It's officially been a year since I've painted my kitchen cabinets! Wow, time flies. It feels like yesterday that I took on this huge makeover. When I say HUGE...I mean it. It took me a long 6-8 weeks of painting, adding shiplap to the island and DIY-ing the heck out of this space.
In light of that, I'd like to give you all the details of how it's been! I know you are all curious!
The Positives
The biggest positive from this diy project is that the white paint and shiplap totally transformed my entire main floor. It made everything so bright and airy! The change in aesthetic alone was worth in my mind.
Benjamin Moore's Advance Interior paint has held up tremendously well. To see the original "How to" post, click here. There was only one spot from the beginning that was an issue where a drawer kept rubbing onto the side of the box frame. No matter how much we adjusted the drawer, we couldn't figure out how to stop it from rubbing. Therefore, that area, since day one of the painting, has given us a problem--which led to a scuff. I think it was a framing issue when they installed the cabinets. As for the rest of the cabinets, it has been awesome! I don't have any areas where it has chipped off, washed off or anything---and we have REALLY lived in this kitchen. I cook and clean every day--well, almost every day :), and am pretty hard on it. I use Green Works all purpose cleaner with paper towels to wipe them down and they come out nice and clean, even without using a sealer over the paint (which I thought was crazy when the clerk told us not to use one). They wash super easily and come out great.
I know that following the 16 hour dry time after every coat on each side was a long process, but it was key in my opinion. I had painted 3-4 coats of paint on each side, so that is 96 hours minimum of dry time right there. Then you have to let them cure for a few days after painting too. It's not a weekend kind of job, but in the end after 6 weeks of working at it when we could, I believe that is what led to a very durable surface. There was no poly or anything used after painting because the paint was specially made for kitchen cabinets. I mean, I've accidentally thrown a butcher knife at the front when loading the dishwasher, and it didn't even leave a mark.
Now, I don't have small children, so I can't attest to that component, but I do have older children who use the space and its been great!
The Negatives
I would definitely try using a sprayer if I could. There are very minor brush strokes to be seen in certain light, but very minor. The reason why I didn't use a sprayer was- 1: I didn't own/had never used one before and didn't want to have my first go to be on my kitchen cabinets. 2: I didn't want to give up my garage space to set up a spraying shop (looks like a ton of work!). 3: I wanted to do the painting in stages so that my kitchen was usable during the makeover. If I were to set up shop in my garage for example, then I would've had to do it all at once to get it over with within a two week period. We only worked on it when we could, so this seemed like the best way. If you want an ultimate smooth streak free surface, spraying may be the way to go.
While they are EASY to clean, they are hard to KEEP clean. This is the number one question I get asked having a white kitchen. There are spills EV-RY-DAY that have to be wiped up. You name it: coffee, juice, egg, sauce, oil, dressing, tomato...the list goes on and on, BUT I find that if you keep on top of it and "clean it when you see it", then it doesn't get overwhelming. If you have shaker style cabinets use an old toothbrush to clean in the grooves. Those grooves get dirty fast. The worst area is above the stove where the fan from the microwave blows grease upwards right onto those top cabinets, but that would happen to any color cabinet I had and would be noticeable as well.
My Verdict
I can say with confidence that the decision to paint them and add shiplap to the island was 100% a good idea. While there was nothing wrong with the dark cabinets, they just weren't my style and I felt they were far too dark for the space.
A ton of work went into this, but it's so worth it! I love my kitchen now. There will always be a few tweaks I'd love to do here and there, but overall it turned out just like I had imagined.
Next for this space will be a gas stove install and possibly a new hood vent instead of the microwave! See! I'm already planning things! haha
I hope you will share with me if you attempt a cabinet painting job. If you need help, or have any questions, I have the whole process saved in my highlights on Instagram under "CABINET PAINTING" or you can read the blog post under Related Posts. Please don't hesitate to ask :)--Thanks for following along! Jenn xoxox
PS- If you are interested in making your own DIY basket lighting like I have in my kitchen and dining room, head to my blog post to read all about it!
You can also get my tiered tray under Kitchen and Dining on my Amazon Storefront and many more things I add each day from my home!
Hope to see you again soon!!!! Byeeeeeeeeeee xoxoxox