Painting Kitchen Cabinets[So They Last]

Painting your kitchen cabinets can honestly be one of the most impactful DIY projects you can undertake. A can of paint is one of the best inexpensive ways to upgrade your home, and will always be my go-to project when a room needs a big change. I’ve painted LOTS of cabinets over the years, so I thought I’d share my process with you today. Painting expensive cabinets can feel like a daunting task if you haven’t done it before, but I promise, it really isn’t that hard. A beautiful kitchen can completely change the look and feel of your home, so is definitely worth the effort. Here’s what our kitchen looked like when we moved in:

Cabinet Painting Supplies

Honestly, your painting supplies are the most important part of this process. High quality prepping supplies, paints and brushes are going to have the biggest impact on the final result. I painted our kitchen almost four years ago, and it’s holding up beautifully. Here’s what you’ll need:

• A good quality deglosser is a MUST for proper paint adhesion. I’ve found this one works best for me.
• Lint-free rags(for deglossing)
• Paint. Choose one specially formulated for cabinets. I’ve used this one and this one with great results.
• Brushes/roller/sponge. I use a combination of a brush or sponge, then roll over the top for finishing. The sponge is a gamechanger for painting quickly and evenly. It’s my favorite cabinet painting tool for sure.
• Painter’s tape for protecting walls and counters
• Latex gloves(because the sponge is messy for your hands)
• Paint tray or container
• Screwdriver to remove cabinet hardware

Step 1: Prep Your Cabinets

This is BY FAR the most important step! Proper prep will make your paint job smoother and last longer. Peeling paint is usually caused by improper prepwork, so don’t skip this step. Remove your cabinet hardware (I actually leave my doors hanging, but that’s a personal preference) and degloss the heck out of your cabinets. They need to be squeaky clean and free of grease, lint, and dust. You’ll probably be grossed out at how dirty your cabinets are. It’s okay though – they’ll be beautiful soon!

To clean your cabinets, simply wipe/brush on the deglosser, let it work for a few seconds, then wipe it off. You may need to repeat this a few times if there’s alot of buildup on your cabinets.

Tape off walls, backsplashes, hinges(if left on the doors), and floors. You don’t want to have touch up your walls after painting your cabinets – trust me. Also, both of these paints STICK, so if you don’t clean splatters off your floors or counters(or stove – oye!) immediately, it’ll be a pain to remove later. Ask me how I know…

Step 2: Begin Painting

Once your cabinets are cleaned and prepped, you can start painting! Neither of these paints require a separate primer(hallelujah!) so you can get straight to the fun part. Both paints dry fairly quickly, so you can absolutely do two coats in a day.

Here’s the process that works for me, and I’ve found it to be the most efficient:

A) Remove all the drawers from your kitchen cabinets. I like to have them out so I can paint the cabinet frames as I go.

B) Start at a wall and paint the front of the TOP cabinet doors with a sponge. Remember, we are doing thin, even coats. It may look scary at first, but trust me, it will all be okay. Barely load paint onto your brush or sponge. Continue working around your kitchen, focusing only on the outside of the top cabinet doors. Go over the paint lightly with a DRY foam roller to even out any streaks. If you press too hard bubbles will form.

C) Once you have 1 coat on the top cabinet fronts, go back around and paint the outside frames on the upper cabinets. Don’t worry about the frame between the two doors yet(if you have them) – we’ll get that when you paint the insides of the doors.

D) Repeat the same process on your lower cabinets. Paint 1 thin coat on the outsides of the lower cabinet doors, working around your kitchen. Once the doors are finished, go back and paint the lower cabinet frames.

E) By now, your TOP cabinet doors should be dry enough for a second coat of paint. Going back to your original starting point, add another thin coat of paint to the door fronts. If you find that the paint is coming up when you brush over it, that area is still too wet for another coat. Just move on to another section while that spot dries a bit more.

F) Repeat the same process for the second coat of paint on your lower cabinets.

G) Paint your drawer fronts with I coat of paint. Once they dry, you can go ahead and add a second coat. DO NOT put them back into your cabinet frames – they will stick.

H) Repeat the same process on the inside of the cabinet doors and frames.

Curing

Your cabinet paint will still be soft for about a month(depending on humidity), so it is important to be gentle with doors and drawers for a while. I keep cabinet doors and drawers open for a week or two. Annoying, I know, but you really don’t want to ruin all your hard work. If you took the doors off to paint, you don’t have to worry about that. Just wait a week or so to reattach them. I also wait a full week to put the hardware back on.

Paint Is A Secret Weapon

Painting is one of the most inexpensive ways to change you home’s look and feel. I’m constantly painting something, whether it’s small knicknacks or large projects like my concrete porch floors. These cabinet painting techniques also work well on bathrooms and buit-ins too. So, what color are you painting your kitchen? I’d love to see the results! Happy Creating!