8 years. 8 long years! That’s how long I’ve lived in my condo and disliked my kitchen, mostly the cabinets. I have the typical late 80s, early 90s almond formica cabinets with the wood trim. Great, well made cabinets, horrible look for the new millennial.
With so much advancement in paint and thanks to the web, I was able to research and get ideas to DIY my kitchen cabinets and give them the makeover they needed.
I will show you how you can literally give your kitchen a beautiful update in less than 72 hours and without breaking the bank.
1. First things first, I took off all of my cabinet doors and laid them out on a plastic drop cloth. ( I did this the night before I was going to paint)
2. Next thing I did was de-glossed all of the cabinets and frame in the kitchen. The guy at the store said it would make a nice ‘tacky’ feel for the paint and it would also get off any grease or grime on the cabinets.
You can find this at your local hardware store. I went to Home Depot. It’s called Kleen Strip Sander Deglosser
3. The next morning, I taped off the frame of the cabinets and started to paint the doors and my dad (poor guy is up visiting from Florida and I roped him into helping 😉 ) started to paint the frame.
Now, the paint I chose is an all-in-one- BEHR Marquee Ultra Pure White Semi-Gloss Paint with Primer! My dad and I wanted a one stop shop paint for this project. The man at Home Depot suggested this once I explained what I was doing. It is fast drying, and will only need to be done with two coats, depending upon if the wood will bleed through.
Also to paint, I used a small roller and an actual paintbrush. You will want to make sure you do the edges of the cabinet doors and get in the grooves of the wood and the formica.
4. I started at 8:30am and I was done with two coats by 11:00am. My dad also applied another coat over the frame of the cabinets.
5. I then left the cabinets and the frame to dry for the rest of the day and night. I wanted to make sure they would dry completely before I placed the doors back on the frame.
6. The next morning, I screwed the doors back on. Make sure to take a step back and see if you need to touch up any of the doors. Some of mine needed a nice quick roll over with the paint to give it a nice finish. Literally took 15 minutes.
7. Now since the lady before me had drilled holes in these cabinet doors, I needed to replace the knobs. I chose these nice brushed nickel knobs that I found at Home Depot. I couldn’t believe how affordable they were!
8. Once all of the doors were on, I screwed on the door knobs, peeled off the painters tape and took a step back and couldn’t believe my eyes! My kitchen has literally been transformed. I also can’t believe that I hated my kitchen so much that I don’t have a single picture of it from before (besides the ones from this)
(I’m still not a huge fan of my mauve countertop, but it look SO much better.)
UPDATE: I’ve fixed my counter top and added a beautiful backsplash
If you’ve always wanted to update your cabinets, don’t think it will take forever and/or a lot of money! I did this all on a single gal’s budget on 2 hot summer days (thank god for central air).
I am so proud of how it came out, I encourage all of you do a little changing in your home to give it a refreshing new look and feel!
Any comments or questions, please don’t hesitate to ask!
xo,
erica
Looks great! White is so clean and fresh and instantly gave a facelift to your kitchen. Also, love that rug!
It looks beautiful your cabinets look exactly like mine and I have been looking how to paint them,thank you so much.
Is a great help thanks.
Thank you!! Good luck with yours Diamar!
How are the cabinets now? Wondering how they have stood the test of time. Did they scratch up and at all?
They still look just as good as did when I first painted them. And I have to say I’m not that “easy” on them w the way the running around of life these days. lol I usually just wipe them down w warm water and soap when I’m cleaning and they have held up amazingly well!!!
So inspiring Erica!! It looks fantastic!! Can’t wait to do this to my kitchen as well!! Really need the update!! Thanks for sharing your story
Just wondering how they’ve held up to wear and tear in the last 5 months? Looks great, and I have some nearly identical I’d like to paint.
Omg still look fabulous!! I’m so happy I did it!
Do your cabinets still look good? Loved reading your story. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you!!! Yes they still look amazing! And I have to say I’m not “easy” on my cabinets either. With the hustle and bustle of life, they still look great.
