DIY Concrete Counters Over Existing Laminate

by Bethany Dearden

7 Materials

When we bought our 50's home, we knew we would do some updates on it. The kitchen was the first thing on my list. It has gorgeous solid-wood cabinets, but very ugly laminate countertops and backsplash. Although we would have loved to get granite for the counters, it was outside of our price range. I started looking into concrete, and decided it was the answer for us. I love the rustic look it has, and this DIY kit we used was the perfect way to get it done on our own.

diy concrete counters over existing laminate, concrete masonry, countertops, diy, how to, kitchen design

You will mostly be using a putty knife and sandpaper to apply the concrete and primer. This was the first coat, a sandy primer and bonder.

After the primer, you will apply 3 coats of concrete with a putty knife. It gives it the pretty concrete color, texture and style. It took a bit of practice, but was not difficult to master. I haven't done a project using a putty knife before, and I was able to get the hang of it quickly.

You will finish with a sealer and a satin-sheen finish coat. The counters look like concrete, but are smooth, with a bit of texture and character. We absolutely love our new countertops, and it was a frugal and fun DIY.

We also added a slate tile backsplash. The natural stone goes very well with the concrete, and it was half the price of traditional mosaic tiles.

Now we are deciding what to do with the cabinets. Should we leave them wood, or paint them white?

For more info and detailed instructions, hop over and read the full post!

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RealNovelIdess on Mar 09, 2020

When you say you had laminate you mean solid laminate block not the Formica sheets that are glued on to the wood? How do you think this would work over Formica sheets? I wood think it would need to be removed because it peels off at some point but then again the weight of the concrete might hold it down? Final question can you tint this to whatever color you might like with some sort of dye like Rit? Thanks

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Elvira on Nov 14, 2020

Do you think this same technique could be done over tiles?

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Jub50922610 on Mar 29, 2021

How did you do the counter top front edges?

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Rachel Mayes on May 29, 2019

I love the concrete top look! Idk if you have done the cabinets or not but I would add white to the uppers only. Not paint anything that is part of the ceiling boards and not paint the cabinet doors, only paint the cabinet 'box' white and refinish the doors and bottom cabinets with a light or medium honey finnish. For a more modern/natural element look you can remove the handles from the top cabinets and replace the hinges with ones that are placed inside the door. On the bottom cabinets, remove the handles on the smallest drawers and replace the rest with bell style handles. You can get basic brushed steal and use a hammered copper craft spray paint on them this would give the wood and stone a pop of copper. Also if you like the hammered copper craft paint maybe treat your sink with it and use a sealant on top(also look at a local Restore or Habitat For Humanity, you might luck out and find a sink there that you like for next to nothing:). Yellow, turquoise, or a vibrant green would be good accent colors for the tone of this room and would work with the little bit of white to brighten up this space.

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Karen on Jun 20, 2020

I think that choosing one of the colors in the slate (perhaps one of the lighter bluish gray tones) would look great on these cabinets. It took me 20 years to give up my woodtone, but, wow! What a bright happy transformation. I would definitely leave the ceiling wood though, for some warmth. The wood above the cabinets? You could leave it wood, stencil it, (nothing busy, because it would clash with the slate) or use a peel n stick tile, again, nothing too busy though. Good luck.

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