How To Paint Kitchen Cabinets

Nowhere else in your house is such a large amount of woodwork subjected to such harsh treatment than in your kitchen. Your kitchen cabinets are opened and closed countless times a day, oftentimes by hands covered with butter, melted popsicles, or other food residue. Not only that, but the air in the kitchen is constantly changing, from high humidity resulting from boiling water or steaming vegetables, to hot and dry heat from an oven baking at a high temperature for a long time.

It is no wonder this highly visible part of your kitchen may be in need of a makeover. By simply painting your kitchen cabinets, you can completely transform the look of your kitchen.

Clean the Cabinets

Before you begin, it is important to clean the cabinets. Years of accumulated dust, grease, and grime can build up and prevent a quality job of repainting. You will probably find this process is easier if you remove the cabinet doors and find a place where you can lay them all out flat. Simply use an all-purpose cleaner, a few rags, and a little elbow grease to get the job done.

Sand the Cabinets

After the cabinets have thoroughly dried from their cleaning, use a fine grit sandpaper to lightly sand the flat surfaces of your cabinet doors. By preparing the surface for the primer you will put on next, your cabinets will look better longer. If you skip this step, you’ll have to go through the whole painting process sooner than you would have to otherwise.

Apply Primer

If you are repainting your cabinets with the same color, you may choose to skip this step. However, particularly if you are painting over wood varnish, priming will help form a better bond between the wood and the paint. This means that the paint will be less likely to chip away when the doors are bumped against each other or hit with a pot. The type of primer you use is primarily determined by the type of paint you plan to use. An oil-based paint necessitates an oil-based primer, whereas a latex top coat will need a shellac primer. Be sure to do this in a well-ventilated area, and cover anything that you don’t want to get paint on.

Paint Cabinets

Use either a sprayer or a high quality paint brush to apply the paint to the cabinets in several thin layers. It may be tempting to lay it on thick so you can finish faster, but you will achieve a much better look if you can be patient and use thin layers of paint. You may choose to lightly sand the cabinets’ flat surfaces between coats to get a really professional-looking finish. Once they are completely dry, hang them carefully back up in your kitchen and enjoy your new kitchen décor!

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