Hi erica, i saw ur pin nd i did the same. I have also a formica kitchen nd bought the same paint as u. But the problem is.. If u scratch the painted drawers just a bit, it starts to peel of.. How do u manage it? But thank u for the inspiration! 🙂
Hi!! So far I haven’t had any problems. No peeling or scratching. When I’m cleaning it , I just wipe it down too with a damp cloth.
Did anyone stain the wood above and below the cabinets instead of paint them? I think I would like to try that, I am not sure I like the whole thing being white. Are their other colors to choose from?
No we didn’t stain the wood above or below. I left them as is and then worked on them. You can make the paint any color you’d like as long it’s that kind (can be another brand).
Your cabinets look awesome! I have the same outdated ones lol one question and it’s probably stupid but did you paint the inside of them too? And if so what did you use to rest them on when you did the second side? Thanks for sharing!! ????????
Thank you!! I really do love my cabinets. It’s amazing what paint can do. As of now I did not paint the inside. But I was actually just talking about how I am probably going to this spring/summer. If you decide to do it all at once, wait until one side is completely dry. I used a plastic drop cloth. Super easy. 🙂
Thanks Erica! Can’t wait to do mine! ????????
Anytime!! Let me know how it goes ☺️
Thank you ,thank you, thank you..have exact same cabinets .I can’t wait to do this..
Erica, Can you let me know how these are holding up a year later? Still looking good?
Hi Linda! They are still looking really good. When I clean them, I’ve been just using warm water and little bit of mild soap. So far none have chipped or dulled at all.
Do you brush the paint on ? If so did it leave paint brush marks ? I want to do this to our rental house kichen cabinets but my husband is under the impression that it will leave brush marks. We have the same cabinets as you do.
Thanks , Dana
Hi, I rolled it on and touched upon certain spots with a brush. They are still holding up really well, which makes me happy!
Love how they turned out. You painted the 90s right out of those cabinets.
I have these exact same cabinets!!
And will definitely paint just as you did. Looks great!!
I’m also going to concrete the counter tops for a nice modern update that is affordable 🙂
Oh Nice!!!! It was definitely the best thing I could have done to my kitchen. Especially on budget 🙂
Hi! I have the exact same ones and want to paint them as well!! Quick question, some of the Formica (close to the wood) looks kind of “bubbly” and I’m afraid it’ll start chipping off, did you have the same issue with any of your cabinets? If so how did you deal with it? Thanks!!
Hi!! I didn’t have any ‘bubbles’ but I did sand them down a little bit which took off any residue or oddities on there. Plus it allowed for the paint to take better.
Hi Erica! I see that u mentioned sanding some. Was that before or after the deglosser? I have many I am about to start and sanding seems to be suggested..
Thank u
Elena
Hello, did you need to use a de greaser prior to painting? And how many gallos did you need for your full kitchen?
Hi!! I did. I washed my cabinets, then applied the de-glosser to make it ‘tacky’ and/or sticky. This way the paint stuck to the cabinets better. I also needed one gallon of paint.
I am doing this currently. You had the same type of cabinets. Did you paint the inside part of the wood trim in the door ow leave wood. I was going to paint white on the lip inside door too.
Did you do a gloss over top? I bought a satin finish supposed to be stain and easy clean was 50.00 a gallon but I’m worried about it.
Hi! I didn’t end up painting the inside. I’m actually thinking of maybe doing the inside this summer but I’ve already gone over a year without it and it’s fine. It’s really a preference. I’m the only one who sees the inside of my cabinets and it was quicker to get done without doing both sides.
I didn’t gloss over the top. I literally just applied the paint and let it dry over night. Mine wasn’t that expensive.
Hi Erica!
We recently moved from Indiana to Floruda and the house we bought had those ever so hated cabinets in the kitchen. Unfortunately they’re in great shape so I can’t justify replacing them not can I come close to affording it. I will be painting them soon and was wondering if you think it would work to paint the back and edges of each door then hang then re-hang them when dry and do the fronts while they’re hanging? I think this would assure me no accidents with “not quite dry” paint when I flipped em over on the tarp. What do you think?
