Ima_Nonymous's Profile

We have those same dated cabinets and I have the same "won't paint wood" issue at my house.

One thing we did that helped a lot was to take off that frilly moulding along the top. You can probably knock it off gently (as in, it's likely not on there super tightly.) Be aware that it might leave glue or ridges of varathane aroudn the edges of the removed moulding. If it leaves lighter marks, you can sand with the grain, and to darken "dry" lighter oak if you expose it, try a moistened black tea tea-bag to stain it darker to the surrounding wood if need be. Use one of those waxy hole-filler crayons in a matching oak colour to fill any nail-holes. Once you've smoothed out the look and made it all match, a clear spray varathane or whatever will match the existing finish on the cabinets to help it blend in. We raised a microwave shelf this way to accommodate my kitchen aid mixer, as well as removed cheesy mouldings from the top (including a header board with a heart cutout that was over the sink window) and you'd never know it was done.