This fabulous hand painted kitchen project was undertaken for a lovely couple living in the picturesque town of Skipton in the Yorkshire Dales. The Yorkshire Dales is one of my favourite places to go walking and compared to battling through the normal commuter traffic the journey to work was a joy! Aside from the commute and the lovely location this was one of those projects that was just an utter pleasure to do, not least because the clients really appreciated all that went into me achieving the level of finish I did. After completion they were kind enough to email me this lovely testimonial –

‘Just a few words of thanks for the refurbished kitchen. We really have appreciated the quality of the finish you achieved with our tired units. During our consultation we were pleased at the time taken and your attention to detail. The colour advise turned out to be the perfect choice for our job. We had a lengthy wait for you to get started. With such a long waiting list we figured it had to be worth it. This proved to be well founded as we are delighted with the final outcome. From the consultation, preparation (2 weeks of sanding and priming) and finally topcoats we knew it was the correct choice. Thanks so much for the transformation. The kitchen is like brand new…if not better!!!!!’

The kitchen itself was oak, bespoke and very well made. The only problem with it was that the oak had turned a bit orange and the dark wood was making the room feel dark and a dated. Rather than ripping it out and spending tens of thousands replacing it for a ‘like for like’ kitchen the clients had decided that a quality hand painted finish was by far the best solution. They had done their research and knew a thing or two about what was involved in properly painting a kitchen and, having found ‘Traditional Painter’ online and seeing the quality of finish we all pride ourselves on, contacted me by phone.

During the consultation I explained the processes and specialist products I use and how smooth and durable the finish is. We also looked at colours which proved to be quite tricky due to the very specific colour of the range and the changing natural and artificial light in the room. As things developed the clients decided they also wanted me to paint the walls, the skirting’s, the radiator, the main door and the pantry door so that the whole kitchen got a complete make-over.

As with any hand painted kitchen project there are a lot of stages involved, each one as important as the last. The first stage is to thoroughly clean and degrease everything so that the paint adheres properly. This stage is often rushed or seen as relatively unimportant by many, but is in fact vital. Miss a bit of grease or dirt and the primers won’t adhere to it and in time it will chip off – something i have seen all too frequently when doing kitchen repaints.

Once cleaned it’s time to mask everything off, thoroughly sand every square inch and then apply the primer. As you can see from these pictures I removed the doors to make sanding and painting them easier. A few years ago I invested in the amusingly named Erecta rack. Though far from cheap its highly versatile and by far and away the best on the market. I use it for nearly every project and it’s never let me down.

Once cleaned, masked and sanded it’s painting time! I used a shellac based primer for my first cost which had stain sealing properties and stops any potential ‘tannin’ issues from the oak. Once this first primer is applied it’s time for the filling stage, which is followed by another really good sand (to ensure the base is absolutely smooth) and then the caulking stage. I then applied a second coat of another high adhesion primer which I had tinted to the same colour as the top coats.

With the preparation done it was onto the top coats. I applied 2-3 coats of my specialist thixotropic eggshell paint, de-nibbing between each coat so as to ensure maximum adhesion and a perfectly smooth finish. I completed the shell first and then moved onto painting the walls, skirting’s, radiator and the main and pantry doors (shown in the picture below). I then applied the final coat to the doors after I had re-hung them. This ensured that the finish on the doors and drawers was perfectly even when in situe.

The colours scheme chosen worked absolutely perfectly – brightening and modernising the room and matching the range perfectly. For the main units an equivalent to Farrow & Ball’s ‘Savage Ground‘ was used, with the glass fronted alcoves and wine rack being painted in a much deeper colour based on F&B’s ‘Light Grey‘. The walls, skirting’s, radiator and other doors were all painted in a complimentary green colour akin to F&B’s ‘Bone’. Each colour was accurately tinted to the equivalent by Holmans Paints.

Transformation complete! Happy clients and happy painting days 🙂

Lee works as a kitchen cabinet painter throughout the Yorkshire Dales, and is within easy reach for projects in Skipton, Addingham, Bolton Abbey, Greenhow, Pateley Bridge, Glasshouses, Ilkley, Harrogate, and all the surrounding areas.