Painted Kitchen Cabinets

There is a "Painted Wood Is Pretty" party over at Life in Grace. Check it out by clicking here. My latest painted wood project was my biggest ever, and it just happened two weeks ago!


Last week my boys were out of school for spring break, so we went to visit the grandparents four hours away for Easter. On Easter Sunday, my husband and I returned home and left the boys with Mammaw & Pappaw for a few days. Did I relax? Watch soaps? Eat bon bons? Of course not! I spent Monday-Thursday with a paint brush in my hand--almost non-stop! I have been wanting to paint our kitchen cabinets for a few years, but with two little boys running around, I just never found the time. Now, I am happy to say that the job is complete!


Here is a before picture:


And here is an after picture:
Our cabinets were stained a light maple, and our hardwood floor was the same color when we moved in. We painted the kitchen red, which made the cabinets look really nice. But we refinished the floors last year, a lot darker color, and from the moment they were finished I no longer liked the red in the kitchen. So in October we painted the kitchen a light apple green--great with the floor, but not so much with the cabinets! Our house is 17 years old and the cabinets have really been showing their age lately. Since new ones are not in the budget anytime soon, I decided to paint. Sherwin Williams ProClassic oil-based "Alabaster" white. The ends of the cabinets were a simple flat paneling that matched the maple. I knew they would never look great painted. My husband came up with a great solution. At Home Depot online, we found paintable, textured wallpaper that looks like beadboard.



It went up so easily--much more easily than real beadboard would have for us! We had used this kind of wallpaper before on our dining room ceiling--it looks like tin tiles--so we knew ahead of time that it was easy to work with.



So, after 5 days of cabinet doors all through our downstairs, I am elated with the final result! It looks so fresh and completely different! We also added oil rubbed bronze knobs and hinges. We didn't have knobs previously, and the hinges were a burnished brass that we hated. All that is left for the kitchen is hanging a new black light over the table. (And possibly painting the table and chairs black if I can talk my hubby into it!)