Best Way To Update Kitchen Cabinets – When my husband and I decided to remodel our kitchen, we knew we had to be on a tight budget. We don’t want to spend a fortune, but we want to make a strong impact on our renovation. One of the biggest expenses in a kitchen is usually the cabinets, so instead of ordering new custom cabinets, we decided to update our kitchen cabinets, keeping under budget!
Since our floor plan changed a bit, we had to get two new small cabinets, but we opted for unfinished cabinets that were built so we could adjust them to match the existing cabinets.
Best Way To Update Kitchen Cabinets
Our first cabinet was not beautiful maple with traditional hardware. Combined with black and brown melamine countertops, it creates a brown, dark kitchen. When I created my design plan, I wanted to stay as far away from brown as possible!
Kitchen Cabinet Hardware
Now, keep in mind, we are on a budget. Showcases cost money, like shelves, instead of getting a good roof to install new shelving, we remove the doors and hardware, and cut out the middle where the cabinet doors meet.
You don’t realize how ugly your closets are until you start thinking about them. Well, I won’t judge. Take a look up close and personal. Then grab some destructive stuff with a magic eraser and wipe the crap out of the bad guys.
I’ll explain the painting process in a minute, but let me say this: I’m afraid to do this project because if I mess up, I’ll have to spend a lot of money on a new house, but it’s okay. More than I expected. So if you are afraid to paint the cabinets, I say just do it.
As small a detail as it may seem, new cabinet hardware makes a big difference in the cleanliness of updated cabinets. I also searched Pinterest for inspiration before choosing my favorite model, contact D. Lawless Hardware to order.
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As I said, display costs money, so we opted to keep our existing cabinets and do faux open shelving instead. By removing the cabinet doors and hardware, we created the look we were going for.
We removed the doors and hardware and lived with them for about a week before we attempted to open the upper cabinets. I want to make sure that seeing my plate will not disturb me. My husband really wants to install glass doors, but the thought of washing them makes me decide against it.
If you choose to do it yourself, be sure to cut the center divider, opening the bins completely. This is the part that will sit between the cabinet doors, but is only visible when the doors are closed. We chose to remove the decorative elements from the top of the cabinet. It is too traditional for my taste.
It is very important that you clean your cabinets thoroughly before painting them. Cooking, and proper living in general, creates grease and grime and grime on your door and drawer fronts, and if you paint over it, you’ll end up with evil…plus it’s a lot. is good
Budget Diy: Update Your Kitchen Cabinets With Paint
#1 – Start with waste. Thoroughly spray an old towel or washcloth with detergent, then clean every corner of the cabinet. Do this for all the doors, drawer fronts and cupboards.
#3 – Soak a clean cloth or towel in warm water. Clean the cabinets thoroughly to get any residue and debris off the wood. Then rinse thoroughly.
After your cabinet is completely dry, grab some 220 grit paper and sand the interior, doors and drawer fronts. The goal is not to remove all the finish, just smooth the surface so the primer has something to hold on to.
Thanks to my painter Mike and my house, I decided to go with Behr Multi-Surface Primer and Sealer. I chose a semi-gloss color for the cabinets (also on the recommendation of my painter Mike), and this particular primer allows the color to be completely transparent, without being too transparent.
Updating Kitchen Cabinets
Let’s talk about paint brushes and rollers for a minute. All are not created equal. Now, I know we’re on a budget here, but you don’t want to spend on cheap rollers and brushes.
When you paint the cabinet, you want to use both a small paint brush and a cutting brush. The cover of choice is the 4″ premium one cover for soft face with 1/4″ sleep (premium white knit). And here’s a tip, straight from paint man Mike: Break out your marker and let it dry before you paint. The paint is water-based, so it drips onto the roller. If the roller is already wet you will get better coverage >> more paint on the cabinet!
Now about mowing the lawn: Choose a lawn that has edges less than 2 inches wide. 1 1/2″ is best. I then went with the Wooster Pro 1 1/2″ side brushes. But what? I have another tip from Paint Man Mike (he’s just a rich artist, isn’t he?).
Brush Tip: Choose brushes with copper bristles instead of silver. The silver binds the brushes together with the cardboard beneath the silver, and the cardboard fills with paint and water and spreads. Copper soap has rubber under the copper, which does not break down when wet, thus lasting longer and cleaning better.
How To Update Old Built Ins Cabinets And Shelves
Now for the fun part (he’s being sarcastic). Here’s the truth: Although painting a cabinet isn’t difficult, it does take time. You have to slow down, do lots of coats, allow lots of drying time…and that’s not including preparing your surface.
#1 – Grab a bunch of frog tape and carefully tape all surfaces – countertops, walls, floors…anywhere that goes in your closet.
#2 – Remove all hardware. If you’re going to replace your hardware, fill all holes with artist’s putty, then smooth the putty with your fingers.
#3 – The main thing comes off – the cabinets themselves, the doors and drawer fronts. Let dry for a few hours or overnight.
How To Update A Kitchen With Brown Granite Countertops
#4 – Color, Color, Color. For my cabinets, I chose Behr Premium Plus Ultra Paint and Primer in One in Medium Gloss. (Lower Cabinet Color – Navy. Upper Cabinet & Wall Color – Bread Box).
Like I said, it’s a process that takes time. For best results, I recommend taking your time when painting, making smooth, even strokes with a roller or paintbrush. I recommend allowing summer between coats.
New cabinet hardware can change the look of a kitchen. I d for my new kitchen hardware. Worked with Lawless Hardware, and they graciously provided me with cabinet pulls and handles to complete the project.
Our newly renovated kitchen is less traditional than before. We removed the brown and black, introducing white, gray and blue with lots of clean lines. Our new sink is brushed nickel, so I chose brushed nickel cabinet hardware. For specific parts, I have described and matched two types:
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For my cabinet doors, I chose steel bars, and for my drawers, I chose satin nickel cup pulls. The cup holder is very basic in my farm style, while the wine holder is the perfect touch of contemporary living to add to it.
Installing the hardware is the hardest part of our kitchen renovation. I’ve spent hours and hours sanding, priming, painting and painting, and painting these cabinets, so we have to be right when we install new hardware.
At first I tried to make a template to use, but ultimately decided to buy a cabinet hardware template on our next trip to Home Depot. It saved both my sanity and my paint job.
The template we purchased served as a guide to help us measure the width between the drawer slots, but we still had to make a little adjustment based on the size of each drawer front. I came up with the genius idea of putting a piece of frog tape on the front of each drawer, one in the middle. Then we measured and measured the vertical and horizontal center on a small tape measure, not on my newly painted cabinet.
How To Paint Laminate/mdf Kitchen Cabinets
After marking the middle of the frame, we put the template on the tape and mark our space. It worked like a charm!
We actually prefer to have the drawer first, so we can drill the holes without supporting the drawer. It’s also easy to see that we’ve installed brand new hardware on every drawer in the line.
The template helped us open the tops of each door, but since our machine arms are long, I used my trusty frog tape again. I placed the strap on the back of the handle, next to the screw holes, and taped the area with a pencil.