What I Learned from Painting My Kitchen Cabinets

When i moved into my new home, the first thing i wanted to do was tackle the kitchen. I love a bright, warm, and inviting kitchen. However, the kitchen we moved into was dark, and needed some cosmetic updates (side note: never again will i buy a house with wallpaper.)

After we removed all the wallpaper we decided to start the cabinet project. Tutorials, blog posts, and inspirational pictures are all over the internet right now. My boyfriend thought i was crazy to want to paint over the beautiful oak cabinets the previous owners took great care of, but i was determined to add some brightness back into our kitchen.

As i searched on YouTube for tutorials on DIY Painting Kitchen Cabinets, i found some quality videos (linked below) on how to paint them flawlessly:

Picking out the type of paint was the hardest decision. We wanted quality paint, but we had strict budget. We found a paint outlet around us that collects paints that we mistakenly mixed, or the paint suppliers had to discard for whatever reason. The kind worker suggested using an Exterior Paint. This will help with later clean-up (because white attracts all the stains lol) and it will hold up longer against peeling/ fading. I was worried about the smell and using it indoors, but the brand that we decided on did not have as strong of an odor.

Products i used for this project with links:

We only needed a gallon of each. (Side note: if you are not using this primer, make sure you read the back and see if states not to use on cabinets!)

Now that it is time to paint lets talk about a couple mistakes:

1. Clean your cabinets before you prime.

I decided to clean the cabinets with Brillo pad which did a decent job, but it is hard to get the remaining soap residue off. I should have used a cleaner like TSP. This helps with removing any grease/food residue.

2. Sanding cabinets before priming is actually an important step.

I didn't sand the cabinets prior to painting them. We were told from a couple of people that painted cabinets before, that it was an unnecessary step. Now looking back I should've sanded them, since they were so old they had a few dings and scratches that show up through the white.

3. Use a Paint Roller Specifically for painting cabinets.

When i began priming the cabinets i used a paint brush, and a mini knit roller. I would HIGHLY recommend using a foam roller as listed above. You will get a much smoother finish without any of the lint marks.

4. This IS NOT an overnight project.

Diving into this project i thought it would be completed over the weekend, and i could start my next project...boy was i wrong. I was so eager to paint my cabinets that i did not give the first coat of primer enough time to dry which lead to uneven patches. Let each side dry overnight. The whole project probably lasted about 4-5 days.

5. Elevate your cabinets.

While painting you will notice that it is hard to get around all of the edges when they are on a flat surface. I thought it was silly to buy those painters pyramids, but they help with drying and getting around all the corners, and edges.

I love the way that the cabinets turned out! Although i would change a couple things about the way we tackled the project --- the end result still turned out beautifully, and it brightened up the whole room.

Thank you for reading and stay tuned for more kitchen updates!