As part of our No Demo Reno DIY kitchen update we needed to find a solution to our dated gray laminate kitchen counters. Replacing them was not in the budget just yet so we opted to try our hand at painting them instead. There are a variety of methods out there and I researched the kits but I ended up using bits and pieces from various blogs, videos and good ol’ fashioned winging it.

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So let’s start by looking at the before…..

It wasn’t horrible but after all of the work we had done to the kitchen already it just didn’t flow. Click here if you want to read about the rest of the kitchen project!

The steps:

1. Wipe down the counters with a degreaser to get any build up removed. I used dawn, warm water and Scotch Brite scouring pad. Then did a final water wipe down.

2. Sand with a medium grit paper. We used 120 grit honestly because it’s what as had on hand but anything with in that range would be fine. I recommend this 3M block with a handle to make your life easier.

3. Wipe everything down again and let dry completely. Note: why wipe down with degreaser before sanding? So that any residue doesn’t gunk up your sandpaper. Don’t forget to tape off any spots you want to protect at this point.

4. Prime - do not skimp on this step. You want a really high quality primer that is made for glossy surfaces. We used Extreme Bond Primer from Sherwin Williams. We ended up needing 3 coats (plus a touch up coat) since we were going from darker gray to white using a high density foam roller. Let dry at least an hour and lightly sand using a fine grit (i.e. 800) in between each coat.

5. Paint - we used SuperPaint Satin from Sherwin Williams in the color Pure White. This also took 3 coats applied with a high density foam roller. Let dry for 4+ hours and lightly sand between coats. And just like the primer if you may end up doing an extra touch up coat here or there.

6. Seal - we used Varathane Water Based Polyurethane in Crystal Clear Satin. Now everything we read said to use a brush instead of a roller at this stage because a roller can cause bubbles that leave the surface rough but we found that the brush was capturing too much dust. Granted we were painting clear on top of white so this is inevitable but it was terribly noticeable. We swapped it out to the trusty high density foam roller and it was fine (we already had a bit of the orange peel texture anyways). This ended up being - you guessed it - 3 coats as well waiting 2 hours between them. We did not sand in between these coats because we found it would cause a texture variance with some smooth and some orange peel areas.

7. Let it cure. We waited 7 days before moving any appliance back on the counters but we were able to touch them within 24 hours so you could do basic things like put a cup down to fill it, wipe down if you accidentally splashed water, etc. We were still delicate with them for an extra week trying not to slide things along the surface or slam cutting boards down, etc.

I also got these silicone mats on Amazon as extra protection for high traffic areas.

Want a full list of the items we used? Click here.

So let’s see the AFTER!

What do you think?!?

A few notes:

We did add Floetrol paint additive to the SuperPaint to help smooth the surface from the orange peel finish. Honestly, we did not notice much of a difference so I would likely skip it next time.

I considered painting marble veining into the counter top but ultimately decided against it for a few reasons. The first was that it really stressed me out thinking about accidentally ruining the surface if I made a mistake. The second was that, while they do photograph well, I personally think they look a bit off in person.

What we have noticed:

The counters are more delicate than laminate which is not surprising. You don’t want to leave standing water on it because it can cause a bit of bubbling. As the bubbles dry out they flatten out again. We are hoping this will stop once fully cured which can take 30 days. I ended up getting silicone mats for high traffic areas which has helped immensely.

We get so many compliments! I thought they would “look” painted in person but they really don’t. While I can’t say they pass for marble or stone on close inspection they certainly don’t look like an arts and crafts project either.

Painting them was a calculated risk on our part. Eventually we plan on replacing the countertop but not right now so this was a solution that saved us thousands while still updating the whole look of the kitchen. If they deteriorate then we will either try something else or decide if it’s time to invest. But until then I’m truly happy with the results!

I will definitely keep you posted on how they hold up as time goes over on Instagram @absolutely.alonda.