Painting 1970's Kitchen Cabinets

by Deb Foglia

5 Materials

$50

4 Days

Medium

I am currently helping my MIL with her retirement home that is outdated and slightly stuck in the 70's. We are adding modern touches and fresh paint everywhere...including the 1970's Kitchen Cabinets. I'm sharing how to paint your cabinets, what products I use...and the BEFORE and AFTER.

The biggest problem was that there was lots of BEIGE. It needed to be brightened up, so we decided to go for white. Since the floors had to stay and the counters (which were beige) I decided to go with a "warmer" white. We used Dove White from Benjamin Moore in their Advance paint line (which is for cabinets). To prep the cabinets I took these steps. Then I began painting...with the Advance line I found it was an easy product not to have to prep cabinets first. This will depend on your cabinet and your finish...but since I've used this line before on my own cabinets, I knew I was fine with not having to sand or prime.

It will take at least 4 coats on the cabinets...so yes this is an annoying project and probably one of my least favorites of them all...but so worth it when it's all done and you have a fresh new look to your kitchen. The photo above is with one coat only. tytlytblyt

Use a foam roller for base cabinets and for large surface areas, and invest in a good brush for those smaller and more narrow areas. Be sure to of course tape off the area and have drop cloth for painting cabinet doors.

With the right tools and the time invested your kitchen can feel totally new and fresh.

See the Kitchen reveal with hardware here.

Enjoyed the project?

You can do it! Saved to your projects

Foam Roller (https://www.amazon.com/Shur-Line-3715C-4-Inch-Refills-Contractor/dp/B002K8PT74/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1523291947&sr=1-4&keywords=foam+roller)
Benjamin Moore Advance Paint Line
Angled Cut Paint Brush (https://www.amazon.com/Proform-Technologies-PIC11-2-0-2-Inch-Picasso/dp/B00BX72OWG/ref=as_li_bk_tl/?tag=seeklavelan00-20&linkId=d5a1c66dab5b5ddde5d97406d35fe472&linkCode=ktl)

See all materials

Frequently asked questions

Have a question about this project?

Ask a Question

3 of 11 questions

Debby on Feb 13, 2018

yes I am going to paint my oak old fashioned cabinets white but still not clear did you sand first or not? Or did you paint on primer? My cabinets have a shine to them but ugly oak color

7
Helene Ryan on Mar 29, 2018

Do you use a clear coat over the colored paint?

1
Diane on Dec 09, 2018

how much paint did you use? And how many cabinets; both top & bottom&
drawers; for how many coats?
I want to mix my own color of gray and can*t mess it up
I have 18 cabinets & doors; and 8 drawers
Diane

1

Comments

Join the conversation

2 of 46 comments

Bwi33301443 on Jun 19, 2018

Great job, I love it, I don't have faith that mine would look that Great! Happy for you Both!

Like Reply
Kimberly Capps Gautier on Dec 15, 2018

From experience, always number your cabinet doors. You want them to go back on the same cabinet. If using old or new hardware that uses the same holes. This will assure the doors will hang and close properly when you're finished. Happy remodeling!

2 Reply