Thanks,
Helina
Hi Helina!
I also didn’t have the money to replace my cabinets and they were decent shape too. But it was dreadful looking at them lol.
The only thing I worry about painting them while hanging, is the paint dripping down and not sitting on the cabinet flat. My paint dried really well over night so if you wait a good amount of time, it should work. Plus with them hanging, you may notice shadows depending upon where the light is. That is why I also painted mine flat. Just a thought. Let me know how you make out!
~Erica
Your kitchen looks great! I have the same cabinets but my problem is that the white part of the original cabinets are peeling at the corners and bottom. They are so old that I want to just peel them off completely. I’m wondering if you think I could still paint them if I peel them.
Thank you so much!!! 2 years later and it still looks really good. I wonder if you apply a peel and stick wainscoting over the formica. That will add texture and will cover the corners that are peeling. My sister adding wainscoting to her cabinets and then painted them all white and it looks fabulous too. (check it out on The Mod Mommy). I’d be afraid that if you peeled it off completely, it would’t paint as smoothly. Just a thought. Let me know how you make out 🙂
Hi Erica! I applied the deglosser and wanted to know if it feels “tacky” right away or over night? Also how much of the deglosser did you apply? I’ve applied it following the instructions on the bottle and it doesn’t feel any different. Thanks!!!
I’m in the process of buying a new condo and the kitchen and bathroom cabinets are like this. To be honest, before looking at pinterest, it was such a dealbreaker. I’m so glad I came across your blog! Question for you- how long did it take with the degreaser and did it take a lot of “elbow grease” as my dad would say?
Oh yay!!! I’m so glad I was able to help with changing your mind. Trust me, I didn’t “like” my kitchen for the longest time bc of my cabinets. I know LOVE it 2 1/2 years later.
I was able to do this whole project in 2 days for the most part. With degreasing my cabinets and frame, I did that the night before to make sure it dried enough but was tacky for the paint to stick the next morning. It’s helpful to have one other person with you to get it done quicker. But can definitely be done independently.
Good Luck! Let me know how you make out 🙂
Breann & Erica,
I am in the same boat and I’m really glad i came across this blog!
As I tackle this same project in the next few weeks, i’m curious, in hindsight, if you wish you had painted the inside of the cabinets as well?
Thanks in advance!
Hi Sydney! Actually yes! This is something I sometimes think about when I open my cabinets lol when I originally did it, I said to myself “whoever buys this after me, I’m sure will rip this kitchen out anyway”. Well, here I am still living here. It’s something I might do over the summer just to ‘finish’ it off. 😊
Erica, the cabinets look awesome, you’re a great inspiration. I am going to start this project on our beach condo kitchen cabinets. What type of roller cover (foam etc) would you recommend using?
Thank you so much!! I had a regular roller, mini foam and a paint brush to touch up around the cabinets.
I am painting over my cabinets which are just like yours and I am using the same roller but it is not a flat sheen look it has a texture look and my question is does yours look like that
Can you see brush strokes? About to paint mine.
We bought a house in Florida and the cabinets are like yours. I hate them and have been thinking about painting them white. We have spent quite a bit of money on the house already and want to save money by not tearing out the kitchen. You have gave me great inspiration to paint the cabinets and put new hardware on them.
I’m so glad I’ve inspired you. I instantly loved my kitchen and felt differently after I did it. The new hardware will also change the look. I know mine did!! Good luck!
Thank you for your write up! We have the same cabinets.
Can you expand on what thickness nap your roller was?
Looks great! I have these same looking cabinets and will be painting them soon. Some websites have said not to paint the white part just paint the part that looks wood… and have the paint matched to the color of the white part. How did you decide which approach?
My husband claims that the frames are laminate also (obviously the doors are). Most websites are referring to these as oak and laminate but I dont know if I have oak frames or laminate frames. The paint you used would be good for either though right?