18 Easy Kitchen Cabinet Painting Steps to Upgrade Your Home

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If your kitchen cabinets are dated, ugly, stained, or just not the right color – then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve got you covered with these easy kitchen cabinet painting steps to make your kitchen look brand new – the simple and fast way.

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Table of Contents

• 1. Select the Kitchen Cabinet Paint Color
• 2. Choose the Right Type of Kitchen Cabinet Paint
• 3. Check Off Your Supply List for Kitchen Cabinet Painting
• Step 4: Clean Out Cupboards
• 5. Apply Drop Cloths or Painters’ Plastic to Kitchen Floors, Appliances, Counters, and Backsplash
• 6. Use Painter’s Tape to Tape Off Non-Painted Kitchen Areas
• 7. Remove Kitchen Cabinet Hinges and Pulls
• 8. Degrease Kitchen Cabinets with Windex
• 9. Begin Sanding Kitchen Cabinets
• 10. Degrease Kitchen Cabinets Again
• 11. Open the Paint Can and Mix Paint 
• 12. Layout Kitchen Cabinet Paint Brushes and Rollers
• 13. Begin Painting Kitchen Cabinets
• 14. Try Different Paint Brush Sizes
• Step 15: Don’t Worry About the First Coat Being Thin
• 16. Apply a Second Coat of Paint to the Kitchen Cabinets
• 17. Apply a Third Coat of Paint to the Kitchen Cabinets
• 18. Reattach Hardware after Kitchen Cabinet Painting

It’s often said that the kitchen is the heart of the home.

If you’re like me, my kitchen is the place for family gatherings, food, joy, and togetherness.

And, if your kitchen doesn’t have the right vibe or style, then it’s time to upgrade.

One of the first things my husband and I did after we purchased our new-to-us 1960s home was to upgrade the kitchen on a budget. 

After our moving expenses, we didn’t have a ton of money to throw at a full-fledged kitchen upgrade project.

Upon researching inexpensive ways to brighten and renovate a kitchen on a budget, the cabinets were first on our kitchen upgrade project list.

The above picture showcases our kitchen before and after the kitchen cabinet painting on a budget project.

If you would like to learn more about how we transformed our home the easy way with a little bit of paint and a brush – then keep reading!

We’ve got you covered.

So – let’s get into it!

1. Select the Kitchen Cabinet Paint Color

There are so many color choices to brighten a kitchen or darken it depending on the goals of the homeowner.

When we purchased our home, the kitchen cabinets were a 1960s dark walnut wood that made the room look small and drab. 

I wanted to brighten the kitchen and dreamed of bright white kitchen cabinets to make the kitchen look bigger and brighter.  

Popular kitchen cabinet paint choices include:

• Driftwood (light grey)
• Celadon (greenish blue)
• Cocoa (bronze-ish/brown)
• Navy Blue (darker blue)
• Titanium (white)
  
  

2. Choose the Right Type of Kitchen Cabinet Paint

There are several types of paint available but only certain ones are advised for kitchen cabinets.

Paint types:

• Gloss
• Semi-gloss
• Satin

Since my husband and I were complete newbies when it came to painting kitchen cabinets, I ordered an all-in-one kit by Nuvo in the platinum (white) color. 

The Nuvo Kitchen Cabinet Painting Kit made our lives easy since it had almost everything we needed. 

I love the Nuvo Kitchen Cabinet Paint so much that I also repainted my kitchen table and chair legs to match the newly painted kitchen cabinets.

You can see the before and after of my kitchen table upgrade with the Nuvo paint kit.

RELATED POST: To learn more about how to repaint kitchen table and chairs – check out this related post.

The Nuvo Cabinet Painting Kit :

• Water-based acrylic paint
• Heavily pigmented for smooth, and even coverage, without drips or streaks
• Covers 100 square feet of cabinets (40 linear feet) – the typical size of most kitchen cabinets
• Optimized for easy brush and roll-on application (all necessary tools are included in the kit)
• Dries with a satin finish without the need for an additional protective topcoat
• Specifically formulated for durability on high traffic surfaces
• Perfect for kitchen cabinets

• Crafted with a high level of environmental standards
• Ideal for use on wood, laminate, MDF, and particle board cabinets, and primed or painted metal cabinets.
  
