You may remember a while back that we painted our counters to look like granite. Well, the same company that made that kit, Giani Granite, also makes kits to paint your cabinets! Our cabinets were in great condition – I just thought they were outdated looking – so we decided to paint them instead of replacing them. The end result? Cabinets that not only matched our counter tops, but also came out looking professional and new!
Upgrade Your Kitchen On A Budget With Cabinet Paint
What You Will Need:
– something to keep the paint from getting on other surfaces (newspapers, tarps, plastic, etc. )
– Nuvo Cabinet Paint Kit {we chose Cocoa Couture, which matches our Giani Granite countertops}
– paint brush
– painters tape
– a handy rag in case you get the paint on something aside from the cabinents
– something to clean the cabinets with
– and a light grain sander
Note: You may want to use something more powerful than Windex {what we used}. We now have some slight peeling of the paint on a couple of the drawers that we feel is because we did not clean the cabinets enough before we painted. We have tons of paint left over for touchups, so this isn’t a big deal, but I wanted you to learn from our mistake.
How To Use The Cabinet Paint Kit:
1. First, you will need to use the cleaner and paper towels to thoroughly clean the cabinets {see “note” above}. There are several videos that you can watch on their site for tips on which cleaner to use and how to clean the cabinets properly. Proper cleaning allows the paint to better adhere to the cabinet surface. Also, you are going to want to use the sander on the sides of your cabinets because they tend to have a waxy top coat that can compromise the durability of the paint after it dries.
2. Now you need to use the painters tape to block off any areas of which you do not wish to paint. Also, you may want to lay down some newspapers to protect against drops of paint – especially if you did your counter first with Giani Granite.
3. Open your can of paint, stir it, and begin!
Helpful Tips About Using Cabinet Paint
– Make sure you are painting with the grain of wood. This allows the cabinets to look more professional and real. For instance, if the grain is going left to right, you are going to need to paint left to right.
– If you stop to take breaks or wait to continue the next morning, you should wash your paint brush effectively and store it standing up on it’s handle so that it may dry. This saves you a ton of money in the long run on paint brushes.
– Do not paint too thick of coats, this can cause the paint to run. If you do notice some runs in the paint after it has already dried, just sand the area lightly and repaint.
– When painting the cabinet doors, make sure to leave them open until fully dried. You do not have to remove them, just tape around the hinges and hardware {but, of course, you can if you like}. If you close them, the paint could seal the doors closed. You would then have to sand some areas and repaint.
– Lastly, take your time and have fun! Afterwards, sit back and have a look at your “new” beautiful kitchen!
Socialize With Giani Granite
Win A Nuvo Cabinet Paint Kit Of Your Choice {$69.95 ARV}
One lucky Cheap Is The New Classy reader will win a Nuvo Cabinet Paint Kit of their choice from Giani Granite. All you have to do is enter the easy peasy rafflecopter below. Be sure to come back daily if you would like to score some extra entries. Good luck and happy painting!
Nuvo Slate Modern Cabinet Kit could be my choice if I put it in the suite room of the motel that I manage. It has some really ugly cabinets in it’s kitchen area. 50’s era and have been painted and repainted over and over and over and over! LOL (pleasing google) But seriously, this room would be much nice with a modern update.
Haha! You are too funny! I am sure the Googlers would approve. 😉
I fell in love with the Mocha it looks so yummy 🙂 To see that color in my kitchen and my bathrooms would be my total makeover for my house.
I like the Mocha. It’s not too dark and not too light. I think the color would really freshen up and help my kitchen…which is in definite need of a makeover that has been in the works for 20 years.
i would love the Nuvo Black Deco.I am dying to paint my cabinets!
I like the Coconut Espresso the best. It matches the tiles of my counters and the lighter color makes my small kitchen look a bit bigger.
I think Al A Mocha would work best for our kitchen. I kitchen was updated last in the early 80’s and boy does it show!
I would like the cocoa couture. It looks like it would be a color that go well with my color scheme!!
i would love the Nuvo Al A Mocha Quart because our kitchen cabinets are terrible looking. We looked into replacing them but was way to expensive.
I like the mocha color. It isn’t too light, or too dark. Our kitchen doesn’t get much natural sunlight so I don’t like dark colors in the kitchen.
I just bought a kit, I definitely would love to know if it was hard. 🙂 I plan on doing it this week.
No, it really wasn’t. It’s a little time consuming to take up the hardware and doing the initial cleaning. But the painting itself was pretty much like any typical paint job. 🙂 I would love to find out how yours turns out!
I like the Product ID : FG-NU COCOA KIT because it looks the closest to a wood color.
