Disclosure: Rust-Oleum paid for my transportation, lodging and food to attend this special event in New Orleans, where I could test this new product and hear directly from their company experts. There was no promise of news coverage. Opinions are my own.
Repainting your kitchen cabinets has historically been one of the most thankless home renovation projects. I say “thankless,” because in my experience, even after cleaning, sanding (argh), priming, then repainting — the doors still get chippy and the cabinets can still look kind of chalky and blah. It’s a lot of work with iffy results. Now, though, it seems like the folks at Rustoleum have come up with a new DIY painting system — Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations — that promises at least four major benefits: (1) No stripping, sanding or priming required, (2) excellent paint adhesion, (3) high-quality looks, and (4) a price tag less than $150. With this product, the company seems to be making a major move on today’s kitchen renovation market — which, in the wake of the Great Recession, is about working with what we have — especially what we have is existing, functional cabinetry. Of course, people still want an updated look, and Rustoleum is aiming to deliver it — in this cabinet-painting kit. My prediction: This product has all the makings of a huge hit.
Last week, I was one of 10 home renovation and design bloggers invited by Rustoleum to see and experience this new product.
Another benefit of Rustoleum’s new system is that everything you need comes in one kit, except for brushes and gloves. Before you start, remove and number the doors and set them up “assembly line” fashion for efficiency. If you’re going to change your cabinet pulls, this is also the time to drill new holes and fill the old.
5 steps to repaint your kitchen cabinets
Step #1 is to use their special solution to clean the cabinets. Their cleaner is formulated to remove grease and grime and to bring up the “tooth” of the wood, so that you don’t need sanding. Oh, and let me properly introduce you to Ashley Lehrmann, pictured throughout playing the role of DIY painter. She is Senior Brand Manager, Rustoleum — and this product has been her baby for the past two years.
Steps #2 and #3 — Paint the kitchen cabinets using the tinted “bond coat” paint provided. Two coats, dry between according to instructions. I’ll talk more about colors in a moment. No noxious fumes (read more on the website), in fact, they tell you to close all your windows while painting to avoid dust and such from ruining the finish.
Step #4 — Optional — Add glaze, also provided. You apply the glaze… then wipe it off to get the effect you like. For example, you can only do the beaded areas for slight antiquing. The glaze helps emphasize the wood grain. But, you can leave the glaze off altogether for a solid color look.
Step #5 — Apply clear top coat (oopsy, no photo)…. and you’re done and ready to reinstall your doors. You’ll be painting both sides of the doors. And, you’re also going to paint the inside of the cabinet (no glaze, typically.) Of course: Read all the instructions on the box — and be sure to check out the Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations website, which should win an award for its presentation and thoroughness in today’s digital age. Nicely done.
Where to buy Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations
Pricing:
- $79.99 for the small kit — enough to cover 100 s.f.
- $149.99 for the large kit — for 200 s.f.
Where to buy:
- Check the website… but retailers include big box stores like Home Depot, Lowes and Menards… and there are smaller, more localized retailers, too.
Etc:
- Good on laminate and melamine, too.
- And yes: It will work on metal cabinets, too. Although you will get a satin finish, not a high-gloss enamel. Plus they said scuff up the metal and prime it, too. (Precautionary Pam reminds: Test for lead paint, consult with pro’s re proper safety and environmental precautions.) That said — they offered to talk to me further about other potential DIY solutions for our beloved steel cabinets. Stay tuned.
If you are super duper cost conscious, I think that you *could* do this project for less money, by using the “tried and trued” tools of sandpaper, primer and paint. But, I was convinced this $80-$150 expenditure looked well worth it, for a number of reasons:
- Rustoleum is a company that is all about “surfaces.” From their presentation it certainly seemed that they recognized the need for a paint system that combined excellent adhesion with professional quality looks. You DON’T want your painted kitchen cabinets to chip! I guess, like a 10-year-old car, we’ll see if their reassurances hold up, but from the look of the finish in person, I’d tend to think it will.
- In the same vein, the quality of the finish appeared to be excellent — the cabinets were beautiful. The two coats of color went on like liquid butter — there was both opacity and smooth flow. No lumps, nothing like that. I’ve spent many hours poking around kitchen stores looking at kitchen doors, and these looked like ringers to high-end painted-glazed kitchen doors to me.
- They had me at “no sanding.”
Retro kitchen cabinet colors
So now, let’s talk colors — vintage, retro, mid-century colors. There are 35 kitchen cabinet colors in the Transformations line right now, add glaze and they offer 70 looks in all.
In terms of the solid colors offered, I thought that a few — including a yellow, some of the blues, some of the whites, and even a Brady Bunch orange — had potential for our mid century kitchens. Except for the whites, the blue above, and the avocado green, though, none of them were what I’d call “retro”. Alas.
They also had a bundle of wood tones. I believe we were told that the Kona was selling like hotcakes. Again, though, nothing jumped out at me a “perfect” retro woodtone. In fact, I thought lots of the colors had a strange orange cast. I believe Rustoleum when they said they had consulted with professional color marketers and forecasters. I admit, I am out of touch with what’s popular “today” — I need to get me to a kitchen store to prowl around. To be sure, Rustoleum is aiming for the heart and soul of the mainstream, and that ain’t us, I guess… although, I certainly see “Retro” as an revival trend right now. Ummm, they had Greige, of course.
Yes, alas, no aquamarine, and wouldn’t it be fabulous to have, say, Mamie pink, sunbeam yellow, maybe a Ming green. The good news, though, is that the paint in the kit is tinted at the store when you buy it. So, it’s not an impossible thought that new color formulations could be developed — and they certainly know that Retro Renovation wants retro colors. I’ll keep in touch with Rustoleum about it… Meanwhile, if you are really hot to trot to freshen your cabinets, I’d for sure to out at look at the options available with this system.
