Cool How To Lighten Oak Kitchen Doors References. 165k views 4 years ago. Or, are you looking to lighten down the oak through bleaching?

Either way you'll need to make sure that all protective coatings have been stripped and you're down to the bare timber. So, if you’re looking to just lighten your wood without covering the wood grain, then use mostly water with a few drops of paint. Web to lighten natural oak cabinets, you can use a combination of techniques, such as stripping the existing finish, sanding the surface, applying a wood bleach solution, and then applying a lighter stain or paint.