Kitchen Update | Painting The Cabinets And Peel-And-Stick Backsplash

I’m so excited to have transformed our rented kitchen into a space that I love. We have lived here for over 3 years and I have hated every inch of this space (but let’s keep it positive). Since we moved in, I always wanted to paint the cabinets white but since it was rented, I was always afraid that if I messed up, the owner may get upset. Honestly, after painting the entire house by myself a couple of times, I convinced myself to do it (if you saw my Instagram stories, I hesitated a bit lol).

I shared about the countertops HERE so I will skip that part and go straight into painting the kitchen cabinets and peel and stick backsplash.

Cabinets

I used THIS kitchen cabinet paint from Home Depot. I didn’t use a primer or sanded down the cabinets but I did use THIS cleaner and de-glosser. It’s suppose to help the paint attach to the cabinets too. After cleaning the cabinets, I used painter’s tape to protect the walls and appliances. I removed the handles since I was switching them out but left the hinges and painted over them. oh and here is what I learned…when you’re painting with the doors on, don’t close the doors until the paint dries or it will peel the paint off the hinges when you open and close the doors (I made that mistake). I did a last coat with all the doors closed to make sure it looked even.

I started painting from one side of the room, alternating section of the cabinets since I didn’t remove the doors. This paint is suppose to dry to the touch within 20 minutes so that gave me enough time to do a first coat. I had to leave the doors open so they would dry faster. You also don’t want your doors to close and the paint to stick to the cabinets/ doors behind each other. (It really was a fast process because once I finished the first round it was time for the next.) I used a Brush to paint the corners and edges along with any places that the roller didn’t fit. Then, I went over it with the roller where I could. The roller is key! It’s what makes the paint look smooth on the cabinets. The paint brush leaves a lot of streaks. I gave the cabinets 3-4 coats. The first coat was the scariest because the wood just sucked the paint in and I thought maybe I made a mistake by not using a primer. Honestly, if the cabinets were a different wood, I probably would have. After the second coat, the paint covered most of the old cabinet color. I knew at this point it would work! Pheww! After doing all the coats, you can leave it as is or you can put a coat of kitchen cabinet sealer ( I don’t have one to recommend). From my research, I’ve seen some people do it and other didn’t.

I painted the entire kitchen by myself. I started out prepping it around 9 am and finished cleaning up at around 9 pm. The next morning it took my like 20 minutes to touch up a few spots and I also moved the stove to get into the corner of the bottom cabinets.

Peel and Stick Counter Tops

The peel and stick countertops are my favorite! After painting the cabinets and putting the countertops on, the old tile looked terrible even with the other things updated. It was so easy to align and apply to the wall. Even when I made a mistake, I just pulled it off and re-applied it without a problem. I started with the first strip on top right below the cabinets (guiding myself with the straight line of the cabinets) and went across the counter. Then, I started with the lower section since I had to cut them all to size. I used my husbands paper cutter and sharp scissors to cut the peel and stick backsplash.

It comes with a plastic film in the front to help smooth out the backsplash. Don’t peel it off until it’s fully in position as the plastic film helps you press it down in place. I don’t recommend placing the backsplash and then trimming it as the blade creates rough edges. I was happier when I cut the tile to size and then placed it on.

You can see a Reels of how I placed it on HERE.

Other small changes:

We switched out the ugly ceiling light (picture an old boob light) for a brass cieling light fixture and we also switched out the pulls for brass pulls.

Kitchen Before:

Kitchen After:

You can see the ceiling light fixture below.

I didn’t buy any new decor, I already had everything and just moved things around to give it a fresh look! I’m also brainstorming on what to do with the floor. I may add a peel and stick floor or paint and stencil it. I was thinking of replacing it but that may seem a bit pricey even if I use another vinyl floor.

Click on a picture below to shop the materials I used for the update.

Click on the picture below to shop the kitchen decor. If I didn’t link it, it’s because it’s no longer available online or was an in-store find like Home Goods.

I hope our kitchen update gives you inspiration to try to make any space in your home “yours”. It doesn’t matter if we rent or own our home, it’s our home for a year, 5 years or 30 years. Making small changes really seems like a waste of money sometimes but living in a space we love, really affects our mood and happiness. To me, it’s all worth it!

Tag me on Instagram if you try any of these updates or others! Would love to share them in stories!

Thanks so much for reading and being here!