Cabinet Painting

Let's talk cabinets. 

​Through two years of pandemic life, my bet is that you have painted at least one room in your home, if not most of the house. Now all that's left are some stained cabinets that look dated and need some love. The first thing to know on cabinets, even for a professional painter, they are a pain! Most pro's will take 3-5 days on a cabinet set. If you have aspirations of this being a 1 weekend show, you are setting yourself up for failure. It's going to take some time, and based on personal experience of painting my own, this will take you 3-4 weekends of your time for a standard cabinet set of 20-25 doors and 10-15 drawers. This is a project that you have to ask yourself, do you want to take on the task or hire the professionals? If you're going the DIY route, here's what you need to do.

  It's all about the prep work:

• Sanding - you sand for adhesion, not to removal all of the varnish. You sand before you lay on the primer, you sand (lightly) in between primer and top coats. 
• Priming - Sherwin Williams extreme blocking primer, or extreme bonding primer. If you are painting your cabinets any other color than white, have them tint your primer to help with coating.
• Tannin - This is a naturally occurring acid that exists in all wood and will show up in contact with water. Looks like a coffee stain, yellowish/brown in color. Sand and spot prime these areas well. 
• Caulking - A standard 850a/950a from Sherwin Williams will do. ALL nail holes and profile lines on doors and wood work should be caulked for a finished look. Including the wall/cabinet box transition and if you have moulding at the top of the cabinet. Take your time with this, as it really helps you achieve that perfect finish in the end.
• Top Coat - Sherwin Williams Emerald Urethane Enamel is my top choice. Apply two top coats to your cabinets. Spraying will always have a better finish, however Emerald does have a built in self leveling compound that allows the paint to settle the brush strokes you may see in the beginning.

Tips: 

• If you mess up and have heavy spots or drips or runs, let them dry fully until you can sand it down. DO NOT ATTEMPT to correct while paint is wet. I assure you, it will get infinitely worse. 
• Don't let anyone tell you that a paint and primer in one is a substitute for quality prep work. It's a lie. Do the work to get the results you want. 
• Caulk after prime, we find that it helps lock in tannin as the primer is in those nail holes and profile lines. 
• New hardware? Port the holes in between priming/painting - that way you don't mar the top coat with the drill. 
• Create a spray booth or a containment area to eliminate dust and debris landing on your cabinetry while it's drying 

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Remember to take your time and have fun with your DIY projects. These memories are what make your house a home.