Painted kitchen counter tops

Steve's home has been a bachelor pad for 13 years.  Right after he moved in he got into a car accident that required months of rehab. Not too many weeks after feeling better from the accident he started getting sick from a failing liver and kidney.  He was fortunate and received a liver and kidney transplant, but his recovery was slow.  Needless to say,  he didn't get a whole lot done to make his house his style.  His health has been his focus and his house has just sort of evolved around him.  It is an incredibly comfortable place, but I know he wants more of his personal style in it.

His kitchen still has flowered wallpaper,  the countertop is a green speckled laminate and there is so little counter and cabinet space that we have started using one of the bedrooms as a pantry.  We now call it The Food Room.

I think it is fairly common for a woman to come into a man's space and want to change it.  I know I've done it before!  I've been with Steve for over a year now, friends for nearly 7 years and I haven't bugged him at all about his decorating. However, after hearing him talk about the damaged spot on his kitchen counter again, I thought I would mention what my Mom did to her counter years ago.  She just got out a can of Rustoleum Enamel in black and painted out her bright blue laminate.  It made such a difference!   It also made it possible to put off a full renovation for a dozen years or more.

I suggested this to Steve and he said to go for it!

So go for it we did.

A leaky container of Lime-Away destroyed this section of the counter.

I took everything off the counter of course and took before shots, then I went through the process of prepping the surface for cleaning.   I first washed with hot soapy water, then went over every square inch with a super Magic Eraser and then washed/rinsed the counter with vinegar and water.  I let that all dry real well and then wiped the whole thing down with a cloth soaked with rubbing alcohol to get off anything that could possibly be leftover.  It may have been overkill, but I wanted it to be clean and grease free.

When that dried, I taped off the sink with blue tape.  We will be removing the wallpaper next so there was no need to tape that off.  Whew!  I blue taped some stove parts and a line or two on the fridge.  It took only a few minutes with so little counter top.

I purchased a quart of Rustoleum Enamel in black, a small foam roller that was prepackaged with its own tray, a refill foam roller for coat #2, and a small 1\4" nylon craft brush.  To save cleaning time, I covered the paint tray with aluminum foil.

I used the small brush to paint the tops of the backsplash and to cut in all of the corners where the backsplash meets the counter.  Then I rolled out the paint with the roller.  I made sure I got quite a bit of paint on the counter since it really seemed to level out and become nice and flat.  The final pass with the roller should all be in one direction, giving a seamless look.  I managed to ignore this step on one of our sections and it looks a little uneven.

This is what the damaged spot looks like now.  I didn't sand and try to get it smooth because I didn't think it would actually smooth out since it was the fiber board and not laminate.  It's just so much better now that it's painted. Water no longer is absorbed in that area.  

Did I mention you need ventilation?

This is oil based stuff and it smells to high heaven.  Try not to breathe it in any more than you have to.  If you can prop a window or door open and get a cross breeze going, you're going to much happier for the next couple days.

The second coat can be applied after 24 hours.  I wish I could put on a third coat on the counter area that looks uneven, but honestly, unless you know it's there, no one is going to notice.

I should mention that Steve helped with every step of this makeover.  He cleaned, put away and painted.  I didn't do it all myself, even though that's the way I wrote it!

We have let the counter cure for 3 days now.  Probably longer than most people would, but it's given us time to eat out!

So, all in all, this was an incredibly easy project.  The fume factor is the hardest part and lingers for several days.  However, I would do this again without hesitation!

We aren't done with Steve's kitchen.  The wallpaper is going next, painting the walls after that and who knows what else.  I'm hoping to use chalk paint and paint the cabinets.  All this is just pennies compared to the gut job it really needs! But I do think he is really going to love the new look for many years until he wins the lottery or something.

If you have any questions about painting your laminate,  just ask!

Have a great day!
Kristin