Painted Laminate Kitchen Cabinets

Graphite Door Close up
When you think of DIY in your home, which project intimidates you the most?  Painting your kitchen cabinets may seem like an overwhelming task but with the right paint and tools you can do it.

If you’ve read my blog for any amount of time then you know that painting kitchen cabinets is one of my favorite painting projects.  In fact painting cabinets is the primary focus of my business lately.

Today I wanted to share with you a kitchen I painted with chalk type paint and show you how with a lot of hard work and a little time you can transform your kitchen too.

Kitchen Before

Here’s a photo of how this kitchen looked when I started.  As you can see it was stark white thermofoil that was peeling here and there.  My client wanted the room to reflect his style and become a warm inviting space but he didn’t want to spend a fortune replacing or refacing his cabinets.  Paint to the rescue!

Graphite kitchen with finishes

The first order of business was decide on a color.  It really helps to gather all your finishes and paint a sample door so you can get a feel for how each element is going to look together.  We decided on black chalk type paint with a dark wax topcoat to finish it off.

Now let’s take a moment to talk about why I use chalk type paint for cabinets, as I get an email or comment on my Facebook page every time I post a kitchen transformation asking why I don’t use other paints.  There are several reasons but my main answer is simple.  I have used other paints and after I sand, prime, paint and seal the cabinets I have more time and money invested in them than I do when I just use chalk and clay and waxes.  For me it’s the answer that works EVERY TIME.

Is this paint more expensive than other paints?  Yes.  Do you get what you pay for?  Yes.  Have I used other “chalk like” paints?  Yes.  Did they work as good?  No!  I use this paint because I absolutely LOVE it.  I trust it and the wax finish is not only beautiful but durable.

OK now let’s see how it’s done.

Cabinets during painting

I always begin by removing the doors and drawer fronts and then painting the skeletons.

Cabinet door before and after

Here’s a side by side comparison of two drawers.  On the left is the drawer front after removing the thermofoil and on the right is a drawer with one coat of paint.  You know how I’m always telling you guys that sometimes things look worse before they look better?  Well this is what I’m talking about.  Painting your cabinets can be scary but have no fear you can do it!  One coat at a time.

Painting Kitchen Cabinets with Graphite Chalk Paint

I recommend painting the backs of the doors first and then flipping them over and painting the fronts.  I give each side three coats of paint and then two coats of wax.

Distressed Graphite Cabinets

Fast forward several hours of painting and hard work later and you have these fabulous custom looking cabinets for a fraction of the cost.

Graphite Door Close up

And because of the money my client saved by not replacing all his kitchen cabinets with new ones he was able to install beautiful granite countertops.

Kitchen Cabinets Painted in Graphite

He also had his walls painted this bright red to finish it all off.

Upper Kitchen Cabinets in Graphite

I hope that if you are struggling with what to do with your ugly kitchen cabinets that you’ll consider painting them with Chalk Paint® Decorative Paint by Annie Sloan instead of replacing them.  Painting your kitchen cabinets is a great way to save money and completely transform the look of your space.

Graphite Cabinet Close up

Graphite Chalk Paint Door Close up

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43 Comments

  1. I love the new look and the color. The chalk paint is the perfect answer to your dated cupboards. Thanks for sharing your confidence and inspiration, Beth.

  2. Beth, your cabinets look gorgeous! I can’t believe they are the same ones! Annie Sloan products are definitely high quality!

  3. Hi Beth. Love your work. I do things like this, too, only on my things at home. My question is have you ever painted oak cabinets and does the paint you use really cover the grain on oak? I have a chalk paint recipe that isn’t Annie Sloane, but I don’t know that I would use it on cabinets.

    Thanks!!

  4. Looks great. I am hoping to paint my daughter’s cabinets next Spring……..she has an older home with Pine cabinets……this is just the inspiration I need. Have to admit, I am a little afraid. She would like a creamy beige with a glaze……or something close. I think this adds so much to your home. Luv.

    1. Janet-I have an ebook coming out very soon that will help you out. Stay tuned!!!!

  5. Girl your kitchen transformations are so inspiring! My cabinets are not old but they’re cheap MDF and I keep wondering how they’d look painted… maybe they won’t look so cheap. Fabulous job with this makeover- I’m sure your client was thrilled!

