If you have the room to do it yourself, like in the garage, and the time I say do it yourself. I too am comtemplating. You can do say a few at a time rather than the whole room at once. How much would it cost to do yourself? Even if you save a grand and it takes a month, boy that really would be worth it to me.

He will spray, but I am thinking of having him brush it on because the cabinet boxes will have to be brushed (I don't care for the rolled on look as it appears bumpy). I could have him spray the doors and drawer fronts, and brush the boxes, mouldings, etc, but the doors are not full overylay and you may see a noticeable difference in texture if part of it is sprayed and part of it is brushed.
I like the idea of having him do one door for me to approve. He did send over a door sample which was rolled on so I can see how that will look. As I said, I ruled that out due to the bumpy texture the roller left. But there was one thing that concerned me, which is that the paint scratches off easily on the edges. I asked him about that and he said that is because it's just a sample door he only painted it to show the texture. I am afraid to offend him by asking him to do a sample door for me. I think he is already fed up with me because I have rescheduled a start date twice and keep dragging this out for months due to my indecision on paint brand, color, etc.

Does painting by brush not leave brush strokes?

I would ask for a sample door completely done. I dont think he should be offended by that request. At least you are sure of what you are getting, this way there is no misunderstanding.
I had an issue with my stained cabinets one time. We talked about color with the cabinet maker. I asked for a sample door, which I received, looked great, finish was nice and smooth, I approved it. When we received the cabinets, the color matched the sample but the smooth finish did not. When we complained, we were told the sample given to us was only for color not finish, the extra finishing on the sample door would have cost more.

Roseabbey,

Brushing will leave some brush marks, but I will be using a self-leveling paint, which should help some. I'd rather see brush strokes than roller stipple, and again, I don't know how it will look if the painter sprays the doors and drawer fronts but brushes the sides of the cabinets, moldings, rails, and stiles. He said that in addition to having one part (doors and drawers) smooth, and another (cab boxes and sides and moldings) showing brush marks, the actual sheen and appearance will be different. So that is why I chose to have it all brushed. But I could still be swayed.

One the one hand, I know that as far as prep work goes, I would do an excellent job if I diy. But when it comes to painting, especially with such an expensive paint like FPE, I am pretty nervous. I have never painted cabinets or doors before. But then again, when hiring a professional, you run the risk that they will charge a lot and still not do much better than an average homeowner diy'ing it. Please keep the advice coming, I'm so confused!

I actually prefer brush to spray on cabinets. They're painted cabinets, so in my mind they should look painted, kwim?

If you're patient enough, I'd do it myself and put that money toward hard woods.

Personally I think that's an amazing price if you have it.

Just thinking about the time and effort you would save yourself makes it worth it.

My brother was going to charge our aunt $3000 to do her bookcases. She hired someone else. I'll have to ask what DH charges to spray cabinets.

Roseabby - my dad likes to see brush strokes too ("You know they didn't have rollers back in the 1700's so if you want it to look authentic - blah, blah, blah" :O) you have to brush it on. Then they retires and bought an old mining cabin to restore and he was all excited to tell me how he used a roller to paint everything and then went over it while it was still wet w/ a brush to get the strokes.

I guess it depends on the look you want. I have a painted island and hutch, mine was sprayed actually with lacqure (cant spell it), the finish is so smooth, like a piece of furntiure. The paint will not scratch off.
If you dont mind the brush strokes, go for it. I still say that is a really good price.

It is possible to get a smooth finish with a good self leveling paint that shows minimum, if any, brush strokes. I painted a console table and dresser with a Purdy brush and there were no visible brush strokes.

I don't think I'll mind the brush strokes if there are any. I'm just torn between doing it myself to save the money for the floors, or hiring it out to save myself the time and effort (and breathing in all the paint fumes). And I know this will be a lot of work...

I think the one thing that is a red flag for me is that you're worried about asking him for a sample door. For that amount of money I think it is A-okay for you to want to see exactly what you will be getting.

Can he send you over to a previous client's house to see their doors, where presumable the paint won't rub off the edges?

I do all my own interior painting. I have painted my own kitchen cabinets twice. Brush and small foam roller.

I personally don't like the "sprayed on look". I have an old house and brush strokes and imperfections are part of the deal. You may factor that into what I tell you!

Do I do a microscope and laser perfect job? No. But neither has any professional painter I or my mother has hired. And I'm WAY cheaper.

