Distressing
The amount of distressing can vary from light to heavy depending upon the look you are trying to achieve. The distressing includes random dents, gouges, marks, worm holes and over sanding. Usually distressing is added to wood types that already have knots and character marks to give you that old rustic look.
Faded Sand-Through
The wood is stained a color and given a clear coat of finish. Then it is sprayed a solid black color. The black is then partially sanded off to reveal the stain color underneath giving you a faded two tone color effect. Due to the random sanding no two doors will look alike
Painted
A solid color base is applied to the wood (usually maple) to give you a painted look with no visible wood grain.
Standard Glazing
The glaze is brushed onto the surface to completely cover it. Then the glaze is wiped off with a rag leaving excess amounts of glaze in the corners and recessed areas with a small amount staying on the flat surfaces which softens the original base color with a two tone brush effect. Because of this process no two doors will look alike. The amount of glaze left on can vary from a heavy amount to a light amount.
Highlighted Glazing
The glaze is applied directly to the corners and recessed areas of the wood with an artist brush, leaving the flat surfaces their original solid base color. No two doors will look alike.
** The end grain is softer than the other surfaces of the wood causing it to accept more stain, in turn making it appear darker. This cannot be avoided.
* Wood naturally expands and contracts, therefore the joints on the cabinets and the doors will do the same. Due to this expansion and contraction you may see hairline cracks in the finish at these joints. These are normal and cannot be avoided with painted cabinets.
Note: MDF panels may be substituted in the doors and end panels of painted cabinets to help minimize the expansion and contraction of the door.