  
  

3. Check Off Your Supply List for Kitchen Cabinet Painting

To make sure we had everything we needed I made a supply list.

Although the Nuvo Kitchen Cabinet Painting Kit contained many of the necessary supplies, we purchased a few additional items to make the process easier.

Kitchen cabinet painting supply list:

• Nuvo kitchen cabinet painting kit in titanium
• Drop cloths (for the floor)
• Windex (for degreasing)
• Paper towels
• Handheld sanding block (two one for each of us)
• Sandpaper
• Tiny brushes (three different sizes)
• Painter’s tape
• Clear tape
• Paint mixing tool
  
  

Step 4: Clean Out Cupboards

Although it’s not completely necessary to empty the contents of the cabinets, it’s advised.

Even the most careful painter can occasionally slip up and paint a wrong area or spill. 

To be on the safe side, removing all contents will ensure nothing gets damaged in the kitchen cabinet painting process.

In addition, the cabinets could potentially be out of use for a couple of days, so having access to cabinet contents could be needed during that time frame.

5. Apply Drop Cloths or Painters’ Plastic to Kitchen Floors, Appliances, Counters, and Backsplash

Make sure to protect your kitchen.

Although I did my best to be extra careful, I did spill and dribble paint on the countertops, floors, backsplash, and appliances.

Thank goodness I laid out clear painter’s plastic across the floors, countertops, backsplash, and appliances to protect everything from wayward paint.

I did add some clear tape to make sure the painter’s plastic didn’t move around during the kitchen cabinet painting process.

6. Use Painter’s Tape to Tape Off Non-Painted Kitchen Areas

Be sure to apply a good painter’s tape (I used Frog Tape) to protect areas of the walls that aren’t being painted.

I accidentally skimped on this step at first and got some paint above the cabinets and down the sides of them on the wall itself.

(Thankfully, we were able to find touch-up paint from the previous owners.)

Don’t make the mistake I did, make sure to tape off any area of the kitchen walls that you don’t want to accidentally apply the kitchen cabinet paint.

7. Remove Kitchen Cabinet Hinges and Pulls

Moving along with the kitchen cabinet painting prep work, remove all hardware with a toolkit like this one to take off kitchen cabinet pulls.

Pro tip: Create a designated box to keep all screws, pulls, knobs, and hinges in one area. Use clear tape to secure screws to the individual pulls or hinges.

8. Degrease Kitchen Cabinets with Windex

As part of the prep work for kitchen cabinet painting, make sure to properly degrease the cabinets. 

Degreasing the cabinets is an imperative step.

If you were to apply kitchen cabinet paint overtop of grease, the paint would not properly adhere to the surface creating chips, cracks, and peeling.

When I degreased, I used Windex and a paper towel. I carefully went over all sides and surfaces of the kitchen cabinets with the degreaser and paper towels.

9. Begin Sanding Kitchen Cabinets

Probably the absolute most important step in kitchen cabinet painting is sanding.

Now I know there are some kitchen cabinet painting kits out there that boast “no sanding necessary.”

I checked and saw that the Nuvo Kitchen Cabinet Painting Kit did suggest light sanding.

I was good with this as I figured the paint would adhere better since my cabinets were from the 1960s.

In general, paint has a difficult time adhering to smooth and shiny surfaces as well as older woods.

I used a few different grit sandpaper types as well as a sanding block.

Use 100 or 150- grit sandpaper to start then go over the area again at the end with 220-grit sandpaper.

The sanding block was great for the middle of the cabinets as it didn’t tire my arms and hands out as much as the sandpaper.

10. Degrease Kitchen Cabinets Again

After sanding, degreasing again is imperative. 

The second round of degreasing with Windex and paper towels removes all the sanding residue as well as any dirt and grime that was unearthed.

If you paint before degreasing again the paint will not adhere to the cabinets.

11. Open the Paint Can and Mix Paint 

The next thing to prep before kitchen cabinet painting is getting the paint ready. 

Open the can of paint using: 

• Flathead screwdriver
• Putty knife
• Paint can opener
• Painter 6-in-1 tool

To remove the lid off the paint can gently pry the edging with one of the tools above.

