, Electrical (new wiring/outlets), and Plumbing (new fixtures). We handle the permit when one is needed with Development & Planning Services.
Do you work in my part of Northbrook?
Yes. Our crews work across Northbrook, including Techny, Downtown Northbrook — ZIP 60062 — and nearby Glenview, Highland Park, Mount Prospect.
Working in Northbrook
- A lot of Northbrook kitchens date from the 1970s. We know these layouts well and what is worth keeping.
- Most Northbrook homes are single-family. We protect floors and driveways and leave the site clean every day.
- We know how Development & Planning Services handles kitchen permits and pull them for you.
TechnyDowntown Northbrook
ZIP 60062
Cabinet Refacing nearby
More for Northbrook homeowners
- All kitchen services in NorthbrookRemodels, cabinets, counters, plumbing, appliances and repairs
- Cabinet Refacing across ChicagolandEvery town we cover for this service
-
Running the projectKitchen Refresh vs Full Remodel: How to Choose the Right ScopeChoose a kitchen refresh when the cabinet boxes are solid and the layout works: paint or reface cabinets, replace counters, add a backsplash and…3 min read
-
CabinetsCabinet Refacing vs Painting vs Replacement: How to ChooseIn cabinet refacing vs painting vs replacement, start with the boxes. Sound boxes and only a color complaint: paint. Sound boxes but a dated or…4 min read
-
Costs and budgetingCabinet Refacing Cost: What Refacing Kitchen Cabinets Costs and WhyPublished national cost guides put kitchen cabinet refacing at roughly $4,000 to $13,500 for most kitchens, or about $150 to $450 per linear foot of…3 min read
-
CabinetsKitchen Cabinet Design Ideas: Refacing Before and After, Makeovers and Modern UpdatesMost kitchen cabinet makeovers succeed or fail on three decisions: door style, color and the details around the boxes, such as hardware, crown…4 min read
Other kitchen services in Northbrook
Cabinet Door & Drawer Front ReplacementReplacement doors and drawer fronts in any style.
Kitchen Cabinet Installation & ReplacementNew cabinets installed, leveled and ready for counters.
Custom Kitchen CabinetsBuilt-to-fit cabinetry up to the ceiling.
Kitchen RemodelingFull kitchen remodels, from layout to last cabinet pull.
Kitchen Cabinet PaintingFactory-smooth painted cabinets without replacing them.