On the use of glazes for mid century kitchen cabinets: Yes, I have seen marketing materials that indicated glazes were used on wood cabinets back in the day:
For example, these 1959 Fashionwood cabinets, above. Okay, maybe this is not “glaze over paint” — this may be a stain — but I think you can get the same basic look with the Rustoleum Transformations. The “avocado” color I mentioned before is achieved with a glaze.
As a reference for midcentury woodtones, here is another post I did about wood stain colors for television cabinetry from 1956.
And, here is another reference post — color combinations for wood kitchen cabinets from 1953. Of course, we have a gazillion more images all over the site and in the Galleries that show vintage kitchens with their original finishes.
More stories about mid century paint colors and kitchen cabinets
Point is, I have a number of resource references for retro kitchen cabinet colors on the blog:
- All my paint color palettes for mid century homes.
- All my stories about kitchen cabinets for mid century homes.
- And if you’re looking to design a retro kitchen, be sure to read my complete Retro Kitchen “get started” page here!
Many thanks to the team from Rustoleum, along with their media agency, Empower MediaMarketing, for the excellent preview event. Tomorrow: Photos of some of the fun.
wendy says
I already painted my kitchen cabinets red but want to redo them in more lighter color will this kit work for me?
Jackie Workman says
I bought the Espresso to redo the base cabinets in both bathrooms of the 1960’s house I just bought. The first bathroom cabinet turned out “alright” but I obviously applied too much top coat because when it dried I had big drip marks that I had to scrape off and touch up…so that one obviously isn’t perfect but still looks much better than it did. The second bathroom cabinet is much better because I now know what I did wrong the first time. So far, I would absolutely recommend this product–I would just recommend trying it out on a scrap piece of wood or furniture first to get the hang of it.
Natalie says
Is this only for wood cabinets? Mine are painted already but need a facelift…
Nancy says
I used the Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations kit on mid-century (1947) cabinets of birch. They were functional but u***. I sanded the cabinet doors to get them smooth and remove food and oily stains. I think the color I used was River Birch, a beige neutral. The glaze settles in the brush strokes on a smooth grained wood like birch. Running short on glaze, I used a water-based wood stain over paint on my oak wood trim in the room for a similar look. I have since found the glaze for sale by itself in my hardware stores, so plan to use it to repaint door frames. I reused the original chrome hinges on the cabinets, and invested in pull-out inside drawers to make my old cabinets more functional. I put wallpaper on the wall inside the cabinets to give them an updated look. Glaze looks different on oak cabinets, as it settles in the open grain of the wood. The effect of the glaze is different on a closed grain like birch or maple, with the glaze highlighting your paint brushmarks.
Nancy says
I did use the clear Rustoleum top coat from the kit on my transformed cabinets. It is water based, like the paint base coat, as I recall. I found the finish dried very quickly on the brush, so one must work quickly and not rest between coating pieces, or else wash the brush and start over with a clean brush, or the finish will have clumps. I believe Varathane also makes a nice clear top coat that is water based. I used it on a stair rail with a light stain, and it still looks new, after several years of use. I think water based clear coat is less likely to yellow than an oil based, and it does not seem to attract handprints either. And of course, cleanup is easier.
Tiffany says
I used the white kit on my honey oak cabinets over the weekend. The “bond coat” streaked with a brush, bubbled with a roller, and dripped and ran with a sprayer. To top it off the clear coat dried with a yellowish tint! So much for a clean white finish. I’ll be spending weeks stripping, sanding, and refinishing my cabinets and hope they are not ruined. Don’t use this kit as a shortcut… it could end up making your project much longer and more expensive!!! Sand, prime, paint, laquer, it’s worked forever and I wish i’d done it this time.
Vera says
Thank you so much for this post! It helped me a great deal on remodeling my own kitchen! I have used Rest-Oleum and I am very satisfied with design. For those who are interested you may check out the results here http://liveincolorz.blogspot.com/2013/05/updating-kitchen.html.
Renny says
Can you use this on wood trim? I have two large pantry doors (which match my cabinets that I want to paint also) but the wood trim matches the doors, fruitwood color.
Also wood trim inside around windows.
pam kueber says
I would think so. Please contact Rust-Oleum directly if you have specific concerns. Good luck.
sara says
Nice article! I have ugly fake wood laminate cabinets that I would love to paint, however, I’ve read through some comments regarding using this on laminate and I can’t seem to find an answer. Has anyone tried the Rust-Oleum kit on laminate? pictures, advice, etc.? Thanks!!!
pam kueber says
sara, you should contact Rust-Oleum directly with this question. As I recall, yes, this can be used on laminate cabinets, but there are different steps. Good luck.
Elyse says
Hi, very helpful website.
Do you know if this works on pressboard?
I thought my cabinet doors were laminate until the some of the cabinet door started to peel of (adhesive). So the doors are a pressed wood (or maybe its called particle wood). The frame is wood.
Thanks for any info!
Andrew says
Oak Cabinets,
Good afternoon, my name is Andrew and I am currently participating in a complete home remodel. We bought an REO property that fits all our needs and wants, however NEEDS work! We are going through the process now, but one thing we decided to keep was the oak cabinets. They are in great shape, but my wife and I hate oak, it screams 80’s! We want a white or off white transformation. I just left Lowe’s and believe I was reading the label on this product, but it stated in a disclaimer that this product does not change colors but only enhances. I guess I am looking for a clarification, can this product turn my cabinets into the updated white look that I have been searching for?!?!?!? If not, maybe a suggestion would be great!
Thanks again,
Andrew
pam kueber says
Andrew — I think you might have their product for wood restoration — not the product for painting.