When faced with a tired and dingy kitchen, our first instinct is to rip it all out and start again. However, if your cabinets are structurally sound, simply painting them can transform your kitchen without the cost and pain of a major refurbishment.
This guide will teach you how to paint kitchen cabinets through our step-by-step process and trusted resources.
Note: this guide is based on painting wood surfaces and NOT laminates or other surfaces.
Also, I’m going to focus on refreshing the EXTERIOR parts (doors, drawer fronts, etc.), but feel free to apply the same techniques to interior parts (e.g. shelves, inside the drawers, etc.) if you wish to go all out.
Table of Contents
Painting Kitchen Cabinets — Overview
There are three main parts to painting kitchen cabinets — Preparation, Priming and Applying The Decorative Finish.
In this section, I’ll briefly review each part’s important points. Detailed steps are provided in the step-by-step section.
Preparation
The key to creating the perfect finish is good preparation. So before you even think about whipping out your paintbrush, ensure you’ve spent plenty of time preparing the surface.
Professional preparation includes cleaning, sanding, and priming the surface to properly ensure the finish colour sticks.
Thoroughly cleaning the surface is the most important part of the preparation process and is often overlooked. Years of cooking release grease and moisture into the air that settles on your cabinets, even if you can’t see it. Therefore, all surfaces require a deep clean before we can start priming.
Once the surfaces are free of grease and dirt, repair any dings & divots and then lightly sand the surface.
Priming
It’s important to prime and sand the surface before applying the finish coat. Ask a paint specialist at your local DIY store to help you pick a wood primer to best suit the finish you’re looking for (e.g. gloss, eggshell, etc.).
When applying the primer and finish coat, remember to use high-quality paintbrushes with fine bristles to reduce the number of brush stroke marks. Also, try to be consistent and paint each coat in the same direction (e.g., up & down or side to side).
Remember, your application technique heavily influences the finish, so don’t rush this part and buy a good-quality primer.
Applying Decorative Finish
When it comes to the decorative finish, the traditional choice is gloss. However, gloss paint has one major drawback – it’s unforgiving of imperfections and will show brush strokes.
Eggshell, however, is much more forgiving regarding brushstroke marks and provides a superior finish. Therefore, I recommend going with an eggshell finish for this project.
Whichever paint you use, buy the best-quality paint you can afford for a long-lasting finish. Remember, it’s still much more cost-effective than buying and installing new cabinets!
Note about paint types (solvent-based vs water-based) -Due to their durable properties, solvent-based paints are typically recommended for painting woodwork in busy areas such as kitchens.
A major downside of working with solvent-based paints is that their fumes are toxic. Solvent-based paints require ventilation because they contain solvents that can irritate your lungs.
Fortunately, while water-based acrylic paints don’t flow and self-level like their solvent-based counterparts, they’re getting closer and are far less toxic.
Furthermore, acrylic formulas created specifically for cabinetry will create an even, long-lasting finish.
Another advantage of acrylic paints is that they wash well with water, making them a good option for high-traffic areas such as kitchens and bathrooms.
To learn more about solvent-based vs water-based paints and paint selection in general, check out this useful post.
Can I Paint the Kitchen Cabinets Where They Stand?
Before we get started, here are my thoughts on this common question:
If possible, the best option is to remove all items (i.e. doors, drawers, shelves, cabinet boxes) and paint them in a garage or similar workspace. This way, you can avoid having to paint around walls, worktops, backsplashes, floors, and appliances.
Removing doors and drawers should be straightforward, as these can be removed by unscrewing hinges and brackets.
However, this might be difficult for floor cabinets if they’re screwed into walls, appliances, or worktops. Also, if you have a big family and always need a functioning kitchen, you may need to work on them where they sit.
If you do have to paint each part in situ, make sure you use rosin paper (countertops), thin plastic (backsplash) and masking tape (countertops and everywhere else) to cover any area that shouldn’t be painted.
Whichever way you choose, remove all handles, hinges, screws, etc., before you start and keep them in a safe place.
Tools & Materials
Although painting kitchen cabinets is not a particularly expensive project, there are still plenty of tools & materials you need to complete the job successfully and with the least mess possible.
I’ve listed the essentials below. Please make sure you have them all before you get started:
Tools
- Cordless driver with a screwdriver bit set
- Putty knife
- High-quality paint brushes with fine bristles*2 (one for primer and one for finish paint)
- Workbench/flat surface to paint cabinet parts on
- Drying rack to keep the doors and drawer fronts flat while the paint dries and levels
- Random-orbit sander
Pro Tip: To save money, build a DIY drying rack, just like Jessie has in this video:
OPTIONAL – Airless Paint Sprayer. If you wish to go down this route (see Decorative Finish steps below), speak with a paint specialist to figure out what tools you need to rent/buy (e.g. air compressor, sprayer gun, and tubing).
Materials
- Masking tape
- Small plastic bags
- Rosin paper
- Thin plastic sheets
- Rubber gloves
- Scrubbing sponge
- Multi-purpose cleaner/degreaser
- Sugar soap
- Wood putty
- 120-grit and 220-grit sandpaper
- Tack cloths
- Primer – see notes above about picking the right one
- Finish paint – see notes above about picking the right one
- Paint tray and stir sticks
- Fine-grit sanding sponge
How To Paint Kitchen Cabinets — Step-by-Step Guide
These 16 steps have been broken into 3 main sections — Prepare, Prime and Decorative Finish. Please read through them before you get started to familiarise yourself with the process.