Slip the edge of the tool (whichever one is chosen) under the lip and lift upward (slowly) then move to another area and lift again until the lid eventually pops off. 

Pro tip: Be careful when the lid pops off as there could be some paint on it.

Once the paint can is opened, now is the time to mix it. Mixing the paint is important as paint components, can and often do, separate. 

To prepare the paint, gently use a paint mixing tool (such as a wooden stick) to churn the paint. 

12. Layout Kitchen Cabinet Paint Brushes and Rollers

The final prep step of kitchen cabinet painting is to assemble the painting tools.

I added a drop cloth to a counter and created a staging area for all my supplies.

I laid out all my brushes as well as the rollers in order of size.

By organizing my paintbrushes, I could easily switch from one brush to another quickly while painting. 

Pro tip: Make sure to have a drop cloth where the paint brushes will lay to make sure paint doesn’t drip or spill on the kitchen cabinet painting staging area.

13. Begin Painting Kitchen Cabinets

Let the fun kitchen cabinet painting project officially begin!

The time-consuming prep work is now complete and it’s time for the fun part – painting the kitchen cabinets.

There are lots of ways to apply paint to the kitchen cabinets such as using a paint roller or a paintbrush. 

Although a paint roller can apply paint more quickly, I didn’t like the textured look that it produced.

I used brushes for the entire kitchen cabinet painting process to have a cohesive and fluid look.

14. Try Different Paint Brush Sizes

Depending on the style of the kitchen cabinet, different brush sizes may be necessary. 

I purchased a few different size brushes but found I primarily used a thick brush and a thin, fine-tip brush.

• Thick brush: I used a thick brush for the middle and edges of my kitchen cabinets. 

• Thin brush: My cabinets had a recessed area around the middle and edging that required a fine-tip brush to apply the paint. Using the thin brush, I was able to really get in the grooves to adhere to the paint properly.

Pro tip: Be very careful to avoid paint drips. These are where too much paint was applied to the kitchen cabinet and the paint starts running down the cabinet door. To avoid this, carefully add paint to the brush in small batches.

Step 15: Don’t Worry About the First Coat Being Thin

Since my kitchen is on the smaller side, I don’t have a ton of cabinets.

The first coat took me a little over an hour to apply. 

I will say, I started to second-guess myself after I completed the first coat.

I was so sure that I ruined my cabinets and made an irreversible mistake painting the kitchen cabinets. 

My advice – don’t worry!

Seriously, this is important.

Do not get upset that the kitchen cabinets are not looking good yet.

It will be ok! I wish someone had told me about this right around step 15!

16. Apply a Second Coat of Paint to the Kitchen Cabinets

After allowing ample drying time, it’s now time to apply a second coat of paint to the kitchen cabinets. 

Try to apply the same brush strokes and similar painting style as the first coat.

Basically, if the paint strokes were up and down on the first coat, do that again.

This will allow the cabinets to maintain a cohesive look. 

17. Apply a Third Coat of Paint to the Kitchen Cabinets

Here we go again – more painting of the kitchen cabinets! Basically, we’re just repeating step 16. 

Make sure you allow ample drying time after the second coat and maintain consistency with brush strokes and the overall kitchen cabinet paint application.

18. Reattach Hardware after Kitchen Cabinet Painting

We’re almost done! Yay! 

After the third coat is fully dry, it’s time to reattach the hardware.

Grab that box of all the hardware and sort it out to make sure the proper pulls and hinges go with the right cabinets.

Due to the age and quality, we decided to scrap the existing cabinet pulls and upgrade to new ones.

This made life so much easier as we were able to scrap the old pulls and have brand-new ones ready to go.

Final Thoughts

I really hope you enjoyed this post and found some inspiration for upgrading your kitchen cabinets with a fun and budget-friendly painting project.

Below is a picture of my kitchen and the finished project of the Nuvo Kitchen Cabinet painting.

I’m thrilled with the outcome and have lots of family and friends who love the finished painted cabinets as well.

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Your turn!

What color of kitchen cabinet paint do you think is best? Are you planning a kitchen cabinet painting project soon? Let me know in the comments!

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