Can I paint my kitchen cupboards?!!

Minky2Slice

Hi,

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o54/1purplefairy/kitchen.jpg

Don't have the cash to redo our kitchen at the moment, so I am thinking of painting the kitchen cupboards white?
The current brown looks a bit old-fashioned?
And then I will replace all the handles on all the cupboards as well, maybe to something plain and silver?

Does anyone think its a good idea or am I stark raving mad?
(hubby seem to think I have lost the plot )
Also, what type of paint would i have to use?

Thanks!! I would really appreciate any help/advice/opinions/suggestions!

Janey3

Hi, I did my kitchen cupboards quite a few years ago with kitchen cupboard paint you can get from B & Q. The paint hasn't chipped at all. I gave the cupboards a light sanding first before I applied the paint.

Janey

mcspanna

Minky2Slice wrote: »

Hi,

http://i117.photobucket.com/albums/o54/1purplefairy/kitchen.jpg

Don't have the cash to redo our kitchen at the moment, so I am thinking of painting the kitchen cupboards white?
The current brown looks a bit old-fashioned?
And then I will replace all the handles on all the cupboards as well, maybe to something plain and silver?

Does anyone think its a good idea or am I stark raving mad?
(hubby seem to think I have lost the plot )
Also, what type of paint would i have to use?

Thanks!! I would really appreciate any help/advice/opinions/suggestions!

I think it sounds like a great idea! I googled 'paint kitchen cupboards' and the 4th link down had quite a lot of info. Only thing that struck me from your photo is that if you paint the cupboards white they will look very similar to the cheap white kitchen in my old student flat (sorry, no offence intended!) - would a cream/ivory colour maybe go with the existing tiles better? Silver handles will work with pretty much anything...I've replaced handles on various pieces of furniture to update them and it instantly updates something regardless of the colour. (Ikea have a good range of handles at a reasonable price) :beer:

JoolzS

Nothing mad about it at all. You can either buy special paint or use plain eggshell. If you really wanted to, you could also paint the tiles using tile paint.

It's a great way to refresh a tired and/or dated kitchen without spending a fortune. It won't last forever, and may end up looking a bit DIYish, but it's a lot cheaper and less hassle than replacing a kitchen.

I've done both things in the past (painted the units and painted the tiles) although not in the same kitchen - and never regretted it. A friend of mine painted her kitchen units white and then painted freehand daisies on them - no-one would ever have thought it was a professional job, but it looked really nice.

Julie

danechip

I think your kitchen looks fine as it is. Painting it white would look tacky.

newnhak

We had a similar kitchen and I painted it light green and got little brass round handles from Ikea. Pic is below (ignore the rugrats!). The doors were sprayed (my ex was a sprayer) but if you got a roller and some proper kitchen door paint I reckon you would still get a good finish. Make sure you prep them well first - ex had a pain getting some of the paint to take because of grease on the doors. So I guess you need something to degrease them first?

aloiseb

I think your kitchen looks gorgeous as it is.....ripe to be Cath Kidston ' d or Gisela Graham 'd. Think country instead of techno!

Edinburghlass_2

newnhak wrote: »

We had a similar kitchen and I painted it light green and got little brass round handles from Ikea. Pic is below (ignore the rugrats!). The doors were sprayed (my ex was a sprayer) but if you got a roller and some proper kitchen door paint I reckon you would still get a good finish. Make sure you prep them well first - ex had a pain getting some of the paint to take because of grease on the doors. So I guess you need something to degrease them first?

What a beautiful colour! It would look good with the tiles in the OP's pic. You'll find a thread in Old Style about grease in the kitchen but sugar soap is good for cleaning before painting and you can get it in spray form as well now.

angelavdavis

I have been trying to convince my Inlaws to do there cupboards in a pale green like this - they have a very similar kitchen to yours and have been trying to sell the house, but the kitchen looks so dark and pokey even though its a really decent size.

Sugarsoap is the way to go to cleaning then down. Remove from the cupboards and do one at a time. Remove all hinges and handles, clean well. Give them a good clean.

Paint flat on a surface. Apply paint to mouldings first thinly and use a roller to apply to the flat areas.

The pelmet will probably have to painted in situ.

I think pewter or silver handles would be great.

TomsMom

angelavdavis wrote: »

I have been trying to convince my Inlaws to do there cupboards in a pale green like this - they have a very similar kitchen to yours and have been trying to sell the house, but the kitchen looks so dark and pokey even though its a really decent size.

Sugarsoap is the way to go to cleaning then down. Remove from the cupboards and do one at a time. Remove all hinges and handles, clean well. Give them a good clean.

Paint flat on a surface. Apply paint to mouldings first thinly and use a roller to apply to the flat areas.

The pelmet will probably have to painted in situ.

I think pewter or silver handles would be great.

I started a thread asking this question but have had not replies. What do you do with the melamine sides, i.e. if you have wall cupboards near your cooker and they get splashes of grease it's no problem to clean them if they're the original melamine. Can you paint them, with what and if so can it be cleaned same as melamine?

newnhak

Thanks for the comments on my kitchen - this kitchen went through 2 successive paint jobs - first it was mid blue (which was ok), then the green (which I loved). We only painted the doors leaving the carcasses as is (so cant answer your q regarding melamine panels although I am sure I have seen melamine primer?).

As ex was a sprayer he did all the degreasing with whatever they use (prob still sugar soap) - but still had an issue with the grooves on the panel over the extractor fan. Apart from this the painting worked well - I painted the tiles too - not sure if you can see them on the pic. They lasted about 5 years before starting to peel in places (mainly near the sink but I managed to hide most of it). I used tile primer for these.

The kitchen was old when we moved in 12 years ago and I have managed to make it last - in fact I am only taking it out now because I want a better layout. I painted the ceiling too (was clad in oak panelling) and this made a big difference as it was really dark and dingy before. If you are selling I would definitely consider painting first as it does go a long way to brightening a kitchen and making it look like new with little cost involved.

Ikea had these handles in brass and chrome last time I looked.