Painting melamine kitchen doors?

[Swiddle]

We have kitchen doors which are mock wood, with possibly a melamine finish. They were brand new, put in by the previous owners, when we bought the house 8 years ago. I've always hated them, and now they look shabby as well as ugly.
We can't justify replacing the kitchen, but I am wondering if it would look good to paint them white. They are shaker style, which I like, but I am not sure if painted melamine will give me quite the shaker / John-Lewis-of-Hungerford look that I crave.
What do you think?
Would it still look cheap and nasty after I've painted them?
And after I've done the melamine primer thing, could I do a muted matt white paint on top (or will it look forever plasticky)??

Interested in any ideas too?

You can buy special paint for going over melamine. I think it's meant to last better. We had an absolutely awful kitchen when we moved in to our current house and I painted them black to hide the awfulness. They look better but to be honest not, erm, perfect.

One thing I would say is, whichever paint you opt for, DO NOT attempt to paint the doors in situ. This will result in paint running down the doors (can you hear the voice of bitter experience here??!!) and great big ugly drip marks. I think it would be better to take doors off, paint, and rehang. If you're using the original holes, screws and hinges it should be fine.

There are companies that do kitchen makeovers, maybe they could help?

Or, could you get new cabinet doors only? That is somewhat cheaper than getting a new kitchen.

I'd go for cabinet doors. I am a bit sceptical about the staying power of makeover paint, though I have to confess that I have never done it myself. If you can find out who fitted the kitchen they will probably be able to supply with the right sized doors.

You can get the doors replaced and keep the rest of the kitchen.

If you what to paint you should remove the doors ( don't forget to number them so you know where to put them back) wash down with sugar soap, give a light sand to give a key(a good surface for paint to stick to) use either a special laminate primer or BIN primer (BIN is the name of it, red and white tin).

Make sure you do not put it on too thickly 2 thin coats better than one tick coat. Make sure it is completely dry between coats.

If you are really fussy about colour then use the same company/brand primer/undercoat (eg if using F&B) as well as top coat it will be more hardwearing. 2 coats undercoat 2 top coats

Top coat should be eggshell either water based or oil based.

If using water based eggshell do not overwork the paint or put on thickly or you will get brush strokes, also use a good synthetic brush, water based dries quite quickly, that is why you must not overwork.

If you are using oil based eggshell, use a good natural brush, you can work over the paint to get a good finish, but make sure you leave the correct time to dry between coats.

It is a long drawn out process but if you do it well you will get several more years out of your kitchen.