Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

This is where our members can post about their hearth and home, whether it be Holiday traditions, recipes, gardening, virtually anything to do with hearth and home.

Moderator: S2k Moderators

Message
Author
Miss Mary

Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#1 Postby Miss Mary » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:55 pm

Just curious if anyone's done this. We watch flip this house type shows a lot and they're always painting cabinets, adding new countertops and flooring to give a kitchen a brand new look.

I know it's a ton of work but I wondered if it's worth it?

I'd consider a light yellow, adding new hinges and door handles. With a dark granite counter top and new kitchen sink. We have a newer large tile floor so I'd keep that.

Thanks.

Mary
0 likes   

CajunMama
Retired Staff
Retired Staff
Posts: 10790
Joined: Thu Feb 06, 2003 9:57 pm
Location: 30.22N, 92.05W Lafayette, LA

#2 Postby CajunMama » Thu Mar 20, 2008 10:39 pm

We had ours painted in the fall. Our home was built in 1990 so it had the light pickled wood cabinets. They're now sherwin williams umber, a dark chocolately brown. Make sure you wipe down the cabinets first and then prime. Use an oil base paint. Also take your doors off to paint them. If you can spray them, that's the way to go. Good luck. It'll be like you have a brand new kitchen.
0 likes   

Miss Mary

#3 Postby Miss Mary » Fri Mar 21, 2008 8:22 am

CajunMama - thanks for the reply! Our home was built in 1989 and our cabinets are basic, builder's grade oak veneer. With antique brass, colonial style handles. I'd want clean, simple new ones if I could find them. I have heard that you should make sure the handles and hinges fit the holes on your cabinet doors before you buy all of them. Did you replace your hinges and handles? Also, our drawers never came with handles, just an insert for your hand underneath, which I think over time has made our drawers weak. I would want to add handles to our drawers but that's a lot - we have 13 drawers! Some of these drawers have started to split, on the inside. Of course my husband says I've weighted them down too much - so I've removed all the heavy items but still a few would need to be glued and fixed up before I painted them.

I also have heard you need to label your drawer fronts and/or cabinet door fronts so you're not stuck with a puzzle when done.

So you're glad you did this Kathy?

I saw a recent picture of a lovely kitchen in Midwest Living. The brand new cabinets were a light yellow. I would consider that.

A neighbor of ours had her cabinets painted an olive type green, they turned out very nice. We all thought they were new.

Do you paint the insides too?

So many questions....sorry!
0 likes   

CajunMama
Retired Staff
Retired Staff
Posts: 10790
Joined: Thu Feb 06, 2003 9:57 pm
Location: 30.22N, 92.05W Lafayette, LA

#4 Postby CajunMama » Fri Mar 21, 2008 12:15 pm

I love my cabinets painted! It makes my kitchen so much warmer feeling and gives it an entirely different look. We redid the countertops also. Used zodiaq quartz from lowes. The laminate flooring was replaced with tile also. We're just waiting to do the backsplash now. I should be ordering that within the month. As for the handles i replaced every single one of them...all 52 of them! I found them at home depot but i didn't replace the hinges because they are hidden. And yeah, buy one of each before you buy all the hardware. I made the mistake of buying everything and one of the handles didn't line up with the holes i already had!

MissMary, do you feel like we are about the only ones using this forum? Hello everyone else! Please join in!!!!!!!
0 likes   

Miss Mary

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#5 Postby Miss Mary » Fri Mar 21, 2008 5:44 pm

I do feel as though no one even sees this forum!

We will rename it Kathy and Mary's Place....LOL!

52....wow! I probably need 13 for the drawers, then 25 more for the doors. I can see how you would need that many!

One more question......we have a butler's pantry, between the kitchen and dining room. I would like to replace the upper cabinet inserts with glass, but keep the frame. But I'm not sure how you remove this inner section. Maybe it would easier to buy 2 new doors that wouldn't be next to other doors so you'd never know if they matched or not. We store all of our wine glasses, shotglasses, glass pitchers, etc. on these shelves. But then the inside would have to painted too.

Did you paint inside also? Or just the door fronts?

Now I'm starting to think I'd like a colonial gold. I might just go looking at brand new kitchen cabinets to see what is currently popular. Color wise.

I know I couldn't begin this entire project until the Fall though. I know the counter tops would be expensive. I'd have to see if we could afford that. I'd like a new stainless sink that sits below the counter too. One of our relatives have one and it's so nice (no grime to continually clean around the rim).

Mary
0 likes   

User avatar
Dionne
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 1616
Age: 72
Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 8:51 am
Location: SW Mississippi....Alaska transplant via a Southern Belle.

