How to Use a Sponge Roller to Paint Kitchen Cabinets

Sand the kitchen cabinet surfaces with 220-grit sandpaper. Sandpaper roughs up the slick finish for better paint adhesion. Without sanding, your sponge roller will only provide streaky, uneven coverage.

Wipe down the kitchen cabinets. Use soap and water for a new cabinet surface. If the surface is older, use a trisodium phosphate (TSP) cleaning product for dirt and grime removal.

Remove cabinetry hardware using a screwdriver or other tools as needed.

Protect walls and trim using painter's tape.

Apply a coat of general purpose primer to the kitchen cabinetry surface using a paintbrush and medium-nap roller. Sponge painting involves several layers of paint, and a coat of primer gives these layers better adhesion for lasting coverage. Wait for the primer to dry.

Paint the cabinet surfaces with an oil-based interior paint, a medium-nap roller and a regular paintbrush. When sponge painting, the first layer of paint is always applied with a traditional roller. This provides a colorful, even base coat. Wait for this coat of paint to dry.

Apply a lighter or darker oil-based paint to the surface, using a sponge roller for main surfaces and a sponge brush for corners. When sponge-rolling, you need to use a slightly different shade of color for each layer, or else you won't achieve the desired, mottled finish. When rolling, only make one pass over each area, providing 50-percent overlap with your previous roller mark. Press just hard enough to apply paint. Sponges are designed to provide very light coverage. Applying the paint with too much force will bleed large quantities of paint out of the sponge, resulting in unwanted dripping.

Roll additional coats of paint onto the cabinets after the first sponge layer dries. Use a slightly lighter or darker shade for each layer to create a more pronounced sponging effect. You can apply one sponge layer or as many as you want for the desired look. The more layers of color you add, the more visibly speckled and worn-looking the surface will be. Wait for the final layer to dry before removing the painter's tape and reattaching the hardware.