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Things you should know if you decide to Paint your Countertops.

January 10, 2012

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When we first moved into our home, our kitchen looked like this:
We weren’t ready to remodel the kitchen yet (we are strong believers in living in a place and getting to know your home for some time before making any major changes), but we definitely wanted to make a few cheap and quick fixes.  So I painted the cabinets, which really improved things but the countertops were definitely a big, PINK elephant in the room.  Not wanting to spend a lot of money, I painted them (with Rustoleum’s $20 countertop paint called Putty) in August.  Some people had trouble finding it, here’s what the box looks like.  
I got it at Home Depot, but looks like they even sell it on Amazon
I have had hundreds of emails asking me about the counters.  Are they still holding up?  How do they look now?  Would I do it again?  Would I recommend it?  And a lot more specific pictures asking my opinion.  You guys have so much faith in me.  So, here’s a little update about the ol’ countertops.
The countertops are still holding up just fine.  Meaning, they work and we’re still happy.  However, they definitely have some dings and scratches in them.  From a distance, things look dandy:

But, if you were to come closer, you would see the pink countertop showing through in some small areas that are scratched:

And here are a few more examples to show you what you may see on yours:

Am I upset about this?  H-no.  The paint cost me $20!  Really, I still have more than half of the quart left and if it was really bothering me, I could just repaint the countertops.  But, in reality, we never meant for these painted countertops to be a permanent fix for our previous pink ones.  The plan was always to replace the countertops (and the whole kitchen) in a year or so.

Would I still recommend painting your countertops?  To everyone that has sent me pictures of your robin’s egg blue counters, or mustard, or pink–and you hate them–Yes, yes and yes.  If you really don’t like the color of your countertops and can’t afford to replace them right now–why not take an hour and change the color?  But, and this is a big but, don’t expect painted countertops to be your forever-countertop.  Look at it as a means to an end.  An opportunity to still aesthetically enjoy your space while you save up for a replacement.

That’s my round-up on how-things-look-five-months-later.  We are currently picking out new countertops for our NEW kitchen plans.  And you better believe they aren’t going to be pink or painted.  That’s about as much as we know right now.

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What do you think?

  1. KELLI says:

    I’M PAINTING 13 TABLE TOPS IN MY DAUGHTER’S CLASSROOM. I WILL LET YOU KNOW HOW IT TURNS OUT,. THANKS FOR THE ADVICE.

  2. Anonymous says:

    I bought the counter paint before thanks giving after living with purple counters for 10 years , our children are all older now time to do a house make over ,I knew painting the counters are a temp fix but i was glade to read your coments I did black over purple with white cabinets i love the way it looks , I would recomend this to every one for a temp fix !!!!

  3. Sixpakc says:

    I’m painting our bathroom countertop tonight-wish me luck! It’s not a huge area and doesn’t get much use (guest bathroom), so I have faith that this will be the good enough fix. Thanks for this follow-up post!

  4. Diana @ Boy + Girl says:

    Thanks so much for the follow-up. I’m considering paint as a temporary fix for our countertops and it’s nice to see what to expect wear wise down the road.
    -Diana

  5. Sounds fun! We got ours at Ikea. Good luck!

  6. decor4poor.blogspot.com says:

    Hey Julia – I was wondering where you got the shelves in your kitchen? We are in the midst of a kitchen makeover, and we are doing shelves instead of cabinets. Where did you get yours? Love that style of them.

  7. Linda_mcdonnal says:

    I really appreciate your candor about this. I read too many blogs where everything is absolutely perfect and no mistakes or challenges ever acknowledged. It just doesn’t ring true…

  8. meaganbriggs3 says:

    I am so happy you did this fix for your counters. It made a HUGE change. And it definitely helps stretch your budget when you can be happy in a space and not just cringe everytime you go in there. Lets be honest, everyone spends a LOT of time in their kitchen. It needs to be a space that everyone loves. I can’t wait to see further NEW kitchen developments!! WOOOOOOOOOOO!

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