I am a cabinet maker and have a small shop in S. Mississippi. I have found the best way to distress cabinets is to paint the wood with a dark base coat and let dry. Then paint over the base with a much lighter top-coat. Sand the corners with a 150-grit sandpaper. Try to hit all sharp edges with the paper. The beauty of this method is you can distress the cabinets a lot or a little. Just sand until you are satisfied with the look....