Painting a few cabinets, 3 pics

18 years ago

I'm painting some of the kitchen's drawer fronts and cabinet doors. It will be summer before we begin the remodel; I have to do something now to liven up this dull mess.

The "almost completed" bedroom has the only open space in the entire house, so I put down a dropcloth and started painting the first set of drawer fronts.

Here they are back on the drawers near the sink. The "real" kitchen will be more subdued in shades of ivory and green with dark counters. Wes calls this my "Circus Kitchen" phase.

The colors are "Spiced Butternut," "Lilac Vapor," "Magenta," and "Green Grapes." They're much more vibrant than they appear in this photo. It took eight coats of paint to get the Magenta to look "right." The other colors got three coats each over one coat of primer.

The hardware is brushed nickle. This gives a better idea of the vibrant color.

BeeGee is sporting yellow paint on her nose; Harry is wearing violet near his right ear!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (18)

glenda_al
18 years ago
Wanna do mine?

Very pretty!
LorifromUtah
18 years ago
The magenta is my favorite!
I have to chuckle at the circus kitchen comment.
LOL

Eight coats, eh?
You are dedicated and it shows.
I LOVE the colors!

Did you take the old finish off before you primed?
Or did you just clean and prime?

Lori
Related Discussions
Have started painting cabinets - 3 questions have come up
Q
Comments (2)
You are definately on the right track by preparing the surface properly. I would not put the paint on thick, always do nice even coats and you'll probably only need 2 coats. Unless your cabinets are oak, then you may need more. What's so great about oil is that it self-levels, so apply a nice even first coat, lightly sand and do your finish coat. Once you do your "distressing" you may have some touch-ups. And, always make sure the front of the door looks its best. I would prop the door up (maybe a paint can or some other item to keep it off the surface. Then, you can spin the door as you paint getting a nice clean edge -- no drips (or fingerprints). And, if you lay the door on a flat surface, the painted edges will stick to whatever it lying on. I always paint the flat surface first, then work my way around the edges, making sure to "feather" along the sharp edges making certain there are no drips. Sometimes, a smaller artist brush comes in handy. Also, I think 5 coats of varnish is overkill, but do what you are comfortable with. I did my china hutch black with a distressed finish a few years ago and it gets better looking all the time!
...See More
Loads of pics-- a few questions White/Cherry Kitchen
Q
Comments (35)
suzienj- met with them today and scheduled the home measurements appt(wasn't to crazy about putting a $100 but we'll see) did like the fact they do everything even the painting. keep you posted. byw, they asked how i heard about them so i told them i'm researching kitchens/blog etc and mentioned someone from nj referred them. he mentioned your name but of course i did not know - too funny. anyway- i'll make sure they know you sent me there. trying to compare apples to apples and the price( and reputations) will have a lot to do with it.
...See More
A few pics of the new house (gobs of pictures)
Q
Comments (39)
Hey Cathy...glad you got to see the new house. You were the only GWer who actually saw the FL house in person, come to think of it. This is the first time I've ever done a major move and brought almost everything with me. (You know, last time, I started from scratch because we had nothing but rugs and books and art.) But anyway, I am amazed at how "at home" I feel here. It's probably because I lived it on paper all summer, planning furniture layouts etc. So, what do I miss? Well, I miss the sense of completion I had there. I worked on that place for six years and it really had reached a level that satisfied me. I have such a long way to go here and I am waiting to get juiced up again. Being here a lot for the last couple of days has inspired me though. I miss my gardens, but not the amount of work it took to keep them up. I hope I can keep it manageable here. Clearly things wont grow so darn fast here. Of course, I miss the warm winters. There are days when I can't figure out why I moved to a place where it can be 11 degrees and blowing like stink. And I am out walking around in it! I miss all my orchids out on the patio, the bananas and my Meyer Lemon that finally put out a good crop right before we listed the house. Thanks for asking about my DD. She is finally settling in. It was a rough few months with some stories I related over on the conversations side if you want the drama! ;-) But she got a good part in the winter musical, seems to be doing well academically and is generally much happier in just the last few weeks. Zipdee, your comment makes me chuckle. All those things to look at feel like clutter at the moment! I have to buy about a half a dozen bookcases and until I do, I have a huge table in the basement full of tchoch. I call it the flea market. I just go down a "shop" to decorate. It's great, because it's a shop where I actually like everything available! Polkadots, you have great memory about the flooring. I think we are trashing it already....very soft. But I still think it's gorgeous and we're just on the fast-track to patina. A visitor last night said the house doesn't feel new at all. I took that as a huge complement. Wabi sabi rules! We do love the Bosch W&D. I wanted to have them counter-height so I'd have a work space. I struggled over whether to get them or not in FL. One day, I opened the newspaper and someone was selling a set very cheaply. So, I figured it was worth the gamble. This summer, in our temporary home, I had giant American top-loaders and couldn't wait to get back to the small guys again. I love doing small loads frequently, knowing the machines only use as much water as they need. Clothes do come out cleaner, I believe. The soak function is great for stubborn stains (I sound like a commercial!). And getting smaller machines allowed me to steal a foot for the master bath! Thanks everyone for the kind words. I am just at the beginning of the work so there will be many changes to come. I know you'll all be here to help me along the way. Especially with the WTs...my nemesis! :-)
...See More
Any pointers on painting laminate cabinets? Pics?
Q
Comments (2)
I would ask at your local reputable paint store for any tips. I used the Zinsser 123 on some old wood cabinets and when I painted my dark pine trim and it worked out very well, though I know the Zinsser Bin is supposed to be better for your situation - though I do think it is paint thinner / mineral spirits clean up. I also don't know if one sands laminate - ask about that. There may be some tutorials online about painting laminate cabinets - think I've seen some on Pinterest. If the painting does not work out well for some reason, I've curtained cabinets when the doors were hopeless - just use a rod that makes it easy to access the interior of the cabinet.
...See More
caroline94535
Original Author
18 years ago
Since we'll be replacing the cabinets, I didn't sand them down to bare wood, or refinish them as carefully as I would have otherwise.

