We were so impressed when we saw these photos. In our opinion, this kitchen is a good example of what can be done with Shaker DIY fronts. We asked the owners if we could interview them so they could share all their experiences around the (making of) the kitchen. Hopefully their story will inspire more kitchens!

When did you first think 'oh, maybe it would be fun to paint our kitchen yourselves'?

We had two wishes for our kitchen. They were this type of fronts and this colour.

For the fronts, we wanted shaker-style oak fronts because we thought it would be a nice combination of classic and modern. For the colour we wanted to use Farrow & Ball paint in the colour Railings. We really like this colour because it looks different in different light: from blue-grey to black. Because the fronts are made of oak, you can see the grain.

We couldn't find a company that offered this combination until we found KOAK Design.

Since KOAK does not work with Farrow & Ball paint and the painting costs were beyond our budget, we thought: why not paint the fronts ourselves? That was possible, as KOAK can deliver the doors 'ready to paint'.

The KOAK fronts on display after arrival

At the paint shop where we bought our paint, 'Verfhandel van Laar', we were reassured that we could indeed do this ourselves. So we decided to just go for it!

How did you experience painting your kitchen yourself?

Painting is quite a nice and relaxing activity. With music or a podcast playing in the background, you've painted a lot of fronts in no time.

It was quite a job in the end because we had a lot of fronts and panels to paint, but it was rewarding. You can see the fronts becoming more and more beautiful as you go along!

How long did you spend doing this?

We worked on it several evenings and Saturdays over a period of two months.

Was it exciting to paint your own kitchen?

We found it quite exciting, but we always thought: if we get to the last layer of paint and it's not nice, we can always have it applied by a professional.

Moreover, we received good help from paint store Van Laar, where we bought our stuff. We were able to email and call them from time to time with questions. This gave us a better idea of how to go about it.

It might be worth mentioning that we had no painting experience before we started.

The process of painting and drying

What kind of paint did you use and where did you get it?

The primer was done with Sudwest All-Grund in black. This because there were also a few parts of MDF.

The paint we used is Farrow & Ball Railings (No. 31) in Modern Eggshell.

What do you think of the end result?

We are very happy with the end result. It turned out better than expected!

Do you have any tips for other people who would like to do the same?

• The most time-consuming part is the preparation and the drying between layers. If you paint several fronts at the same time, you will be finished more quickly.
• The best tip we received from 'Verfhandel van Laar' was: don't think too much and have fun painting. And also: don't work too slowly, so all the paint flows nicely into each other.
• Use good materials and don't skimp on them. Think of brushes, rollers, tape, etc.