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#6 Postby Dionne » Sun Mar 23, 2008 8:57 am

Hello Miss Mary.....I'm a carpenter with 33 years experience. My specialty is flipping homes. Your kitchen and bath is where your going to spend the most money. You mentioned your drawers are beginning to show signs of wear. This is usually an indicator that the life of the cabinet is coming to an end. Before you make the change from a cabinet grade oak veneer to painted cabinets with new hardware......you need to determine if the effort is worthwhile. Specifically find out why the drawers are coming apart? Are the drawers just a box nailed together or are they mortised and glued? Don't just look at the drawers, do a really close inspection of all the cabinets, to include drawer guides and water damage. New paint doesn't make a worn out cabinet system new.

If you decide to paint your existing cabinets you will need to prime them first. Then comes your paint. I would not recommend an oil base paint. The reasons are numerous. Unless your fond of brush strokes, your cabinets should be sprayed.

If your hire a professional it's going to get expensive. Solid surface countertops can cost thousands. Especially if you go with granite.

Don't be concerned with the hardware. Since you plan to go paint grade, any holes that do not match your new hardware can be filled and sanded. You may want to order new door/drawer fronts.

You have numerous options.

Where do you plan to prepare your meals while under construction?
0 likes   

Miss Mary

#7 Postby Miss Mary » Sun Mar 23, 2008 9:11 am

A professional! Alright. I'm nowhere near ready to begin this project. But the cooking question is a concern, for now. We very rarely eat out so I prepare almost all of our meals. We've done this for over 10 years (to eat less carry out, less processed foods, etc., because heart disease runs in my husband's family and well I'm a colon cancer survivor myself). My best example - we just bought our third dishwasher, our home is 19 years old. I use mine daily, sometimes twice on the weekend!

So when our girls are gone and on college campuses, that would be the time to do a project like this. I do know that money wise, hubby would not go for brand new cabinets. He's already thinking of our condo or cabin, retirement phase (8 to 10 years from now). Meanwhile I'm not ready to abandon ship here because this was MY dream home!

I've just watched all those re-dec or flip it shows and have wondered if we could achieve that brand new look by painting, new sink, new counter tops. Only 3 or 4 drawers need to be reinforced. I'd need to look carefully at them to answer your drawer questions.

Not that I would do this, but what is your opinion on companies that come in and reface the cabinets? I've always thought they seemed like a waste of money, in the end, it's just another veneer on top of old cabinets.

Thanks for your input Dionne!

Mary
0 likes   

User avatar
Dionne
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 1616
Age: 72
Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 8:51 am
Location: SW Mississippi....Alaska transplant via a Southern Belle.

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#8 Postby Dionne » Sun Mar 23, 2008 9:41 am

Re-facing is fast and affordable. The carpenter that does the re-facing could also repair your drawers. For affordable counter tops we've been using 6" floor tile with non-sanded grout lines. To really jazz up your work area there are some cool sinks now on the market in the under $300 range......Kohler is my recommendation.
0 likes   

User avatar
weathermom
Category 2
Category 2
Posts: 760
Joined: Tue Aug 31, 2004 7:59 pm
Location: North Jersey

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#9 Postby weathermom » Tue Mar 25, 2008 8:33 am

What is non-sanded grout? I have tile on my breakfast bar, which has actually turned into more of a desk for me now that the kids are in school. I have thought about replacing the old formica counter with tile, but I don't want to have to deal with the grout. A kitchen counter takes all kinds of spills and abuses, how would you keep the grout clean? I have spent too much time with a toothbrush on the floor grout to want any more tile.......
0 likes   

CajunMama
Retired Staff
Retired Staff
Posts: 10790
Joined: Thu Feb 06, 2003 9:57 pm
Location: 30.22N, 92.05W Lafayette, LA

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#10 Postby CajunMama » Wed Mar 26, 2008 6:47 pm

I got an undermount sink with my countertops. It was included if you ordered x amount of countertops. Then i got this faucet in the brushed chrome. I love having the sprayer pull out of the faucet. It makes cleaning the big bulky pots so easy.

Image
0 likes   

Miss Mary

#11 Postby Miss Mary » Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:20 am

CajunMama - very nice. I can imagine you really like this faucet. You must do a lot of cooking too. Sometimes I think I would benefit from a new cooking class or lessons. To relearn how to cook for this decade, etc. LOL When I learned to cook, you started with your meat choice, then you chose your starch, then the vegetable, then some sort of salad or fruit (salad, slaw, relish, fruit, cottage cheese, etc.) and finally, your bread. I was taught to put 5 items on the table but you always started with meat (circa, early 1970s, Home Ec I and II, yep, two full years).

I am open to a new way but sometimes I just don't know where to start. We are eating more vegetarian meals now and sometimes it's simple, homemade vegetable soup, salad, whole wheat bread or rolls, etc.

Sorry for the topic detour. Back on topic.

Weathermom - I bumped this up for you too, I'm guessing Dionne would be able to answer your grout question.