    1. Thanks Jen! You should go for it. If we lived close to each other I’d come help you. Get a board and paint it like you want and stick it on the counter in front of your cabinets to see what you think. 🙂

    1. Thanks Wendi. It all really came together nicely. 🙂

    1. Thanks Leslie. I’m always amazed by the transformation myself. 🙂

  6. You did a beautiful job. I am contemplating painting some of my cabinets…very torn because I do like wood cabinetry..but I may need to lighten the kitchen up a little bit.

    How has the chalk paint held up over time on kitchen cabinets?

    1. Sharon,

      Thanks!!! My oldest chalk paint job is two years old in a heavily used kitchen and is still as great as the day I finished.
      🙂 Beth

  7. Christine says:

    Every time I see a post with a kitchen cabinet transformation it gives me just a tad bit more confidence that I can do this, too! The graphite with dark wax looks amazing! I’ve used ASCP on many furniture pieces and still hesitant to go for the cabinets! Thank you for pushing my confidence up a little more!!!

    1. You can do it Christine!!!

  8. These are absolutely, positively beautiful! I’ve been struggling with what to do with my kitchen. I just installed granite countertops, but am not loving how they look with my old cabinets. This is a fantastic idea, and it actually matches my kitchen perfectly! My question is how do you do the distressing of the cabinets? Is there a post about that somewhere that I may have missed? That’s the part I’m terrified of.
    Thanks!

  9. Looks fantastic! I too have an (Ikea) thermofoil white kitchen. My question is, how did you remove all that thermofoil?? I have a few cabinet doors on the bottom that are peeling (in the area of the sink and dishwasher) but the others are completely intact.

    1. Hi Maureen,

      Thanks so much! You can carefully peel it off. Use a heat gun if necessary.

      Blessings,
      Beth

  10. Toni from NZ says:

    Love the kitchen in the Graphite. I’ve just routed lines into my cabinet doors and painted a test door in the Anne Slone graphite looking for that nice black finish. I’m surprised to fine even after the 2nd coat it’s still very grey. Any thoughts.? Does this sound correct.? Help

    1. Toni-in order to get a truer black you’ll need to apply the dark wax ontop. I hope this helps!

      Blessings,
      Beth

  11. Hi,

    Do you first put the clear wax on the graphite and then the dark wax or only dark wax?

    Thank you

  12. Love your work! Question, We are about to take this project on ourselves. Same thermofoil cabinets and all. I noticed you didn’t prime your cabinets before you used Annie Sloan. Do you recommend it or is it no necessary?

    1. Hi Heather-I do not prime when using a chalk type paint. I do however clean the cabinets very well with denatured alcohol. I use Debi’s Design Diary DIY Paints and finishes now and I’m very pleased with how they perform. You can order them on my website here-https://squareup.com/market/farm-fresh-vintage-finds if you’d like.

      Thank you,
      Beth

  13. I wonder if you (or anyone) could help me find the name of the router bits used to make this door? We live overseas, where most kitchens are (still) made of laminate :(. My husband wants to make us new cabinets out of Mdf, and I would love to find the same design. Thank you!

  14. Did you have to sand to get the brown too come through or does the wax do that for you?

    1. Hey Crystal,

      This depends. You can do either depending on the look you want. I suggest playing around with a sample board to get the look you want before tackling your entire kitchen.

      Thanks,
      Beth

  15. Love these. Do you paint the inside of the cabinets as well?

    1. Hi Robyn,

      No, I do not paint the inside of the cabinets. It’s just not necessary.

      Thanks,
      Beth

  16. My question did you sand the cabinets first I think that’s why I haven’t paint mine but I’m so ready I just hate my cabinet they theirs yellow oak color.

    1. Hi Janin,

      I always recommend lightly sanding and priming your cabinets before painting. Doing all the prep work is what will make your cabinets last in the long run.

      Thanks for reading!
      Beth

  17. Beautiful job. On theses did you distress or is that the dark wax I’m seeing come through the edges? Also did you use clear then dark wax?

    1. Hi Kathy,

      These have distressing and dark wax. ASCP Graphite looks more black (to me) with dark wax.

      Thanks,
      Beth

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