Do You Need New Cabinets? Two Kitchens That Kept Theirs

October 22, 2026 · 2 min read

When a kitchen feels dated, it's natural to picture everything coming out. Sometimes that's the right call. But in a lot of kitchens the cabinet boxes, the frames fixed to the wall, are solid and sitting right where you want them. What looks tired is everything on and around them: the color, the doors, the countertop and the backsplash.

Keep the boxes and change the rest, and the layout stays while the look changes. Here are two kitchens Jacob remodeled exactly that way in 2026.

Kitchen one: dark slate to bright white

This galley kitchen had dark slate cabinets down both sides, dark countertops and a subway tile backsplash.

The cabinet boxes stayed. The cabinets went from dark slate to white, with new doors and drawer fronts, new countertops and a black herringbone tile backsplash. Same galley, same layout, and now it's bright from one end to the other.

The galley before: dark slate cabinets — The galley
Cabinet boxes kept; new doors, counters and backsplash.

The same galley after: white cabinets and a black tile backsplash — The galley
Cabinet boxes kept; new doors, counters and backsplash.

Before: slate cabinets and dark countertops — Before

After: white cabinets and black herringbone tile — After

Kitchen two: brown to blue

This kitchen had brown cabinets, granite countertops and a granite-topped island.

Same layout again. The cabinets and the island were painted blue, and the kitchen got new countertops, a custom tile backsplash and a vent hood over the range.

Brown cabinets and a granite-topped island — Brown to blue
Same layout: cabinets painted blue, new countertops.

The same island painted blue with a new countertop — Brown to blue
Same layout: cabinets painted blue, new countertops.

Vent hood over a patterned tile backsplash

Blue cabinets and a patterned tile backsplash

When keeping the boxes makes sense

A few signs your kitchen is a good fit:

You like the layout. The sink, the range and the refrigerator are where you want them, and you have the counter space you need.
The boxes are solid. Shelves aren't sagging, and the cabinet bottoms aren't soft or swollen from an old leak.
What bothers you is the look: the color, the door style, the countertop or the backsplash.

When a full tear-out is the better call

You want a different layout, like an island where there isn't one, or cabinets where the room has none now.
The boxes are damaged or coming apart.
You want custom cabinets in different sizes than the old ones.

Jacob does that kind of kitchen too: full tear-outs, custom cabinets, quartz countertops and islands. See both kinds on the kitchen remodeling page.

Windstorm inspections, a local note

Nueces, San Patricio, Aransas and Kleberg counties are all in the Texas Department of Insurance's windstorm area. TDI lists cabinets, non-structural interior fixtures, surfaces, trim, painting and refinishing as work that doesn't need a windstorm inspection. Structural changes, additions and most exterior work are a different story.

How to find out which one yours is

The estimate is free and it happens in your kitchen. Jacob walks the room with you, explains what's worth keeping and what isn't, and prices the version you want.

Whichever way it goes, your kitchen gets the same rule as every job: once it starts, it's the only job he's working on until it's finished.

Call (361) 944-7682 Get a free estimate