Mary
0 likes   

User avatar
vbhoutex
Storm2k Executive
Storm2k Executive
Posts: 28967
Age: 72
Joined: Wed Oct 09, 2002 11:31 pm
Location: Spring Branch area, Houston, TX
Contact:

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#12 Postby vbhoutex » Wed Apr 16, 2008 1:09 pm

We painted our Kitchen cabinets several years ago. We had some new ones installed w/o paint and the painted both the new and the old. Use a foam roller if you want a really even finish. At least that seemed too work for us.
0 likes   

User avatar
Dionne
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 1616
Age: 72
Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 8:51 am
Location: SW Mississippi....Alaska transplant via a Southern Belle.

#13 Postby Dionne » Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:54 am

Non-sanded grout is used in grout lines smaller than 1/8 inch. Sanded grout is used in grout lines 1/4 inch and larger.

Non-sanded grout is preferred on countertops as the grout lines collect less debris. When sticking tile to counter tops you must remove your Formica. You may have to replace your countertop lumber with 3/4 AC plywood. The best adhesive is Acrylpro....it is a mastic adhesive suited best for walls and countertops. Do not used a thinset mortar on countertops or any wood surface. Thinset mortar is exclusively used on top of concrete.

A good quality non-sanded grout with have a polymer added which does not require additional sealing.
0 likes   

User avatar
weathermom
Category 2
Category 2
Posts: 760
Joined: Tue Aug 31, 2004 7:59 pm
Location: North Jersey

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#14 Postby weathermom » Mon Apr 28, 2008 6:47 pm

Dionne,
Thanks for the answer! I am definitely getting rid of the formica! It is just deciding what to put in its place.

So with this non-sanded grout and the no sealing needed, it will stay clean enough to not need the toothbrush treatment? It is sounding better all the time.
0 likes   

User avatar
mf_dolphin
Category 5
Category 5
Posts: 17761
Age: 67
Joined: Tue Oct 08, 2002 2:05 pm
Location: St Petersburg, FL
Contact:

#15 Postby mf_dolphin » Wed May 07, 2008 9:37 pm

Non-sanded grout leaves a very smooth finish. Without the sand to server as a catch point for dirt it's a lot easier to keep clean.

Just some input on the painting, make sure and lightly sand the current finish before you paint. You just need to sand enough to rough up the finish to give a better surface for the new primer and paint. Since I have a compressor, I bought a relatively inexpensive spay gun for it and I'll never go back to brushes for this type of work. :-) Best thing since sliced bread as far as I'm concerned.
0 likes   

User avatar
DPTX
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 48
Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2004 10:22 pm
Location: S.E.Texas

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#16 Postby DPTX » Wed May 07, 2008 9:50 pm

We painted the kitchen cabinets at our last house. I loved the way it turned out. My DH used a product that was a "liquid sander" on them. According to the people at the paint store it made the paint adhere. We did use oil base paint. I painted the insides of the cabinets and he did the outside and doors. We also ordered a couple of new doors with glass inserts from one of the big box stores. It was worth every dime and minute we spent working on that kitchen.
0 likes   

User avatar
Tstormwatcher
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 3086
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 7:31 pm
Location: New Bern, NC

#17 Postby Tstormwatcher » Sun May 18, 2008 3:20 pm

I want to do this but am color challenged when it come to getting colors to match.
My countertop is green, the walls are a shade of Tanish orange and the cabinates are white. What would be a good color to paint them?
0 likes   

User avatar
DPTX
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 48
Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2004 10:22 pm
Location: S.E.Texas

Re: Anyone ever painted kitchen cabinets?

#18 Postby DPTX » Sun May 18, 2008 5:24 pm

That is a tough one. Color combinations can be really personal. I am a quilter. This web site has a neat color wheel. You can put in a scheme and then use the arrow keys to change the colors. I hope this is helpful.

http://www.quiltopia.com/colorwheel.html
0 likes   

User avatar
Tstormwatcher
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 3086
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 7:31 pm
Location: New Bern, NC

#19 Postby Tstormwatcher » Sun May 18, 2008 6:12 pm

DPTX, thanks for the links. That does help.
0 likes   

User avatar
Dionne
S2K Supporter
S2K Supporter
Posts: 1616
Age: 72
Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 8:51 am
Location: SW Mississippi....Alaska transplant via a Southern Belle.

Re:

#20 Postby Dionne » Mon May 19, 2008 7:30 am

Tstormwatcher wrote:I want to do this but am color challenged when it come to getting colors to match.
My countertop is green, the walls are a shade of Tanish orange and the cabinates are white. What would be a good color to paint them?



Rule number one. Never, ever get involved with a clients color choice. It will come back to haunt you! While it seems simple enough, color choices are serious business. Never trust a color swatch. That little bitty piece of paper displaying the color will look entirely different when applied. My personal choices are always conservative pastels.
0 likes   


Return to “Hearth and Home”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 5 guests