The DIY Kitchen Project I Wish I Never Did in 2024 (Learn From My Mistake!)
When you’re a newlywed and first-time homeowner, you tend to get a little too anxious to renovate your home — especially if your kitchen has outdated features like vintage green countertops. And when you’re a newbie to home remodeling (like I was) and are operating on a tight budget, the contractor’s $4,000 invoice for brand-new countertops is going to push you in the DIY direction. After all, this route saves money and looks effortless (at least, on TV). What could possibly go wrong?
After purchasing a DIY granite countertop paint kit from Amazon and blocking off an entire Saturday last summer for the project, I was ready to go. My outdated green countertops were about to transform into beautiful granite for a fraction of the cost! Little did I know the final outcome was not going to be what I had expected.
A Hard Day’s Work That Didn’t Pay Off
Painting the countertops took a lot of work. Literally, I was in the kitchen the whole entire day since I had to sand, paint a base coat, and let it dry completely, then speckle on the granite pattern by hand. I started somewhere in the morning and didn’t finish until the evening, and after all that painstaking labor that really took a toll on my back, I was left with a huge disappointment.
Two things happened when I tried to tackle my countertops alone: 1) The pattern wasn’t cohesive at all, and it was totally noticeable; and 2) After a few months, the paint started chipping. I could overlook the lack of cohesion in the pattern, but what I couldn’t overlook were the giant chips of paint that revealed the old green pattern underneath. (Unfortunately, no, I don’t have before or after photos — but consider that a blessing.)
Then, I Realized What the Missing Ingredient Was
After hours of mourning my hard work on the countertops, I came to realize I was missing one crucial ingredient: epoxy. An epoxy coating would have protected the paint on the countertops from peeling as bad as it did just from daily use. But ultimately, if I had it to do all over again, I would have saved up to fork out the expense of a professional installation of the real deal.
I’m all for budget-friendly upgrades and renovations, but there are some areas of the home that should be left to the pros — like, in my opinion, kitchen countertops. Professional installation would have been much better in the long run since the countertops would have looked nice and wouldn’t have cost me all that stress and hard work. Sometimes it’s worth it to pay top dollar for something that’s going to really make you happy (and save you a whole lot of hassle!).
What’s the worst DIY project you’ve done in your home? Let us know in the comments below!
Further Reading
We Asked 3 Chefs to Name the Best Ice Cream, and They All Said the Same Thing
The “Beautiful” $3 Flower Tumblers at Walmart People Are Buying 2 at a Time
The One Cookware Brand That Gordon Ramsay Can’t Stop Talking About
