A Kitchen Face-Lift + Giveaway!

Editor's note: Here it is! Our last Style Lush giveaway (for a while, at least). Good luck!

by Christina

If one thing I've mentioned here a million times, it's that I don't like my kitchen. Our home was built in 1992 and it we got the builder grade deluxe! Formica counters, orange oak cabinets, bone appliances. It's not hideous but it's not attractive either. Here it is before:

The folks at Ace Hardware offered to help me with this project and sponsored the paint. I used Clark+Kensingtion in two colors and in two coats (three if you count the stain-blocking primer) the kitchen was transformed!

I'm not here to tell you I'm a master DIYer. I'm here to tell you that you can do this too! Nothing about this project was hard, and I did it alone.

What does it take to accomplish this? Here's a break down of what I did:

- Remove the doors and drawers and all hardware. (I tried to leave the hinges on and paint around them but it looked messy, so take it all off)

- I used TSP (Tri-sodium phosphate) to clean, de-grease, and de-gloss. It stinks and it's hard on skin but it eliminates the need to sand! NO SANDING! Holla. With a sponge nearly saturated, wipe down the fronts, scrubbing where you feel any grease buildup, wipe up the excess and then rinse with a second sponge with fresh water.

- Prime

- Caulk. I filled in any gaps between the walls and the cabinets and where the cabinetry was connected together. You don't notice seams much with oak but with a color they will stand out.

- Paint two coats

- I painted my hinges with rub n' buff. Sounds a little daunting to take a tiny brush and paint them but this product is crazy, one tiny tube covers 20 square feet and it spreads so fast and easy. I could have spray-painted but I chose the rub n' buff because it's made of actual metals and my goal was to get the antique brass to match the new brushed nickel hardware.

- Attach the hinges

- Hang

- My hardware is on order, so that's another step.

It took 6 days with drying time (let the primer dry overnight) and wrangling two kids but it was so worth it.

How much will this cost you?

- 1 gallon of primer $18

- 2 gallons of clark+kensington $45

- 1 tube of rub n' buff $5

- Misc. supplies (your needs may be different) $50 (foam rollers, TSP, disposable gloves) (if you don't have a GOOD brush, get one, and I'm talking $15-20 for 1. Trust me, it's what you need!)

- Hardware $140

So, about $250

My neighbor just had hers painted and it cost her $900.

And because Ace Hardware helped me out with this project, they'd love to get you started with one of yours. We have a $25 gift card for you.

Details:

• To enter: Let us know what room you'd paint with $25 from Ace Hardware. (We won't hold you to it, promise!)
• Giveaway ends: January 31st, at 11:59 PM EST.
• Who can enter: All U.S. readers!
• Other notes: One comment per person, winner will be selected by random.org and announced as an update on this post by 2/1.

Editor's note: Ace Hardware provided Christina with a $25 gift card to go toward her Clark + Kensington paint purchase with no obligation of a review. The opinions in this post are her own.

Comments

[Heather]

It looks fantastic! I would definitely paint the kitchen...I covet the kitchen cabinets in the show "Royal Pains", and I would make my kitchen match.

[Mary W.]

Kitchen here too! I've been dying to paint my cabinets for ages, but can't decide on a color. My countertops are white and I can't afford new ones right now.

[Kelly P]

Looks great! We're currently remodeling our entire house so, really, every single room needs it. I'm pretty excited about our new Master Bath though so that's probably the first one I'll paint!

[Jody]

Wow! Looks great. For our bathroom I'm planning on painting the cabinet that is currently in there. How smelly is the TSP? Is this something I need to wait for it to warm up a bit outside so I can get my windows open?

[Kimberly]

Looks great! Love the island! I would definitely wan't to paint our kitchen as well. It is just offwhite on white on really bad laminate 70s countertops.

[anne]

master bedroom

[Melissa]

Actually, our kitchen cabinets are on OUR list, too (already painted the whole rest of the house last year)... thanks for the inspiration! It looks great!!

[Heidi]

Looks amazing! I have a purple bathroom that needs a new look!

[Liv]

My husband's office. When we moved in, the room had this awful wood paneling nailed on top of 70's wallpaper. We ripped off the paneling and took down the wallpaper and found the wall underneath was unfinished. But it was late and we were tired so rather than go to the store for primer and add an extra day or two to the project, we just painted over the unfinished wall. It looks so bad. We really need to fix it!

[Jessica]

I would paint my beige brown stairs! I want them to be a deep brown, hide the dirt and look nice.

[Michelle]

I hope not to paint any room in my current house (fingers crossed we will get an offer soon) but I would use it to paint whatever room needs it the most in our new house (fingers crossed again that we will find one that we love.)

Your kitchen looks lovely. Very impressed that you were able to do that on your own.

[karen]

I would paint our office! it's dark chocolate brown now and sooo dark. It needs to be freshened up!

[Ashley M.]

hmmmm I would paint my bedroom. Add a little color to the boring!!!

[Brandi]

Great tips! We desperately need to repaint the trim in my youngest's room.

[Kari]

I'd paint our guest bathroom!

[Lisa]

Easy- we moved into a fixer-upper last year and next on my list is to redo the bathroom. So, I would paint the bathroom.

[Laura Gottlieb]

I'd paint my bedroom. We've been here almost 3 years and it's still white with no curtains.

[Kim]

Probably my grayish purple kitchen. I love it, but if we ever decide to sell, it's what one might consider kooky.

[Kelly D]

I would paint our living room. Thanks!

[Maureen]

The Kitchen.
Get rid of the boarder and the pain that has been there since we moved in.

[Jesabes]

I'd paint our master bedroom - the only room in the house we haven't decorated!

[Katherine]

I'd paint the nursery! Baby boy #3 is due in about 8 weeks and I'd really love to freshen up his room.

[Kerri]

We're wanting to paint our dining room. Thanks!

[A.]

The soon-to-be baby's room, or else the kids' bathroom. (Looks amazing!)

[TraceyCK]

I would paint the entry way - a bright, cheery color since it's the first thing visitors see when they enter.