Sticky stuff to revamp old units ?

katy2

I have had the kitchen flooring replaced today, the floor now looks greatly improved and the kitchen units look very tired.As we are in a tied house, we are not prepared to replace the kitchen. I can remember seeing on these DIY makeover shows, units getting a revamp with sticking a kind of paper skin stuff over the doors. Has any one tried this, what is, how much, where do you get it?

Any ideas welcome.

Edinburghlass_2

Have a look at the BBC website as they have forums there covering most of the DIY shows along with websites for each of the programmes which also give lists of where products come from.

alanobrien

katy2 wrote:

I have had the kitchen flooring replaced today, the floor now looks greatly improved and the kitchen units look very tired.As we are in a tied house, we are not prepared to replace the kitchen. I can remember seeing on these DIY makeover shows, units getting a revamp with sticking a kind of paper skin stuff over the doors. Has any one tried this, what is, how much, where do you get it?

Any ideas welcome.

Your talking about Fablon i suspect.

B and q do it, as do focus and Homebase

this is the stuff

http://www.hainteriors.com/decorative/kitchen.html

Pink.

Have you considered repainting the kitchen units? I have a friend who did this, and the effect was stunning.

Pink

Lelly

My kitchen was tired and dark, I cheered it up by using a paint and grain effect (Which I got in the sale) the kitchen looks completely different, my brother asked if we had had an extension! It was much easier than I thought it would be, I practiced on a small piece of MDF first and then prepared the surfaces with a primer from B & Q which is for Kitchen surfaces. Then I went ahead. I haven't got round to varnishing it yet but it is standing up to W & T very well. I would reccomend this as a very cheep alternative to vynyl covering and probably easier too. I used limed oak and love it.

katy2

Thanks for the replies.

Yes it must be the fablon I was thinking of, I will have a look for some.

Lelly the painting sounds a good idea. I presume from your post this comes ready mixed in this effect, I will look for some. Our DIY skills aren't great, tend to be more Destroy It Yourself than anything else, so I would be slightly scared about making things worse!

Will look into both possibilities.

Cheers.

Sarahsaver

You can get sticky backed plastic from poundland. I recovered a cupboard for my son in blue holographic stuff and its SO cool.
How about sticking laminated pictures on the doors, or using one door as a noticeboard and painting it with blackboard paint. Another idea would be to make curtains to go in place of the doors.

gary38uk

katy2 wrote:

Thanks for the replies.

Yes it must be the fablon I was thinking of, I will have a look for some.

Lelly the painting sounds a good idea. I presume from your post this comes ready mixed in this effect, I will look for some. Our DIY skills aren't great, tend to be more Destroy It Yourself than anything else, so I would be slightly scared about making things worse!

Will look into both possibilities.

Cheers.

paint & grain is great.
works really well.
first you just paint, leave it for a few hours, then you put on next coat which you then use a comb to get the grain effect.
easy once you get hang of it, just took me a couple mins to get it worked out.
it also washes out in water so its easy to clean up.

you need to also apply a clear lacker/varnish when finished if you want to give it a waterproof finish, which i did.

starlite_2

i agree- painting is definitly the best thing to do...the plastic is very hard to put up and you are guaranteed to be left with a few creases and bubbles no matter how careful you are. i also find that it chips pretty easily and tears start forming which isnt good- we did ours and took it down within a couple of weeks. we then bought some paint specifically for kitchens from b&q which looked amazing.
also to the person who suggested sticky backed plastic from poundland- thats a really silly idea, especially for the cupboards around the oven- melting plastic is not a good look- or smell!

katy2

Think I will give the paint and grain a go.

i_ami The fablon sounds like an waste of time, I wont go down that route, thanks.

lovebargains

I recovered all my kitchen units with fablon from B&Q, and it lasted 5 years, I re-did it last year only because I fancied a change, it was still well stuck, but removing it was easier than I thought. My tips are wash your doors with sugar soap first. Remove the doors to cover them, and I found putting the door on a stool was best. Cut the fablon large enough to cover the front, over the edge and a good half inch to anchor on the inside of the door ( to neaten them I cut with a steel ruler and stanley knife) This time I went for the beech effect and it look fab, just like new units! Just take your time, and the result really lasts, and there is no problem cleaning it, even with ajax! ( dog + huge tail + muddy garden!)