Also, I’ve included a video at the end and an illustration below of all the main parts.
Prepare Kitchen Cabinets
1. Label Cabinet Parts
To keep track of what goes where use masking tape to label each door/drawer front and its matching cabinet box/drawer.
If you’re reusing original handles and hinges, label the paired hinges with their doors and location.
Pro Tip: Fitting new handles and hinges is a simple and inexpensive way of adding a nice finishing touch to your project.
2. Remove all Doors, Drawers and Hardware
​Using a cordless driver/screwdriver, remove all doors, handles and hinges.
Remove drawers from units and unscrew fronts. Keep all small removable hardware and screws together in plastic bags and store them safely.
3. Cover Up
If you must paint cabinet boxes in situ, cover countertops with rosin paper and masking tape. Cover the backsplash with thin plastic.
Use masking tape and common sense to protect other areas that shouldn’t be painted.
4. Clean Surfaces
​While wearing rubber gloves, scrub your doors and drawer fronts using a scrubbing sponge and multi-purpose cleaner/degreaser. Repeat for exterior parts of the cabinet boxes that couldn’t be removed.
When the worst is off, clean one more time with sugar soap.
5. Repair Surfaces
​Armed with a putty knife and wood putty, fill in any cracks and divots you find.
Sand the wood putty smooth, then rough up the finish with 120-grit sandpaper. Remember to rub the surface gently and evenly.
Pro Tip: No sanding is the #1 cause of paint peeling, so don’t skip this step!
Make sure you rub down any nooks created by decorative mouldings, planed edges, etc. When finished, wipe the freshly sanded surface with a tack cloth to remove dust.
Prime Kitchen Cabinets
6. Prime Back of Doors
​Lay your doors face down and apply one coat of primer to the backside. Start with the interior door panel and then prime the rails and stiles. See the main image at the beginning of this section if you’re unfamiliar with rails and stiles.
Leave the doors to dry on your drying rack, keeping them flat and allowing the primer to level off.
7. Prime Back of Drawer Fronts
While the doors are drying, prime the back of your drawer fronts and leave them flat on your drying rack to dry.
8. Prime Face Side of Doors and Drawer Fronts
​Once the back of your doors and drawer fronts are dry, repeat steps 6 and 7 for the face side.
Let them sit flat on your drying rack until they’re 100% dry before sanding (step 10).
9. Prime Exterior Areas of the Cabinet Boxes
While your doors and drawer fronts are drying, prime the exterior parts of your cabinet boxes that couldn’t be removed/laid flat (i.e. the frames).
10. Sand Flat Surfaces and Trim
​To remove brush stroke marks from flat surfaces, use a random-orbit sander loaded with 220-grit sandpaper.
Use a fine-grit sanding sponge for non-flat surfaces (e.g. trim detailing).
Once you’ve finished sanding, vacuum all surfaces and wipe clean with a tack cloth.
11. Apply the Second Coat of Primer (if necessary)
If you still don’t have a smooth base coat, or the original colour still shows through (common with darker original colours), apply a second coat of primer by repeating steps 6-10.
Decorative Finish
12. Brush on Finish Colour to the Back of the Doors
​Apply the finish colour to the back of your doors in thin coats to avoid drips and uneven coverage.
Paint the interior door panels first, then work your way to the rails and stiles.
Leave doors to dry flat on your drying rack.
13. Brush on Finish Colour to the Back of the Drawer Fronts
While your doors are drying, paint the back of your drawer fronts and leave them flat on your drying rack to dry.
14. Brush on Finish Colour to the Face Side of the Doors and Drawer Fronts
​Once the back of your doors and drawer fronts are dry, repeat steps 12 and 13 for the face side.
Let them sit flat on your drying rack until they’re 100% dry before applying a second coat to both sides.
15. Paint the Exterior Areas of the Cabinet Boxes
While your doors and drawer fronts are drying, paint the exterior parts of your cabinet boxes that couldn’t be removed/laid flat (i.e. the frames). Apply a second coat when dry.
OPTIONAL — Spray-on Finish Colour to Doors and Drawer Fronts
To save time and for a better finish on flat surfaces, you can opt to apply your finish colour with an airless paint sprayer.
When using a paint sprayer, always start with the edges and then move inwards, making sure to overlap each pass by about 50%.
As with brush painting, keep surfaces completely flat until they’re dry.
For non-flat surfaces (i.e. the parts you can’t remove and lay flat), continue to use brush painting, as this will provide a more accurate and predictable finish.
Remember, always wear protective goggles when operating a spray gun.
Pro Tip: If you’re using old hardware (hinges, etc.), you may want to freshen them up by spray painting them before reinstalling all the hardware in the last step below
Putting Kitchen Cabinets Back Together
16. Reinstall the Cabinets
​Once your cabinet parts have completely dried, reattach hinges to doors and cabinet boxes.
Put drawer fronts back onto drawers and screw on handles. At this point, you’ll be glad you labelled all the parts!
Pro Tip: If your kitchen cabinets don’t appear level, try adjusting the door hinges until they do.
If you want to see a quick version of this process, check out the short video tutorial below:
Final Thoughts
I hope you enjoyed reading this guide on painting kitchen cabinets and feel confident about renovating your old kitchen. It’s amazing what a difference a lick of paint can make!
If you’re looking for more ways to give your kitchen an inexpensive upgrade, check out our guide to fitting an acrylic splashback.
How To Paint Kitchen Cabinets Infographic
