Painting kitchen cupboards

tortoiseshellcat

Hi all has anyone ever painted their kitchen cupboards to get a nice new look without the expense of a new kitchen? Our kitchen cupboards aren't solid wood I guess they're some type of laminate, beech effect, we've painted the walls blue and would like to paint the kitchen cupboards/drawers in cream or white or maybe grey. If anyone has done this before I'd be very grateful for any advice eg which paint to use for the best result that'll stay looking nice,

Thanks. 😀

shawbarbara

Hi Tortoiseshellcat,
I have and I am so pleased with the result - I truly thought there was no way I could do it. My kitchen were also covered with laminate. I went into B&Q - got advice from an older man working on paint counter - he was a gent. He advised I strip off laminate - prime with watered down white matt paint and carefully paint doors and drawers. He advised removing them first. I removed drawer fronts but was unable to remove kitchen doors. He advised me not to overload my brush with paint etc. I bought B&Q brand matt paint( which most people moan about) - it did the job -though I needed to paint about 3 coats - however the result was amazing - like a brand new kitchen
I also bought new handles for doors and drawers - I now have a great kitchen and get satisfaction at a fraction of the prize of new doors etc

PasturesNew

I'd recommend you go down the tip, try to find an old one - have a go and see if you're any good at it. You might be terrible

shawbarbara

Forgot to say - I finished off by painting them with clear gloss paint Hard work but a great job

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go for it - you will be so pleased with result

Nikkisun

The product you want is called ESP (easy surface preparation). No sanding, stripping undercoat etc. you wipe it onto the surface, leave it five minutes then wipe it back off, 2 hours later the cupboards are ready to paint and you can use any paint at all.

I used 2 coats of white satinwood and the finish is amazing.

jellie

Nikkisun wrote: »

The product you want is called ESP (easy surface preparation). No sanding, stripping undercoat etc. you wipe it onto the surface, leave it five minutes then wipe it back off, 2 hours later the cupboards are ready to paint and you can use any paint at all.

I used 2 coats of white satinwood and the finish is amazing.

+1 for using ESP.

I used emulsion to paint the kitchen cupboards (because of the colour), followed by a couple of coats of varnish.

I also used ESP to paint bedroom furniture. Used satinwood on those, no varnish needed.

thescouselander

My sister in law did this - it looked rubbish and now she's after a new kitchen. Maybe if you can't get the finish you want you could always consider just replacing the doors/drawer fronts.

muckybutt

We did ours a few years ago, they were wooden laminate on mdf.

Spent a few hours sanding them down to give surface a good key, they used a good quality eggshell paint and used a gloss roller to apply the paint with.
Let them dry for two days then fine between coats sandpaper used to key the surface again and then another coat of eggshell applied with the roller.
Looked fantastic back then and still does today so well worth the time and effort.

tortoiseshellcat

Thanks for your replies, my sister has also recommended Zinsser bin bulls eye 123 as a primer...

rampies_wife

Nikkisun wrote: »

The product you want is called ESP (easy surface preparation). No sanding, stripping undercoat etc. you wipe it onto the surface, leave it five minutes then wipe it back off, 2 hours later the cupboards are ready to paint and you can use any paint at all.

I used 2 coats of white satinwood and the finish is amazing.

I recommend ESP as well we used it on kickboards and side panels cream dulux silk brilliant !

tizzle6560

Would this ESP work on what IKEA call their 'high gloss foil' in black, which is heat shrunk onto mdf doors?

We too are looking at ways to revamp the kitchen and would love to give this a go, but don't want to ruin the whole lot if it wont take, or look good in a year's time.. Thanks!

Also just to add that this 'foil' they use, is apparently also bonded on with a layer of glue between the mdf board and the foil itself so removing it I'm sure would prove very difficult!