The first port of call for many people when they want to spruce up a room in their home is often to paint the walls and purchase some new furniture. However, there are plenty of ways to take the next step in redecorating your home. If you are thinking of revamping either your bathroom or kitchen it is often worthwhile to actually paint your cabinets.

Kitchens are known to be extremely expensive to refit so if you have the time a fresh lick of paint and a creative eye can work wonders on your cabinets. Even if you have limited DIY experience you will be able to finish this project easily. The basic tools that you will need include a handheld screwdriver, sandpaper and of course paint!

The first step is to remove the cabinet doors fully. If your kitchen is relatively new the kitchen doors should just pop out of place, in other cases you will need to use a handheld screwdriver to remove them from the main cupboard. Remove the handles from the doors and place on top of a cover on the floor ready for the next step.

In most cases you will need to remove the protective layer of varnish. The best way to do this is to lightly sand the doors and then clean with warm water and a kitchen detergent such as Fairy Liquid. This will also remove dust and grease that naturally builds up from kitchen steam and smoke.

Before you apply your chosen paint colour you will need to use an undercoat first. In most cases you will not need a primer as kitchen cabinets tend to be made from manufactured wood and will take paint quite well. If the colour you want to use is a lighter tone then you will need to use at least two coats of your basecoat. We recommend Crown Grip Extreme as this will aid the adhesion of the paint to surface and cover any stains that might be present.

Once your surface is ready to paint you can get down to the fun part of actually painting. Be sure to choose a paint product from Crown’s collection for kitchens and bathrooms and apply with a small brush to make sure you reach all of the furrows in the cabinet doors.

People often ask how they can replace glass from kitchen cabinets to give them an entirely new look. While I love the idea of exchanging the glass in your cupboards with a patterned cloth or fabric overlay I would not recommend that you remove the glass yourself. In most kitchen cabinets the glass is held in place with silicone and needs to be broken in order to remove. Please ask an expert to take out any glass panels if you still want to do this.

You don’t have to stop at just painting your kitchen cabinets. Why not paint the back of your cupboards with a contrasting colour. This works especially well if you have favourite dishes or accessories that you like to display in your kitchen. You could use smaller pieces of patterned wallpaper for the wall at the back of the press but paint tends to be easier and longer lasting in kitchens.

For a finishing touch you can change the door handles to match your newly painted cabinets. A quirky idea that I like to use is to find a number of mismatched new or vintage handles and use them throughout the room. This will sit best in retro styled kitchen/diningrooms.  All that is left is to return the doors to the cabinets using the same method that you took it off with and enjoy your beautiful new kitchen.

Happy decorating,

Neville

Crown Paints is not responsible for any content of this or external sites or blogs. Please consult with an expert before carrying out any interior decorating or DIY in your home.