Home Improvement Trend: Painted Wood Cabinets

Trends change as fast as they are set. The new trend when it comes to home remodeling is painted wood cabinets. On a budget and tired of those outdated wood finished cabinets? Painted wood cabinets can save a homeowner a good deal of money on home improvement or remodeling projects that can be spent on other things. You can still add value to your home and save thousands of dollars when you choose to paint your cabinets instead of replacing, or refacing them.

Paint only costs a fraction of what replacing your cabinets would cost. Kitchen cabinets may need up to a 5 gallon bucket to make sure that all coats of paint are as nice and even as they can be. A 5 gallon bucket of paint costs approximately $60 - $100 including tax at popular home improvement retail stores such as Home Depot or Lowe's. Bathroom cabinets will require less, of course, and should be purchased gallon by gallon, as needed. The cost of a gallon of paint being approximately $13 - $40 depending of what type of paint you choose. Walmart paint works just as well as other higher priced paints from other stores and can be purchased at around $13 a gallon with your custom color. You can even look in Walmart's clearance paint section and save even more money by choosing a color there. Clearance paints are paint that a customer has returned, was unhappy with at time of mixing, couldn't wait for the mixing due to rowdy kids, or whatever the reason - their loss could be your gain.

Replacing your kitchen cabinets would cost anywhere from $1,000 on up depending on the type of wood that you chose and how rare it is at the time. I had granite counters installed and wanted something to match them instead of the medium color of oak cabinets that I had built with the house over 13 years ago. After getting several estimates to replace my existing kitchen cabinets (each over $2,400), I decided to paint them black myself. Most people choose their cabinets by color alone, and then the type of wood as a secondary factor. Cabinets can be painted to look like wood as well as painted to add a splash of color.

Using darker color as a first coat, a second, third and even fourth coat can be applied with a few lighter and complimentary colors until you get the color you desire. The first coat will be the base coat and should be smooth and completely dry before you begin with the other coats of paint color that will bring your cabinets back to life. The remaining coats should be applied with a dry brush with just a bit of paint on it. Try to mimic a piece of wooden furniture that already exists in your home. Closely look at all the colors and which ways each color is flowing. I found it helpful to practice on a paper bag before I started with my cabinets.

Before you begin this project, remove any hardware you do not want to be painted, including cabinet handles and hinges unless you plan to replace them. Cabinet doors should be removed and painted separately, unless you like leaving your cabinets and drawers open until the paint dries. If a cabinet door or drawer closes while the paint is still wet or tacky the paint will peel away (sometimes in rather large sections) as soon as it is opened again. If this does happen, fear not. Just a bit of light sanding in the area will make sure that everything is nice and smooth when you touch up your little mistake. Flawless to the eyes, and I won't tell anyone.

Sand your original cabinets as much as possible before you start to apply any paint; this will help the paint to adhere to the wood better and prevent bubbling up. Any home improvement project worth doing should be done right, after all. Sand the cabinets well enough so that they feel a bit abrasive to the touch - you do not need to sand off all of the old paint.

Oil based paints work the best for this kind of home improvement project - especially when painting over cabinets that have a bit of age to them. If you use a latex based paint over an oil based paint, the new paint will start to bubble up right before your eyes. Always try to use the same kind of paint your cabinets were originally painted.

If your cabinets have a lot of little nooks and crannies then it is best to use a paint brush. Using a roller will, most of the time, leave too much paint behind so that you have to go right back over it with a paint brush anyway. Save yourself some time and skip the roller and just go straight for the brush.

If you are putting a dark color over a lighter color (or vice versa) more than one coat of paint may be needed. Make sure to let each coat of paint dry thoroughly before moving on to the second coat. Sometimes it is necessary to sand your cabinets between coats of paint. Lightly sand the newly painted cabinets so that any paint bubbles or any other abnormalities can be removed. You will want a perfectly smooth surface when working with something as valuable as your kitchen or bathroom cabinets.