How Can I Make My Own Contact-Covered Kitchen Cabinets Look Better?

How Can I Make My Own Contact-Covered Kitchen Cabinets Look Better?

Catch paper, a vinyl-like covering having an adhesive backing, is available in a range of colors and prints and offers a fast way to spruce up tired cabinets. But because of the newspaper’s temporary nature, it tends to look dingy and worn rather quickly. A few tweaks and updates can provide new life to contact newspaper, which makes the cupboards look nicer, the kitchen more modern as well as enhancing the performance of the space. Start by taking good care of any harm to the contact paper and then add trim, upgrading your hardware or even re-configuring your cupboards. For a true mini-makeover, undertake all three jobs.

Make Minor Repairs

Fix peeling or lifting contact paper borders by sliding a part of double-sided mounting tape between the paper and the cabinet. Press it to the backside of the newspaper and firmly press the now-sticky touch newspaper back in put on the cabinet. Eliminate bubbles in the contact paper by poking the side of each raised area with a sewing needle and then smoothing everything out with the edge of an old credit card. Poking the side, rather than the center, makes it easier to push out trapped air without creating a crease. When the surface is level again, give it a fantastic cleaning with an all-purpose spray cleanser and soft sponge. Avoid using extra water, moisture and oil-based products, because they may dissolve the contact paper’s glue.

Insert Wood Trim

Minimize the cupboard’s flat, plastic-like appearance by adding architectural fascination with wood boards and also the exact same contact newspaper now covering your cupboards. Cut the boards, mitering the finishes, to make a border around each cabinet door. Cover each board with contact paper, wrapping it around the borders and verifying that the pattern appears cohesive with the doors once the trim is in place. Install the do-it-yourself plank trim with a construction adhesive. This won’t work with all contact paper patterns, but you can use prefinished boards that coordinate with the contact paper on the cupboards. Left uncovered, the trim produces a picture-frame appearance that sets off the contact paper’s design.

Change the Hardware

With the endless possibilities of handles and pulls, replacing cabinet hardware is among the easiest ways to generate your contact-papered cabinets look prettier. Check craft sites and specialty shops for antique finds or keep things simple and install modern pulls or knobs to make cabinets look newer. In case you’ve got a crafty streak, use clear epoxy to stick shells, aged flatware, pieces of driftwood or similar items to pull or knob foundations, available at craft and hardware stores, before installing them around you cupboards.

Ample Things Up

Sometimes a visual break in the line of contact-papered cupboards is all that is necessary to freshen up your kitchen. Remove the doors into a few of the top cabinets to integrate open shelving into your space. The cupboards where you shop dishes or glassware are ideal for this — as long as you keep the closet’s contents clean. If open shelving doesn’t work for you, or you’ve got an unused cabinet, remove the doors and the shelves to make an integrated family center or wine stand.

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