And it didn't take me a month. It took me a weekend. Start to finish.

Latex dries fast and washes with soap and water. If you drip or make a mistake, you can usually wipe or wash it off. Or paint over it.

Things that may affect the time and how well your project goes are how detailed your cabinets are (how many ridges), what they're made of, what condition they're in, how exactly you plan to do them, and what your real expectations are.

My advice? Why don't YOU take a door down and try to do it? (Although I actually didn't take my doors off!) There is plenty of advice on the painting forum.

It is very likely your painter could do a good/better job. But, for me, the difference is not large enough that I'd want to pay almost $2,000 for it. I had so many other places I needed to spend that money.

Painting takes a little -- read that, a LITTLE -- skill. So if you have another project, like a little bathroom or a closet or a room you can practice on, it helps. The biggest trick with trim/cabinets is not to put too much paint on the brush/roller or you get smears/waterfalls/drips. Work the paint in small areas and push it outward.

I can't plumb, I can't do electric, I can't move giant rocks or climb on the roof. But painting -- that I can do.

The kitchen will need painting again in 10 years.

Hardwoods would be forever.

I'm just sayin' ...

Thanks for all of the advice. (And sorry if that got confusing, my big sis (MBEG) was visiting this afternoon and logged onto GW to post something. Didn't realize she was still logged in when I posted, so I posted under her name a couple times--oops). Anyway, I am still undecided, but I am leaning towards diy. My sister is thinking about painting her cabs as well, so we may help each other if we diy. Now to decide whose kitchen will be the "guinea pig", lol.

If you're wanting nicely painted cabinets when it's all said and done, then pay the painter.

I've done lots of DIY, from electrical to copper plumbing but I won't paint cabinets. I've painted interiors, trims and doors and found painting any type of door to be VERY time consuming. When I discovered how meticulous I needed to be to prevent drips I knew then it would take me forever to get a look I'd be happy with on cabinets that I'd be staring at every time I walked into the kitchen.
Your painter will be doing a lot of prep work and from what you've said about him so far, he sounds like a true pro.
The painter I use always asks for my approval after he's done a portion of the first coat. Ask your guy to do the same.

Another option: ask the painter about spraying the frame, but if it's not something you want to deal with then brush everything.

Like leafy, I am concerned that the painter is already acting annoyed. If things go wrong, even slightly, and they do, then how is it going to be to get back on track?

My experience is that I can do just as good a job as most painters. When I see the mistakes the professional painters have made in my home, I steam a bit. When I see my own little mistakes, I either fix 'em or just feel good because I did it myself, saved some money, didn't have to deal with people in my space, etc.

I think the most important thing is to assess whether you are a finisher or not. Do you tend to leave things incomplete? Maybe working with your sister, you can motivate each other to get the job done.

It sounds like you are committed to using FPE and I think that is a wise investment. Why not buy a can of paint, knowing that whoever does the job will eventually put it to use. Experiment and see how it feels to work with the product, how forgiving it is, how it self-levels, etc. You probably need to take this in steps and that seems to be the right next step.

I had 3 different painters paint sample doors for me. All of them were happy to do it, but not all of them did a great job, or even tried to do a great job. That tells you a lot about their work, but definitely not everything. If you hire a painter, be sure they specialize in cabinets. It's very different than walls. I won't go in to all the gory details, but the painter I hired (with great references etc). did a terrible job.

Now I wish I had done them myself - but you do need to be sure you really want to go through all the steps necessary to DIY.

Dh and I painted our kitchen cabinets one winter. We were a broke young couple who hated the dark kitchen, so we bought a warm white, brushes, sandpaper and had a blast.

It was work, especially since we were going from dark to light...silly us, I don't think we primed. We painted the insides of the cabinets as well...so lots of painting and waiting for things to dry.

The funny thing was...it was a winter when we got a LOT of snow. We'd paint and paint, then abandon the project to go play in the snow...then come back in, sand something and paint somemore.

It seemed like it took forever, but I think it probably took less than two weeks. We definitely didn't work on it ever minute of that span!

I'd DIY in a heartbeat. I like my own picky standards and enjoy the process of doing it. Put on some good music or a stack of old movies for background noise and have fun with your paint. Dream of hardwoods.....

You don't say if you have a lot of cabs, but for *that* price you could almost have your cabs re-faced. If you have a lot, it may cost a little more, but you're already willing to spend $1675 on just painting. I would at least get a quote on re-facing.

