Painting the Kitchen Cabinets {Part 1}

Don't ask me what got into me. I've been dreaming about painting the kitchen cabinets for a long time now. I've been wanting to take advantage of the summer {and the free teenage slave labor} but I just haven't had a bur in my side until last weekend. It could have been the Friday we had off from work while they moved our computers at work. It could have been that I totally wasted the July 4th weekend by sitting around {resting, of course}, or it could have been . . .

. . . well, er . . .

{I've got nothing}

So, Friday, we got started.

The cabinets must be about 40 years old . . .

. . . and they are showing their age.

Emma and Justin helped me unload the cabinets and take off the doors.

Justin sanded.

We didn't sand the cabinets all the way back to the wood and remove all of the paint. We just sanded it a bit to scratch up the surface so the paint would stick better {we'll see if that theory holds up to the wear and tear we give out kitchen}.

Finally, we started painting. After spending way too much time on the first two cabinets, we started telling ourselves, "It's only primer".

And, we painted. And painted. And I began to wonder if I had bit off a bit too much. Emma had said we should only paint half of the upper cabinets.

{ I began to wish I had agreed. }

We did finally finish. We got a little bit of paint on ourselves in the process, but we were done and ready for Bueno Burgers {Justin's treat}.

Day 2

Unloading all of the upper cabinets produced a problem. Where were we going to put all of that stuff?

We started with the table . . .

. . . and the buffet.

The canned goods went along the wall . . .

Chairs for spices and the medicine cabinet . . .

And the sewing table and piano for all the rest.

{Whew!}

Oh, darn. We have to replace the countertops, now.

Now, we are ready to paint with the real stuff - no more primer. Well, except for the spots where we missed {spots on two shelves - oh my, what happened to being thorough?}

You can see the difference between the primer coat {on the left} and the first coat of paint {on the right}. 

If we told ourselves that "It's only primer" yesterday, we told ourselves "I love it"

{ok, it was just me}

Well, I loved it until I went to blow away a little speck of dust near the vent above the stove {and microwave}. One little spec became a flurry of dust that appeared from behind the vent.

{So, this is why you clean up before painting. 

I always wondered}

I waited a day and the mess was easily cleaned up {thankfully}.

Emma was a huge help. She painted each day with me {the entire time}. I never {ever} would have finished without her help.

Justin did his part - he took a few pictures {not this one, Emma took this}.

The only disappointing thing of day 2 was that we found some stains that came right through the paint as it dried. No matter how much paint we applied, it still came through. At least its mostly on the bottom of the shelves and cabinets.

At the end of day 2, there was a definite need for relaxation.

{Emma had to relax in her own way}

Day 3

More painting? Really? I don't want to paint anymore!

Well, if Emma will paint with me, I'll keep going.

And as we started, we made sure that this coat covered very well. I didn't want to have to paint another coat!

This was the best investment! The first day I was standing on my tippy-toes to paint the upper shelves and boy was I shaky at the end of the day. This two step ladder is so helpful {and very light}

Half way through, we decided that Sunday was Pizza Day {all day long}. So even though it was in the middle of the afternoon, we ordered pizza {and wings!}

And we soldiered on to get that last cabinet painted.

Ah, done!

{Whew!}

Every time I went by the kitchen, I was just so happy with the way the cabinets turned out.

Of course, this means I have to paint the lower cabinets too. I was quoted as saying it will only take another 4 weeks to finish {if we paint smaller sections each weekend}. But, after crashing this past week, we still haven't gotten everything put back into the cabinets. We are considering our options when it comes to buying new doors or sanding/painting the existing ones.

I just hope we get everything painted up before the next family party {which would be Emma's birthday}.

{And that's not sounding too likely}

In about the same degree as you are helpful, you will be happy.
~ Karl Reiland