Bathroom cabinet transformation

A few weeks ago, I shared the details surrounding my (almost) finished thrifty master bathroom makeover. Today I am happy to report that I am done with the room for real (i.e. I finished the “almost” part).

Every once in a while – OK, a lot – I find myself entrenched in a DIY project that seemingly drags on forever. Have you ever noticed that the longer a project takes to finish, the less motivation you have to complete it?

So the master bathroom has been one of those projects. But, hallelujah! I’m finally done with the last part, the bathroom cabinet transformation.

Here is what the cabinets looked like before:

And if you want to go way back … the before before of the bathroom:

So my goal was to paint the cabinets in a creamy white to help give the whole room a light and airy, coastal feel.

Painting over finished cabinetry requires some good preparation and products, so for this project, I used the Rust-Oleum® Cabinet Transformations™Light Kit. I started with the Pure White color but it turned out a little too bright for the room. I have fixtures and accessories in varying shades of cream and the cabinets needed to blend well with them. I tried adding the glaze, but that made them look vintage, whereas I was going for more of a “new, off-the-showroom-floor” look. So I ended up using the Linen color (without the glaze) instead, which turned out perfectly.

I started the project by removing all the cabinet hardware, drawers and drawer fronts before I went to work.

Step 1: Clean and degloss the surface of the cabinetry.

This step is very important as it thoroughly preps the wood to accept the bond coat.

I applied the deglosser using a heavy-duty scrub pad provided in the kit; wiped the surfaces down with a damp cloth; and dried them with a dry, lint-free cloth. Then I let everything dry for at least an hour before I started painting.

Step 2: Apply bond coat.

I painted the cabinet frame first. Since I was brush-painting everything (I still don’t have a sprayer yet), patience was especially key. I applied a total of three, thin coats of the bonding paint to avoid drips and paint overload. This photo was taken after the first coat:

If you’re brush-painting cabinetry, it is crucial to follow a particular pattern with your brush strokes in order to get a professional-looking finish. The instructions in the Rust-Oleum® product pamphlet explain this in more detail.

For example, with regard to the cabinet frame, I used horizontal brush strokes for the rails, and vertical brush strokes for the stiles and frame sides.

I used the same method for the cabinet doors.

Rust-Oleum® recommends painting the cabinet frames first, then the cabinet doors and drawers, beginning with the backs of the doors. It is also recommended that you use a prop to elevate the doors off the worktable. Or you could position the door you’re painting so that it hangs off the edge of your table and rotate each side as you paint. Just sayin’. 😉

Step 3: Apply protective topcoat, rehang doors and add hardware.

After applying three coats of paint and a protective topcoat – and letting everything dry really well, I was ready to add new hardware and call the cabinets done. Here’s what they look like now:

I’m really happy with the finish and the new hardware. It looks like we have new cabinets now!

What do you think of the transformation?

Special thanks to Rust-Oleum® for providing, at my request, the products needed to complete this project.