With our IKEA boxes installed, next up is painting our DIY kitchen island. We are going to be painting our island using the Graco Magnum X5 paint sprayer. This is the second time using our paint sprayer for a large project. We’ve previously used it painting our kitchen island.
If you are interested, we vlogged our whole painting process on Youtube! The cabinet fronts we are painting are Semihandmade DIY shaker fronts (unfinished) for IKEA boxes. We have more on the products we use in our kitchen renovation here.
Let’s first talk about the type of paints we are using to paint our kitchen cabinets. Using the proper paint and primer is essential for a long-lasting durable paint finish. For primer, we are going to use Benjamin Moore Fresh Start Arcylic-based primer, which only needs water to clean the paint sprayer.
For paint, we are going to use Benjamin Moore Advance paint in satin, which is specifically made for cabinets. This is a waterborne alkyd paint that offers a high-end durable finish for cabinetry and only requires water to clean the paint sprayer.
Then we’re ready to start priming:
- Lay out paint triangles and all fronts
- Prep the room you are spraying in (we used rolls of plastic sheets and tape)
- Dress in the appropriate PPE (we used a paint respirator, protective glasses, and a paint suit)
- Wipe all fronts with tack cloth
- Prep the sprayer (we followed the Graco instructions included)
- Set the spray speed (we typically kept it at the midpoint)
- Start spraying, applying primer first!
If you haven’t used a paint sprayer before and you are spraying in a finished or interior space, a bulk of the time will be spent prepping to spray. For this project, we’re spraying in our garage so we did minimal prep. We masked off the walls and the floors prior to spraying.
A quick tip after spraying, if you lay your fronts flat to dry there should be very minimal drips. If you find any drips after painting, while the paint is still wet, roll drips smooth.
Because we are laying flat to dry, we’re spraying only one side at time. We took the same steps after each coat of primer and paint:
- Let paint dry based on paint dry time (BM Advance is 16 hours between coats)
- Sand with 220 grit sand paper
- Wipe again with tack cloth
We sprayed one coat of primer (on each the front and back) and two coats of paint (on each the front and back). This is a time consuming process, but if you take the time to allow each coat to properly dry and sand in between coats, you should end up with a very professional paint finish.
If you have any questions about painting cabinets using a paint sprayer, feel free to leave a comment or reach out to us!
