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August 22, 2011

White Cabinets To...White Cabinets and my Snazzy Pantry Door

If you follow me on Facebook, you know I've been in the middle of the ever frustrating painting-cabinet-door project.

I think the most frustrating thing about it, along with the tedious amounts of screws involved (I mean, really?) is the fact that I was painting my white cabinets, well, white.

Here's my kitchen as of a week ago...



So, it's not the worst as far as kitchens go.
I mean, I could do without the blond laminate counters but I deal, you know?
The only 'updates' we've done to this part of the house is adding a valance above the window and some decor items like my utensil containers and backsplash canvases.

Other than that, it was just painting the horrendous lavender it orginally was to the pretty blue.
And the wood floors, which the whole house got.

But those poor, grimy cabinets.
Seriously in sad shape.
I can't do a whole lot about the fact that they're like sixty years old and won't shut anymore.
Well, I could but that would either involve major stripping of like eight coats of paint or new doors.
Neither of which I can do right now.

So I got out some new, scrubbable (that's the key!) Valspar paint and got to work.
I also decided to give the horrible gold hardware a makeover too.
Ick. Gold.
Our house is swallowed in it.


I did the kitchen in sections because it was just less overwhelming that way.
Plus hubby brings his small drill home from work for me in the evenings and it's way easier on my wrist than the hunk of a drill we have at home.
So I would take all the hinges and pulls off in the evening and paint the next day.

Here it is mid-project...
you can see it a lot better in person but the cabinets on the left have been painted.
Can you tell the difference between the yellowed, gross ones on the right?
And the much more beautiful oil rubbed bronze pulls on the left...


It definitely took quite a bit of work...
my back and wrists are not thanking me.
Plus it's kind of discouraging to be painting them the same color...
not a huge, dramatic change.
But the end was TOTALLY worth it.

Check out some before and afters...

Before
(can you say yuck?)


 After


It's subtle, but it's a big difference to us!




Before


After



I usually always use Krylon's ORB paint, but I had a can of Rustoleum's and decided to try it instead.
I have to say, I'm a big fan and think I'll be using it in the future rather than Krylon!
Although Krylon's price is better, it's more black than ORB.
Rustoleum's ORB definitely came out that pretty speckled color :)


And we can't forget the pantry door because it's definitely my favorite part!!
We have bifold doors everywhere and, not only do they hate me, but they're just plain boring.
So after painting the whole thing in the same white paint,
I decided to add a little pop of pattern and color.


Because even pantry doors deserve to be interesting...


I added an Anthropologie knob I had to it,
but I'm not sold on that yet.
We'll see...


And whenever I get tired of it,
I can just paint right over it.
The beauty of paint, huh?


So what do you think?
Worth the time and heat to 'clean it up' a bit??

I'm loving our oil-rubbed bronze hardware now.
I don't have to cringe every time I see the gold anymore :)


(PS- check out my Facebook page to see some fun thrift finds I got today!!)

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23 comments:

  1. wow! You really can tell a difference! It's amazing what fresh paint can do! I love the knew knobs and your doors! :)

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  2. Looking good. Pantry door I like :-)

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  3. looks great and so fresh. why did you put the pulls back in the middle of the doors? it threw me off bc i was totally expecting them to be in the lower corner of each door!! haha

    i have a solution for your countertops. at home depot they sell countertop paint. its primer and paint in one. we were gonna splurge the whole $20 for one can and do it in our kitchen but waited. i suprized when the next week the gray color we were wanting was in the oops section for $1!!! no joke!! its a breeze to do and we had the same butcher block laminate you have. it takes no time to paint, but the smell is so strong and you have let it cure for 3 days. but a simple trade off for a whole new look! one can would be more than enough for your countertops. my advice, dont use a foam roller like they suggest, it leaves small bubbles. instead, use a foam brush. in less than an hour and less than $25 you can have purty new countertops!!!

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  4. I just spent two days painting white cabinets another shade of white! The oil-rubbed bronze definitely looks better than the brass handles, and the pantry door is fantastic! Sometimes the small changes make all the difference!

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  5. I LOOOOOVE the folding doors! And I can totally tell a difference, congrats! :)

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  6. I so love that pantry door-and it's so true about paint-one coat and it's gone! I'm your newest follower!!

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  7. This is all gorgeous! And your pantry door--amazing! Love it all, really!

    I have a link party going on now, called Show & Share. I'd love to have you link this up!

    http://southernlovely.blogspot.com/2011/08/show-share-2.html

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  8. I LOVE IT! I just did the same thing with my yucky wood cabinets. The white just makes everything brighter and cleaner! Fabulous job. And that pantry door is to die for!
    Found you on Show Me What Ya Got!
    http://www.releasemecreations.com

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  9. It looks great! Definitely needed a fresh coat of paint and that gold needed to go! Love the detail on the doors too!

    Thanks for linking up to this week's Catch a Glimpse party.

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  10. That looks way better with the black hardware. You dud an awesome job with the pantry doors too! :)

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  11. I love it! Adore your pantry door!! Great job. Found you via Remodelaholic. Pop on over for a visit when you get a moment. Tootles, Kathryn
    http://thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com/2011/08/what-do-you-see.html

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  12. Love the colors, and the pantry doors just scream FUN! Came over from a Little Knick Knack's party.

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  13. I think that your harliquin pantry door looks stunning! You did a really great job with that...very cute kitchen. Do you have a stencil you use or do you free hand it? Found you from Hookin up with HOH. Thanks for sharing.

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  14. @Heather- thank you! I actually made my own stencil of sorts- I cut a diamond out of cardstock and used that to trace it where I wanted. I used a pencil, so when I painted, it was covered up. Small, angled brushes work the best to fill it all in. Easiest pattern ever :)

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  15. LOVE the changes Kelsey!!!! Looks great and I especially love your pantry door. Great color :)

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  16. I absolutely love these! Very cute & matches perfectly! Really makes your kitchen pop & gives it some character!

    Chrissy visiting from www.formamas.blogspot.com

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  17. You did a fantastic job with that. The colour scheme is so classic looking.

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  18. Love those pantry doors. In my house such a door is the most used (with the goodies behind it) so it deserves such beauty!

    ~ Meredith from A Mother Seeking

    http://www.amotherseeking.com


    A Mother Seeking


    P.S. Found you through the DIY Showoff.
    This week on A Mother Seeking: I Created A Birdhouse Dream House

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  19. Kelsey- I love ANYTHING with Harlequins. I love this on the door...hmmm thinking of which door now I'm going to add some black harlequins too. Thank you for sharing.
    Mandy
    www.projectqueen.org
    PS followed you from Dittle Dattle!

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  20. I love the bi-folds! So creative! :)

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  21. I love the closet doors! I would love to do that to mine. Great idea!
    Ky
    http://burstofcreations.blogspot.com/

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  22. I love the door of kitchen pantry cabinet, it is so lovely.

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  23. The thing I love most about the closet and pantry doors is no other than the color for the reason that I love color white, its very neat into my eyes. That's it, thank you!

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