Painting The Kitchen Cabinets

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Before thinking of painting the kitchen cabinets you have to be sure they are structurally stable! Is the style something you can live off with? If not, or if they are broken, wobbly or in a general bad shape, no matter what kind of paint you apply they are not going to look good. 
In my case, they were in good condition, the style was not the best, but they were good and sound! The thing that bothered me the most was the color! Yeah!  They were the famous builder’s grade oak cabinets.

I decided to paint them myself for the most obvious reason: Money.  If I had hired someone to do the job, I wouldn't be able to get the kind of material I wanted for the countertops.  

Even though I knew it was a long and tedious job, I decided to take my time and do it the best possible way I could:

·         I began by emptying the cabinets and the room.

·         The doors, hardware, drawers and shelves were also removed.

·         The surfaces were cleaned with TSP (Trisodium Phosphate), to remove accumulated grease and grime, so the paint could have a better bonding.

·         The outside surfaces were sanded with 100-grit sandpaper to remove the glossy finish they had.

·         Floors, appliances and areas that were not going to be painted were covered.

·         I first applied Zinsser B-I-N Primer to the inside of the cabinets because those were laminated surfaces that needed this kind of primer (it adheres to any kind of surface).





Priming the inside of the cabinets, of course Mr. G
had to take a shot of me at this unflattered angle!



·         For the front or outside of the cabinets which were wooden surfaces and to the pieces of MDF, I applied Kilz Odorless White Primer. 



Priming the outside with Kilz.



·         The outside was sanded with 220-grit sandpaper to get rid of brush marks.  After that, the surfaces were clean with a tack cloth to get rid of dust.





After the first coat of paint.



·         Two coats of paint were applied.  For kitchens and bathrooms the experts recommend the use of oil base paints because of durability, but I decided to use a Latex paint, it dries faster and do not turn yellow over time.  I tried to choose a high quality paint: Benjamin Moore Aura, with a Satin finish.  After the first coat, all the surfaces were sanded with 280-grit sandpaper, again dusting before applying the final coat.





With the second coat of paint.

·         The doors, drawer fronts and, shelves were painted on a table to prevent drips, just the same as with the cabinets, but the waiting time for the surfaces to dry was a full day after each coat.



Everything painted except the doors and drawer fronts.

The final touches were changing the light fixtures, countertops, painting the walls and, installing decorative hardware and a window shade. 

At the end, just missing a backsplash!

 At this point I was sooo happy!! all that work was done and I could see the difference.

Next, how to install a marble backsplash.

You can also click on the next links for:
Closing the space above the kitchen cabinets
Adding moldings to your kitchen cabinets 
Build a range hood.
Build a fridge enclosure.
Update the kitchen island
Tips about installing recessed lights
Final kitchen reveal
Kitchen cost breakdown
1 ½ Year Later How the Kitchen is Holding up


Thanks,