I like the Titanium Infusion–White. I’ve really been wanting to brighten up my kitchen, so this would be perfect!
I would love to have the Nuvo Abstract Ash Cabinet Kit. I like light colors on my cabinets and dark countertops.
I’d definitely pick Titanium Infusion. We currently have white cabinets, and I love white kitchens….but our cabinets are about 30 years old, if not more. They definitely need a facelift! Thanks for the chance!
I like the Nuvo Black Deco Cabinet Kit but I’m not sure if it is the one I would get if I should win. I like the black but I also like a few other colors so I would have to really decide later. I’m sick of looking at store bought brown cabinets. They look so drab.
There are so many great color choices, but I think I would choose between the BlackDecco color and the A-La-Mocha color for my cabinets. I’ve always wanted black cabinets in my ‘dream home’ but since we are still in our first home, I think the brown color of the A-La-Mocha would look best.
I like the Nuvo Slate Modern Cabinet Kit – I’d like to also get the Nuvo Titanium Infusion Cabinet Kit too so that we could do a two toned cabinet look. We need a facelift on our kitchen & this is actually in our budget!
I would choose the A-La-Mocha for my kitchen cabinets. They are now natural wood. This would make a big difference in the way my kitchen would look.
I think I would choose slate, their website is rather difficult to figure out colors since you have to click through to each color to see what color it atually is.
white, cause that’s the color that would match best!
I like the Nuvo Cocoa Couture Cabinet Kit! I think darker colors would look better in my kitchen!!!
coconut Expresso
I would love to try this in the Cocoa Couture color on my cabinets. I started sanding and restaining my kitchen cabinets, but the job will take me forever.So, I decided painting is the only way it will ever get done in this lifetime. The Nuvo products look quick and easy to use, even for a Mom with a little one running around!
I think I would chose the modern slate if I won. My floor is blue/grey ceramic & countertop is concrete grey so I think that’s the best choice.
I would like the cocoa coutour. because I love dark cabinets with light fixtures and a pop of color in my kitchen.
I really like the Nuvo Euro-Taupe Cabinet Kit. I think it would go best in my kitchen, which is an off-white. Thanks!
I really like the color and design of the Nuvo Al A Mocha Cabinet Kit. It matches well with my current décor. We built our home fifteen years ago, so the kitchen is due for an overhaul. Thank you for this super giveaway opportunity. Please keep up the terrific blogging.
Hello, my favorite is the Nuvo Coconut Espresso Cabinet Kit and I don’t really have a reason but the off white cabinets with the shabby chic antiquing has always appealed to me. Thanks for a great giveaway!
Nuvo Titanium Infusion Cabinet Kit because of the color perfect for my old cabinets to be renewed with out the hard work
The Nuvo Black Deco Cabinet Kit is my favorite because it would go with the appliances & counter tops I already have. / danabeeman(at)gmail(dot)com
I like the Nuvo Abstract Ash Cabinet Kit because it’s not too light and will brighten up the kitchen. It would also blend well with my current countertop and floor.
I like the Nuvo Cabinet Titanium Paint Kit for my cupboards. It would lighten up the room to have stark white cupboards with the Titanium White on them.
I like the Nuvo Slate Modern Cabinet Kit best. It is anice neutral color and would look good.
I like the titanium. It is sharp, classy, love the look it puts out.
I would get the slate modern kit! matches my counters and floors and would really bring the kitchen together.
i would love to try the Al A Mocha,so need some update-my old kitchen.
That is amazing! I know the giveaway is over but I just had to comment on this. I have those exact same “contractor” oak cabinets. They aren’t bad quality, but they are out of “style” after almost 15 years. I have always been afraid of painting them. Can I ask you a few questions? You applied with paint brushes? Weren’t there a lot of brush strokes showing? Could you apply with a small foam roller? Honestly, would you paint them again? Thanks!
I tell you what, the best thing to do is to make sure you cleaned them VERY WELL before you get started. And I mean VERY WELL. Months later, there are a few areas that obviously weren’t cleaned quite as well as they needed to be, so those areas are chipping a bit. So, we will be scrubbing down those areas and redoing soon. I do not think that was a problem with the product, though, just in the application.
And no, there are no brush strokes. But I don’t see why you couldn’t just use a roller if you want. That might be a question better addressed to the company itself, though. You can see the texture of the cabinet and that is it. Like you, I agree that they are good cabinets but way out of style. I just saw no point in wasting good cabinets by tearing them down and installing new – which would also be out of date in a few years.
The cabinets are good it really blends with the color of the splashing tiles and countertop.