My husband and I have decided to DIY remodel our kitchen and we're doing it on a shoestring. We've purchased these cabinets:
Unfinished Hickory Cabinets


They are special order, but they had one in the store and we were quite impressed with the construction for the price. They were really inexpensive, yet have solid wood fronts and doors and plywood (not pressed wood) boxes. But they are so inexpensive because they are unfinished. For instance, the plywood of the drawers and shelves shows the cut edge of the plywood. I know I'll need to buy that iron-on veneer edge binding for that and the wood has no finish (stain, poly, etc.).

We like the look of natural hickory, so we only want a clear coating, no stain. I thought, "How hard can it be?"

Yeah...

So...now I'm kind of freaking out about the finishing of the cabinets. The fact is, I've never stained or varnished anything in my life! What was I thinking?

Do I do the insides of the cabinets too? That never even occurred to me until this very moment!

So...it has to be easy and idiot-proof. I'd seen a wipe-on product from Minwax...I'd think wipe on would be easier than brush on, but is it a good product? Do you do multiple coats of finish, sanding in between? If anyone could help me, I'd really appreciate it. I don't want a high gloss - a nice satiny sheen is what I'm looking for and I don't want it to be yellowish, I want the wood to shine through. I'm actually kind of handy, so maybe I won't ruin it?

PLEASE HELP!