As for the painting, the most professional job i've seen was done in a paint booth, the type of place you would normally take your car to be re-painted. I painted mine, and used a little tiny sponge roller, so I didn't get that bumpy texture you get with a regular roller. Definitely get a sample done on one of the doors. As for a DIY, only if you want to be tied down to approximately 2 weeks of sanding, washing, priming, painting, and possibly poly. And don't forget clean-up...that's another job in itself! ;o)

I have painted cabinets myself & while I consider myself to be a decent painter - they turned out decent. My current house I had a painter come in and paint my cabs for about the same price as your quote ----So worth it!! He put up plastic in the house & covered the floors & appliances & inside of the cabs. He did all the prep & clean-up. He sprayed everything. He set up a paint booth in my garage & sprayed the doors & drawers. The finish is flawless & soooo smooth. I bang my vacuum cleaner on the bottom of the cabs all the time & no chips at all.
So, no advice on what you should do....just sharing my experience. I would want both, too. Just depends on how quickly you could save the extra money & how much of a perfectionist you are.

Smiles:)

My sister and I painted her cabinets in one weekend and they look fabulous after five years. I followed all the preps that I got on the paint forum. Now my husband and I are tackling our kitchen and we're 71 and 76 and are dying to start. We'll use the brush but spray the doors. It may take a week but so what, we can use the money other ways. We hire a painted when doing vaulted rooms etc. but we do love to paint. If i were you I'd do it. Save your $$$ for another project.

"My experience is that I can do just as good a job as most painters. When I see the mistakes the professional painters have made in my home, I steam a bit. When I see my own little mistakes, I either fix 'em or just feel good because I did it myself, saved some money, didn't have to deal with people in my space, etc."

Geeze, where were you guys on the Paint Forum earlier this week! It got a little rough and I was totally on my own. lol! :)

I agree that many DIYers can paint just as well if not better than an alarmingly huge percentage of "professional" painters. I've seen it. I've handed checks to "professionals" that I felt really didn't deserve them -- either because they behaved like butth*les or just plain couldn't paint with the upscale products that were spec'd. Have to choose those not-gonna-pay-you battles wisely. Usually if the homeowner is satisfied, it's best to let it go and I don't ever throw work their way again.

The contention on the Paint Forum was that it takes years of field experience and skill (working with acrylics in particular). I think, but I'm not sure, their point is DIYers who only use a product once, twice, or three times aren't even in a position to speak to a product let alone be able to figure out how to paint with it as well as a pro painter who has logged many hours with a brush in their hand.

Which in no uncertain terms I think is moronic and I said so --- and then the entire thread deteriorated like it always does and then the posts got deleted.

Hiring a pro has it's advantages but only if you can find the right painter. If you can't find the rightr person to do the job, like others have pointed out, you might be better off just doing it yourself.

If you are by nature a DIY kind of person who has patience and likes to tackle projects and get them done timely - I'd consider doing it myself.

If you're not handy or used to doing home improvement projects, then I'd pay the painter. Schedule a start date, and ask for a sample door at the same time. That way he'll know his efforts are going to be rewarded with a job that is going to start on x date. Tell him you want the door sanded, primed and painted like he'll do in your kitchen.

Think of this as your contribution to keeping our economy going!

I like the suggestion to buy a can of paint and try it yourself before you commit.

Years ago, when my kids were really small, we hired a painter to repaint our kitchen; he came highly recommended. Since then, I have repainted the kitchen myself. The dark color on the walls now illuminates every goof from that light color paint he put on. I am currently working on retouching my trim work to correct his job.

I think often that because it is our home, that we tend to be more careful with the final results. Paying someone gets the work done without your own effort, but there are trade-offs as well. The professional that truly treats each and every job as one done to his own home are hard to find but they do exist. Make sure your guy is one of them before givng him the job.

When I renovated in 2005, using "The Best" people in my small city, the GC told me that, "no one cares about your home as much as you do." He didn't really mean it that way, but I never forgot it. It was his painting crew that propelled me up the learning curve of DIY house painting!

I know its kinda late but I hope it helps for future people as reference

10-15 cabinets 980$,

15-25 1300$

25-40 2400$, however,if the cabinets are long format like a 42" we basically just add 15$ more per cabinets. gray cabinets in picture cost : 1580 with new hardware.

Thank you ALL so very much!!!!! This was extremely helpful I put and I am reading Through each carefully.