I cleaned them with a TSP-type cleaner, can't think of the name of it for the life of me right now. Then I lightly sanded the drawer fronts and primed them with Kilz. The yellow, lilac, and green fronts got three coats of paint, each, with a light sanding between each coat. The magenta got the eight coats, with sanding between each.

I'm debating putting a coat of satin polyurethane over the top of each of them.
junkyardgirl
18 years ago
Those are so cute! I need to paint cabinets too. I'm dreading it. I'm just doing mine white, so it won't be as complicated as yours, but I hate painting. Especially, I hate handpainting the insides. I'm doing the kitchen yellow and white, so I'm doing the cabinets white, and the insides yellow.
caroline94535
Original Author
18 years ago
Junkyardgirl...I love yellow and white for a kitchen. If my '30s green kitchen plans fall through, I'm changing the color to yellow. The kitchen color is going to depend on what we decide for the living room color, since we can see both rooms at the same time.

I've never painted the insides of cabinets; that would be tedious, not to mention back stiffening! Do you have a young person (early teens?) that could help? I found it hard enough to paint the inside of the linen closet. LOL It will be gorgeous to open your cabinets and see a pretty yellow lining though.

My "real" cabinets will be a sedate, DH-approved, off-white/ivory/bisque of some sort with boring wood tones inside. I may sneak in a bit of color here and there, though.

I used "Dirtex" by Savogran to clean all the woodwork before priming. I think using it, along with a good primer, is the secret to a good paint job. I lightly sanded between coats, but it was just a quick once over with one of those fine-grit sanding sponges. Wipe it with a tacky cloth and you're ready for the next coat.

I'd love to come help you, and Glenda, paint cabinets. Wouldn't we have fun?
intherain
18 years ago
Caroline, I love it!!!

I, too, have plans for our kitchen and baths some day. Like you, I've made some interim plans...with our bathroom. I got out the paint and painted our light fixtures and some other hardware. Eventually they will all be replaced, but in the meantime this makes me very happy!

I'd love to see Harry and BeeGee with some paint!

Sheryl
Lindsey_CA
18 years ago
I like the different drawer colors. In my house, that would make life so much easier when hubs asks where something is -- I could just say, "in the green drawer," rather than have him misunderstand that it's not that bottom drawer, but this bottom drawer...
Linda Wayman
18 years ago
Caroline ~ I think that looks so cute. I would have never thought to do something like that.
I like Lindsey's idea of being able to tell dh to look in the green drawer etc, although I don't think it would help Bob. I'd still have to find it for him.

Linda
kim_okla
18 years ago
I like it and it gives you a chance to try out colors. I bet the dogs were loving be able to help.
lydia1959
18 years ago
I'd never have thought of doing the different colors - but it works!! Looks great!
liz
18 years ago
YOU GO GIRL!! I wish I was brave enough to try it...i HATE my kitchen CABINETS!!
Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle
18 years ago
{{gwi:1588754}}
This would look "marvelous" as a side buffet in your kitchen. LOL! I'm thinking of doing a painting on a old hutch for my purple kitchen.
caroline94535
Original Author
18 years ago
It would be wonderful in my kitchen! Could you post a photo of your purple kitchen? I'm feeling color-starved at the moment.
Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle
18 years ago
You can't see it, but above the Cabinets is a sort of Olive Green. I painted the old hardware black. This is a 1963 Kitchen.
okwriter
18 years ago
I love those colors! What a "happy" kitchen!

But let me get this straight...you are painting those cabinets and they will be replaced in the summer? If so, you have WAY more energy than I have! :-)
Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle
18 years ago
This is the Green above my purple cabinets.

{{gwi:1588760}}
jennmonkey
18 years ago
I love purple and green together. I went out and bought a bunch of cheap, second hand wood furniture so I could paint them funky colors. I painted my coffee table purple, this little plant stand I have green (kind of an olive green), two bookshelves maroon, and my nightstand purple with a green drawer.
Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle
18 years ago
{{gwi:1588763}}

Caroline, there are so many colorful area rugs out there now. Maybe that would save you some labor to get color.
Color is really totally in. This is my Wish List{{gwi:1588765}}click

Gayle

Painting a few cabinets, 3 pics

Comments (18)

glenda_al

LorifromUtah

Related Discussions

caroline94535
Original Author

junkyardgirl

caroline94535
Original Author

intherain

Lindsey_CA

Linda Wayman

kim_okla

lydia1959

liz

Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle

caroline94535
Original Author

Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle

okwriter

Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle

jennmonkey

Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Painting a few cabinets, 3 pics

Comments (18)

Related Discussions

caroline94535Original Author

caroline94535Original Author

caroline94535Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

caroline94535
Original Author

caroline94535
Original Author

caroline94535
Original Author