How to Paint Kitchen Cabinets With Dragging Techniques

Combine 1/4 cup all purpose cleaner in a bucket with 1 gallon water. Dip a sponge in the mixture and wring it out. Wipe down all the cabinets, removing knobs and pulls as you work. Allow the cabinets to air dry.

Place a drop cloth on your counter tops. Unscrew the cabinet hinges and place the cabinet doors on the drop cloth. Tape off any areas on the cabinets that you don't want to get paint on with painter's tape.

Dip the 3-inch brush in the base color paint and paint all the cabinets with a light layer of base coat. Remove the tape and allow the paint to dry overnight.

Select a color of glaze that is a darker shade than your base coat, but in the same hue. For example, if your cabinets have a light tan or beige base coat, a sienna or chocolate colored glaze will work well with this technique.

Tape off the areas you don't want to get glaze on and dip your paint roller in the glaze. Cover one cabinet or 1 square foot with a layer of glaze. Work in an area small enough to complete before the glaze begins drying.

Hold your dragging brush by the top of the bristles and angle the tip of the bristles toward the top left corner of the cabinet; the bristles should be parallel to the wet coat of glaze. Drag the bristles slowly down to the bottom of the cabinet. At this point, you can drag the brush slowly back up to the starting point if you want to enhance the drag lines you've created.

Wipe off the bristles off with a lint-free cloth. Place your dragging brush directly next to the dragging lines you've already created, overlapping slightly so that your dragging lines match. Drag the brush down to the bottom of the area you've started glazing.

Continue until you've covered the entire cabinet and then repeat with the remaining cabinets. Allow them to dry overnight.