How To Update Your Kitchenset Hardware – We moved into our Nashville home seven years ago (man, time flies!), and one of the first things we did was paint the dark wood kitchen cabinets white to bring more light into the small kitchen.
After a few years (and a toddler), the paint job has faded a bit and, let’s just say, worn in places, since the original painting, I’ve been wondering when I’ll have time to update my kitchen cabinets. It was such a big process.
How To Update Your Kitchenset Hardware
I sat and thought about it and realized that it might not actually be that big of a deal. Once I had the plan, I literally felt like I could have a complete closet makeover in just one afternoon!
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It sounds more practical than devoting a weekend to work, and it makes a big difference in how fresh the space feels when it’s done—let me show you what I did!
You can see from the pictures above that we definitely need an update. Years of daily use really leave a mark!
This step may seem like preparation for a real makeover, but I was surprised at how much better the cabinets looked just by cleaning them with a magic eraser.
I knew I could skip painting those areas if I ran out of time. It’s also a good idea to use some dish soap and water in the kitchen to scrub the area before painting.
Ultralight Camping Kitchen Set
Cooking oils are still on the paint and can keep your touch-up paint from sticking properly, so you’ll want to use some soapy water or a degreaser product to get it off first. They also make these magic erasers with soap so you can do both jobs at once!
Above you can see the left side is cleaned and the right side is not… although there are still some chips painted on, they already look pretty new!
Once your wood is clean, use some fine sandpaper (I like this brand) to gently rough up the paint on the areas where you want to apply the paint. You don’t want to sand down the wood, so don’t feel like you need to sand too much.
A light scrubbing of the surface will help the new paint to improve a bit. I also like to use a foam sanding pad so I can sand an area and then rub the dirt away with the soft foam part.
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I like to use a brush for the hard to reach areas of the cabinet (but this is my favorite spot), but where I can go with a foam roller, painting gives you the best overall look. Use what you can on any flat areas (pull out the cabinet knobs first).
I was only going to paint the most worn parts of my doors, but after I got going, I realized that it’s actually pretty quick to do an entire door or drawer if you do a coat of the same color.
So, I just drew all the sides, and it really didn’t take long. If you take your drawers out first, it makes them easier to paint too.
As you can probably guess by now, I’m assuming you know what paint was used on the cabinets last time, so you can be more in touch.
Country Kitchen Set| Toy Furniture Set
So, if you don’t have a way of keeping track of what paint colors you use in your home, I do
“If you don’t know the exact color, you can bring a million different colors of paint around the house until you find one that looks super close, but if there’s no color, you might need to paint the entire cabinet door, not just a corner.” t a 1,000% match.
Also, if you have a “thumper plate” area under your cabinets like mine (it’s close to the ground unless you’re using a baseball/quarterback), it’s a great idea to tap it while you’re painting. It takes a lot of beating with your feet (hence the name)!
It’s a fairly small area and only took about 4-5 minutes to paint, but it definitely helped the whole thing feel fresh.
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I knew that stained hardware was another reason why our kitchen looked a little scary. If that’s the case for you, cleaning or polishing your hardware can also really help keep them looking as good as new.
And, you can do this while your paint is setting, so it won’t take long! If you’re looking for a budget-friendly option for the first time, it might be a good time to upgrade your hardware.
If you have the extra time, another thing you can do to give your closet a new look is to change the hinges that attach the closet doors to the wall.
It’s definitely a time-consuming task if you have to do a lot, but if you’re in bad shape, aim to replace one or two doors a day with your electric drill and it’ll do. Feel like you can do more.
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Replacing them with different rings with different hole locations is more work (you’ll have to repair, fill, sand, and paint all the old holes), but if you’re using hardware with the same hole locations, it shouldn’t be a big deal.
There you go!! It really amazes me how new the cabinets look after an afternoon of work! You can update it by putting a cute pot on the counter or a new kitchen rug.
I feel like I spend most of my days in the kitchen, so it’s worth the effort to make it look its best. I also organized the fridge and cupboards in one afternoon, taking a few days to really get your place together! Hope these project ideas help brighten up your kitchen too! xo. LauraContent contains affiliate links. When you buy links, we get you a small commission for free. Thank you for supporting my small business.
Paint Your Oak Cabinets! It’s easy to create a new and modern kitchen with oak cabinets from lighting, cabinet hardware, accessories and more!
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If you’re not ready for a complete makeover or painting your cabinets isn’t an option, then you’ll love my ideas for working with what you need to create a modern kitchen with oak cabinets. I promise, it can be done!
Kitchen with them! In both cases and for various reasons, I decided to embrace what I had and get a modern kitchen without painting the cabinets.
Of course, I’m not against painting the cabinets either. In our colonial, we painted our heavy, dark cabinets a light and airy white. See before and after photos of this budget kitchen makeover here.
In our current home, we chose beautiful painted cabinets! Cream kitchen cabinets are so warm and welcoming – they’re everything I want.
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However, we lived with oak cabinets for several years before renovating and modernized them with these simple touches. We had saved up and were ready for a full renovation, but updating the oak cabinets made this space easier to live in.
This post is full of ideas and pictures from two different oak kitchens. You’ll also see our Lake Cottage Kitchen and Original St. Louis Oak Kitchen! My step-by-step renovation process is shown for both kitchens, so keep reading! How to Update a Kitchen with Oak Cabinets (Without Pictures)
I’ll walk you through the simple steps I used. These steps were run twice in two different kitchens. I think you’ll enjoy seeing how the same process works in two unique spaces.
First up, Lake Cottage Kitchen! When we bought the lake house, I told myself I didn’t need to decorate all at once. We can relax, enjoy the lake and embrace the charm.
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After winter and spring, I was ready to freshen it up a bit. We wanted to make it feel new without doing a major renovation, painting the oak cabinets, or spending a lot of money.
Here’s what the kitchen looked like when we first bought this lake cottage. It had a good layout and solid wardrobes, but felt heavy and dark with busy wallpaper and outdated lighting.
I start by finding my inspiration – a guide to help me make design decisions along the way. I knew that a few simple changes would make a big difference in this space.
After visiting Chicago on a tour, I was inspired by the water that surrounds the city, the history of Chicago, and the architectural details of the old buildings. I wanted to