We finished painting the cabinet doors a few days ago (imagine our exhausted happy dance) and now we’re in the “waiting game” while the paint fully cures. We couldn’t wait to share photos from during the process and of the finished, glossy results, so here they are:
We used Benjamin Moore Advance in Cloud Cover with a satin finish — a soft taupey-gray that’s slightly darker than our glacier-white counters for a subtle layered look. Several pro cabinet painters recommended Advance, and we used it on our office built-ins a few months ago; they still look great after Clara’s relentless wooden-toy testing. It’s low-VOC, self-leveling, and durable — a great combination for cabinets.
As before, we applied the paint with a high-quality 2″ angled brush to reach crevices and a small foam roller to lay down thin, even coats. The pro approach we followed is simple: use a high-quality stain-blocking primer, then 2–3 thin, even coats of cabinet-specific paint with sufficient drying time between coats. Benjamin Moore Advance is formulated to perform without a separate topcoat — sealers can sometimes drip, yellow, or cause adhesion issues because they change the paint’s thickness. We’ll post a detailed how-to with an application video and a full reveal soon, which will include step-by-step tips.
Using a good primer and self-leveling paint hides a lot, though it won’t always erase wood grain entirely. The oak office cabinets showed almost no grain, while the kitchen cabinets still reveal a slight hint depending on how pronounced the grain was to start. We don’t mind a little texture — painted wood that still looks like wood is fine by us, as long as the finish is even and glossy.
Some of the retrofitted doors we made turned out seamless, while a few show tiny imperfections. If you stare an inch away and bob your head in the light, a seam might reveal itself to a stickler — but from normal viewing distance they’re nearly impossible to notice. That faint horizontal seam you can barely see in this photo is so subtle it’s almost invisible in person.
We’ll photograph close-ups after hanging the doors. Even then the issue is so slight we’re debating whether additional sanding, buildable primer, and a couple more coats are worth it. Two of the five doors are flawless, though, which gives us confidence that with a little extra effort we can likely make the others match. If none had worked out we would have switched plans, so having some successes is reassuring.
Working with the existing cabinetry saved a lot of money, making room in the budget for other upgrades like new appliances, cork floors, fresh counters, a backsplash, and a larger opening into the dining room. For about $40 in paint (we used a coupon) and $22 in primer, plus a week of prep — puttying, sanding, deglossing, priming, painting, and waiting — the transformation feels like an incredible value.
We primed and painted the cabinet exteriors and the front and back of the doors, but left the interiors in their natural oak. That prevents scuffs from items being tossed in and gives a two-toned surprise when you open the doors — a detail we love from prior projects.
The room still looks light and a bit unfinished until the cork floors are installed, but the overall brightness is a huge improvement. Here are more shots of the kitchen without doors so you can see inside the cabinets and sneak a peek at pieces like my favorite blue casserole dish:
I’m excited to get the backsplash up once the cabinet doors and hardware are in place; that’s next on the list. The tree is still up because I always procrastinate taking down my cozy, glowy friend.
The light, airy feel is a big change from the darker kitchen that used to be here. I still do a little “ahh!” when I walk in from the office doorway because the difference is so striking.
Once we add 12″ deep floating shelves and a range hood over the stove, the sink window will look more balanced with about 14″ of space on each side.
We’ll return with a full cabinet-painting tutorial, including a detailed video and plenty of after photos, once the paint cures enough to hang the doors and install hardware. I’m oddly thrilled about that next step. For now I’m literally watching paint dry and juggling book deadlines — finishing both the cabinets and a 260+ page manuscript in the same season feels like a lot, but also like progress. Expect more in-progress kitchen updates over the next couple months.
Psst — in case you missed posts over the holiday break, here’s a quick roundup:
- Our ribbon-rific holiday card
- Cabinet puttying and sanding
- Our 2012 resolutions
- Priming in progress
- December recap
Glad to have you back!