If Painting Drab Kitchen Cabinets Sounds Like Too Much Work, Try This Instead

If there’s one thing we know about painting kitchen cabinets, it’s that the process can be a pain in the butt — well worth it, but a pain in the butt nonetheless. Which is why, when we saw this smart idea, we just had to share it with you guys.

Los Angeles resident Kendall Leigh has been living in her charming 1920s Echo Park place for more than four years. A lover of all things vintage and unexpected, she found many things in the place that really suited her aesthetic from the get-go. The kitchen, however, was not one of those things.

To bring a little life into her dated dining space, Kendall took paint to her cabinets. However, instead of spending the time coating them all in one pretty-but-predicable hue, she embraced the quirk and outlined each cabinet (and the pantry door!) in a cool curry yellow. Mixed with the original unique hinge hardware and basic nickel pulls, the look is a playful way to add color. And it didn’t take her a week to pull off, either. Bonus: It might be a great compromise between you and your landlord if you’re a renter!

Kendall didn’t stop at her cabinets, either. She also carried the color through the dining space, coating the interior of passageway frames in the shade and hanging up artwork that also boasted the hue. A mix-and-match dark-wood dining set and ornate vintage candelabra sconces complete what she calls her “eclectic, dark but romantic, colorful, nature-inspired ode to the past” look.

Buy the same paint for your own space: Waverly Inspirations Chalk Acrylic Paint in Curry, $6 for 8 ounces at Walmart

See the whole home: A Gothic-Turned-Grown-Up Style Apartment of Curiosities on Apartment Therapy

Would you ever consider doing a similar paint job in your own kitchen?