We knew from the moment we decided to add secondhand cabinets to our kitchen that matching the doors would be a challenge. Although only five doors were missing, achieving a seamless look was important—no one should be able to tell we had thrift-store cabinets mixed in. These are the five doorless spots we needed to fix:
We had several options to get a kitchen full of matching doors. Listed here from most to least expensive:
- Replace all doors and drawer fronts across the entire kitchen.
- Order custom-made matching doors for the cabinets missing them.
- Repurpose and cut down leftover doors from the cabinets we’d taken down.
We explored Option #1 first because we love a classic shaker-style door (like the ones we used in our last kitchen):
Quotes from several sources, including big-box stores and online door-makers, showed that replacing every door would likely run $2,000–$3,000. Too pricey, so we moved on.
Option #2—ordering a few custom doors—was more affordable. The snag was our cabinets are custom-built, solid oak, framed cabinets with partial inset doors. That inset detail provides a tight fit and a beautiful finished look, but it’s uncommon, which makes finding off-the-shelf matches virtually impossible.
Local cabinet shops didn’t offer partial inset doors with the same front detailing, and non-inset doors would stick out about half an inch—too noticeable. We called the original manufacturer, Quaker Made, who put us in touch with an independent repair specialist. He quoted roughly $800 to make the few doors we needed—reasonable but still more than we hoped to spend given all the extra doors we already had, including five that looked like good candidates for refitting.
It made sense to try repurposing spare doors first. If that failed, we could still order custom replacements. So we grabbed the power tools and got to work.
All the spare doors were too large for their new cabinets. Trimming them down wasn’t as simple as shaving off edges because we needed to preserve the raised border and inner panel as well as the inset edge. That meant removing material from the middle of the doors—tricky but doable.
To get precise cuts we used a table saw. For reference, our table saw is a Skil model that we like for its reliability and price.
Two cuts removed a center section, leaving two halves that could be rejoined to create the correct door length.
To join the halves I used pocket holes created with a Kreg jig, then clamped and screwed the pieces together with wood glue for a strong bond. I wiped away excess glue right away so the seams stayed tidy.
For the doors above the fridge I repeated the cut-and-join process in both directions because the spare door was too tall and too wide. It felt a little like Frankensteining, but once screwed together and rehung with hinges, the doors fit better than I expected.
At first glance the joins looked rough, but wood putty, sanding, self-leveling primer, and paint would smooth the seams and hide grain or hairline cracks. We also plan to move and replace hardware, so the final look will be cleaner. Screw holes and any remaining imperfections will be filled with putty before finishing.
I don’t want to underplay the time this took. The first two doors plus a test door required an entire morning—and there were multiple trims and recuts to get a snug fit that still allowed for the inset edge.
The microwave cabinet door was easier since I reused the original door for that taller cabinet. It only required cutting a few inches from the middle and took roughly an hour to complete. I measured carefully and made conservative cuts so there was room to fine-tune the fit.
The corner cabinet posed a different challenge. It came with bifold doors and hidden hinges that won’t work with partial inset doors because they would sit proud of the frame. We considered installing a pie-cut lazy susan and attaching doors directly to it but decided against losing the wide open space, since we already have a lazy susan in another corner.
First I repaired notches cut into the frame for the original hinges by jigsawing small filler pieces, screwing them into place, and planning to finish them with wood putty and paint later. The result wasn’t perfect, but putty and paint will hide minor imperfections.
The simplest solution for that corner was to use two smaller doors hinged on opposite sides. It took the rest of the afternoon and part of the next morning to get them to fit and operate smoothly, but they provide full access to the wide shelves and look cohesive once finished.
Overall, it took longer than anticipated because of the careful measuring, trimming, and fitting, but the result feels solid. Using pocket holes, heavy-duty screws, and glue provides a durable, professional repair with no flex in the joined doors—they operate like the other solid oak doors and should hold up over time.
We’re excited to get these doors wood-puttied, sanded, primed, and painted. If the final look isn’t what we hoped for, the custom-door maker is still an option at about $800 for replacement doors. But for now, reusing and adapting what we already had has saved significant money and allowed us to keep the original cabinet character.
With the doors rebuilt and functioning, the next steps are finishing touches: toe-kick molding, trim, and paint. Realistically, a completed painted update won’t happen before the holidays because of drying and cure times, but we’re looking forward to wrapping up the project and seeing everything come together.
