You know it's funny. I don't have a license to paint because it's not required in my state. I also do not have any references because I certainly do not want potential customers calling my previous customers and bothering them. I'm the best painter around. If you are looking for great painters, please try and find a friend that has used a painter and was happy. If you don't have any friends that have used painters then go into a real paint store and get some names. They will give you names of painters that have been around a while and pay their paint store bills. These are 2 good signs. Whether the cabinets should be stripped or removed and sprayed will depend on many factors. If the paint is in good condition, it may be okay to just paint over it. If there are brush marks on the cabinets that you want removed, then sanding down to raw wood may be a good idea, but this will be expensive. Two coats of high quality washable paint is standard, but painting over a green color may take a third coat.

Chiming in late, but wanted to say after reading the posts, gsciencechick, you never have to be embarrassed with us. We're are all here to help each other. Whether you have a big kitchen or small kitchen, old or new, we want to see it be the best it can be within each person's budget constraints. That said, I think your kitchen is very cute and has huge potential! alex's link to that white kitchen with the blue backsplash can give you the inspiration to take your kitchen in a direction without breaking the bank. As you search through the kitchen forum, you will see many people who have done amazing things to their kitchens all by themselves with paint and tile and light fixtures, knobs and pulls etc and are very pleased with the result. You'll get lots of good ideas here. Some you will like, others you won't. No one is offended if you don't take them and do them. Just keep posting and eventually you will have a kitchen you and DH are very proud of.

I know it would make a good toiletry cabinet, but have enough of these in all my rather small bathrooms. I would either put small items in there that clutter up my china cabinet (like candles) or use it for CDs. I play them often in that room as I use the dining room table or the adjacent kitchen table as a sewing table. The painted wall was done over the period of years. When I add something new to the dining room, I add streaks or sponging of whatever color is needed. I told my kids (now in their 20’s) a few years back I was going to repaint it when I got a “new” antique dining set. They had a fit. They said they could recall the phases of their lives by what colors were added to the dining room walls. MizGG, how did you mix your glaze?

@Laura Holland Thanks so much for the update. I am very glad you found someone to do a post-catalyzed conversion varnish on your cabinetry. That's the standard for finish longevity. How utterly horrible that the contractors have already messed it up. Yes, repairs are very difficult with the 2-part coatings. They absolutely should have been much more cautious. It's somewhat hard to mar a 2-part finish, so they must have been really careless. It sounds like you may have gotten the satin finish of the INSL-X. I have heard the semi-gloss is significantly more durable. If you do have it re-done, I wouldn't go with any Benjamin Moore products again. Find someone who can do Milesi, Renner, or ICA-Ilva. All three of those would be superior, but they may need to be sprayed as most formulations from those companies dry fast, and the 2-part formulas provide the most hardness and chemical resistance. Many people have reported finish failures with Advance even with a Stix Primer. INSL-X is a step above Advance based on my research. In fact, INSL-X is actually made by the same people who make Stix. Benjamin Moore bought the company.