How To Repaint Painted Cabinets (Our Green Kitchen Cabinets)

Are you looking for a way to freshen up your kitchen cabinets? Keep reading to find out what steps to take for painting kitchen cabinets that are already painted. We absolutely love our repainted kitchen cabinets and the fun paint color we chose.

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Why did we repaint our cabinets?

We knew we wanted to update our painted kitchen cabinets recently. Even though we did a pretty good job painting our old oak cabinets the first time, 8 years and a few children have still done a number on them.

I absolutely knew I wanted to repaint the white kitchen cabinets on our island a fun & deeper color to go with our walls in our living space.

Spoiler Alert: I honestly still can’t get over how much I love our newly painted island. Soon I will be doing all of our lower cabinets and painting our backsplash to completely update our kitchen for probably under $200.

Is painting kitchen cabinets a good idea?

Yes, when done properly. Don’t expect it to be a fast DIY project where you can just messily slap on some normal latex paint. We recommend using the proper paint (either a latex enamel or Urethane Trim Enamel Paint) as well as a proper primer.

If you are not willing to prep the area properly or take your time doing this DIY painting project the right way, then you may not want to take this on. However, it is honestly one of the cheapest DIY ways to modernize a home. See how we decided on what paint color to use. It honestly was a bold choice and I am so happy I just went for it.

Types Of Paint Matter

We first painted our oak kitchen cabinets white (see the whole process by clicking the link to our post). You can see how they have held up after 7 or now 8 years, hint pretty well, but after 8 years it was time for a change.

I still wanted to work on updating them more. I thought let’s add a fun color to my kitchen island. However, I needed to figure out the proper way to prep my cabinets for the Emerald Urethane Paint I planned on using.

Painting over SW Proclassic paint with SW Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel

For reference, we are painting over Sherwin Williams Proclassic Latex Enamel with SW Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel paint.

At the Sherwin Williams store, we were told there was no need to prime and that you should lightly scuff up the surface. They noted that you should sand any areas where you see brush marks or other imperfections because the SW Emerald paint will self-level and show all of that. 

Note that we had one or two areas where I didn’t even notice the dings on the drawer fronts. The SW Emerald really does self-level well and those spots did become noticeable. I should have used wood filler in those areas first if I would have noticed them. They are tiny so really not that big of a deal.

Make sure your surfaces are as smooth and ding-free as possible before your painting project.

I lightly scuffed the area with extra-fine sandpaper and wiped it down with a deglosser. We always use a deglosser before any painting project. 

The Easiest Way To Paint Cabinets

We like to use a small foam roller, small paint tray and 2.5″ good angled paintbrush as we did in our painted our bathroom cabinets.  I recently purchased a paint sprayer, but just like the simple way of using a small foam roller and brush.

Note: I had no problem using the Emerald paint with a small foam roller, but some people in reviews said they had higher success with a little more nap on the roller. 

I just feel like I have more control with a small foam roller and it is what I always use. The idea of taping out your whole kitchen and using plastic wrap just sounds like too much for me.

A roller allows you to slowly paint your cabinets at your pace and not have to get everything done right at once. And for this busy mom, that is super important.

What to use on kitchen cabinets before painting?

At Sherwin Williams, they said you really just need your cabinets to be clean. If you do have brush marks from a previous paint job, then you really will want to sand with extra fine sandpaper.

They also mentioned you could use a green Scotch-Brite pad to just rough up the surface. We also always use a deglosser to help prep any surface (even previously painted cabinets).

Looking for links to all of these items in one place? Check out this photo collage with shoppable links.

Step 2: Set-Up Painting Station

Set up a painting station for your drawers and doors. While I love the finished feel of the Emerald paint, the biggest con is that took a while to not feel tacky.

Therefore, the longer you can just leave your drawers and doors somewhere else to dry the better. We set up sawhorses in our basement and just take the drawers completely out.

You could take the drawer fronts off, but I like to stand up the drawers in my paint area to save my back and not have to set up more sawhorse.

I would think this is probably the recommended way professional painters do it so that they can clean lines on the inside. We made the mistake of using blue painter’s tape and not our favorite tape when taping the inside of the drawers. We did have a little bleeding.

Step 3: Lightly Scuff Surface

Lightly scuff the surface with extra-fine sandpaper or even a green Scotch-Brite pad.

Step 4: Wipe Down With Deglosser

Put the deglosser on a rag and wipe all surfaces completely clean. Do not skimp on cleaning your cabinets. The last thing you want is dust getting stuck in your nice smooth surface.

Optional Step: Add Painter’s Tape

Use painter’s tape anywhere you think you might not get a straight line. I felt I could easily paint the lip of the cabinet without taping, but you might want to.

Step 5: Paint Hard To Reach Areas With Brush

Begin using an angled 2.5″ brush to trim out places that the roller can’t get to on the box and drawers, and doors. I like to do this first so that you can use the roller to help smooth out the areas after and lightly feather in on top of brushstrokes.

Step 6: Use A Small Foam Roller

Use the small roller to apply your first coat of cabinet paint.

Step 7: Let The First Layer Fully Dry

Let dry before painting a second coat. You don’t want your paint to be tacky to the touch. Read the paint can label to find out your dry time. This Emerald Sherwin Williams blue-green paint color takes 4-6 hours to dry.

Remember the roller is great on the edges of the doors (you will get a much more even coat).

Step 8: Add A Second Coat Of Paint

Repeat all painting steps for a second coat.

Tip For Painting Doors

For your doors, you have to be extra patient. Due to painting two coats on each side. We recommend making sure your last coat of paint is on the front to ensure the smoothest finish. 

Click on the link for our full detailed tutorial on how to paint cabinet doors.

Step 9: Let Paint Cure

Let everything cure as long as possible. I honestly felt that with the surface of this paint, a week was the ideal time to keep the doors and drawers off. We are going to wait even longer to put the hardware handles back on.

Step 10: Put Cabinets Back Together

Once you do put the doors and drawers back in, make sure you add small rubber stoppers to help your doors and drawers from rubbing against the cabinet box. 

Allow cabinets to cure as long as possible before installing new hardware. We like to wait at least a week and even a month before installing new hardware.

Our Before White Painted Kitchen Cabinets

In the image below you can see the areas that were worn and why we needed a fresh coat of paint. Choosing SW Rookwood Sash Green was a great complement to our granite and Liveable Green Wall color. We plan on updating our glass backsplash soon!

Our After Modern Green Kitchen Cabinets