Thread by @Delafina777

At long last, I am done painting the cabinets (still have to paint the soffit and put in new floors and appliances).

Before and after:

The thing I am most proud of, I think, is the mother-of-pearl backsplash, because I had to cut the tiny tiles with a Dremel and that was very scary at first but I did it.

I like it because it's got warm tones and keeps all the blue & silver from being too cold.

So all in all, with the paint and the backsplash and the hardware, I'd say it cost about $800, which was ouch RIGHT AFTER I BOUGHT A FUCKING HOUSE but considerably cheaper than having someone do it, or buying new cabinets.

Honestly, the worst part was tied between scrubbing and sanding off the like 19 layers of grease the previous occupants, who, as far as I can tell, literally never cleaned anything, left on,

and the taping

oy, the taping

I actually had to tape twice, because initially I tried to paint-brush paint the cabinets

I looked at paint sprayers at Home Depot and they were like $200, so I was like nah

and then I discovered this one:

amazon.com/gp/product/B08…

$40, and she became my best friend. I named her Matilda and we spent SO MUCH TIME together.

But it was so much LESS time than I would have spent painting by hand.

But anyway, I had to retape to cover up all the openings since I was using a paint sprayer.

I had plastic sheets draped all over the place, it was BONKERS.

But anyway, Matilda was a lifesaver. Easy to use, easy to clean, reliable. I might buy a backup because at $40, I'm sure her motor won't last forever but honestly I more than got my money's worth.

Oh, in addition to the 28 layers of grease left on every surface by the previous occupants, I took out the wall between the kitchen and dining room, which means there was a layer of sawdust and plaster dust adhered to the grease.

Fucking nightmare, do not recommend.

Earlier thread from mid-painting misery:

https://twitter.com/Delafina777/status/1406743504559083525

Honestly, I have no idea how anyone did this sort of thing in the Before Times when you had to commute to the office every day, at least in Seattle, because the only thing that made it possible was NOT being stuck in traffic for 2 hours just to get home in the evening.

So anyway, if you're contemplating painting your cabinets, here are a few hard-learned lessons from a Person Who Is Not At All Handy:

1) Get a paint sprayer.

It saves time, and creates a smooth finish with no brushstrokes.

I'd be painting for another several months if I hadn't gotten Matilda.

2) Get both rosin paper and plastic dropcloths.

The rosin paper is useful for taping into cabinet openings because it's stiffer than the dropcloths and more robust (plastic sometimes tears from the force of the paint sprayer).

3) Degrease thoroughly before you paint, because food grease is sneaky and will prevent the paint from adhering. Degrease (with a degreaser and a scrubbing pad) before you sand, or you'll waste a lot of sandpaper.

4) Get multiple coarsenesses of sandpaper for prepping the cabinets. You're going to want something rougher for getting the finish off (wood builder-grade kitchen cabinets seem to have something in the finish that makes them super-slick) and then something finer to smooth out.

5) If your cabinets are darker wood, you're probably going to need a good primer.

Oil-based is hell to work with (I'm Killz-ing the plywood in my upstairs hallway until I can afford flooring) but once it dries, it's great.

6) Mount drawer pulls with the drawers actually in place (sometimes the fronts aren't even, so what's carefully measured with the front removed ends up being crooked once the drawer is in place).

7) hahaha you thought the two-tone would be cool, you sucker, but it ended up being twice as much work

8) no but seriously, if you're doing two-tone and have cabinets with door frames like these, don't try to tape to paint the raised sections--just put an ordinary piece of paper down into the recessed part. If the paint hasn't fully hardened yet, it won't mess it up, unlike tape.

9) if there's a layer of dust and grease and stuff inside the door frame, a flathead screwdriver is your best friend to just scrape the interior edge of the frame clean.

10) if you can't get yourself a 114-degree day to make the paint dry fast (helloooooo last weekend), a dehumidifier means that you can do multiple coats in an afternoon

Anyway, going to be moving in this coming week, so at long last, this place will be my actual home and not just the world's most expensive hobby

And Lucy will be free to run up and down and roll on the stairs to her heart's content:

https://twitter.com/Delafina777/status/1410096140066844677