To the DIY geniuses out there

[user 26]

i am trying to paint all the cabinets and drawers in my sisters kitchen ... and i'm admittedly getting hot (!) tired and a bit fed up. i'm half way done and she dropped a bomb on me that her daughter with toddler and infant are coming in 10 days and could i please be done by then.
well ... it lights a fire under my butt with a deadline since i've been taking my time and actually took a break from the painting for a bit since it was just something i'm doing as i can fit into my schedule. not to mention the 85 degree kitchen with fans running .... i'm not feeling very gracious at the moment (i suppose this will pass).
i am probably irritating them with the slow pace and how the kitchen is so half done now.
so here's the problem. i can't get some of the hardware OFF the dang drawers. it is antique colonial hardware and some of it will not budge. it looks like this
one got broken in the attempt as someone insisted HE could get it off and what was my problem? ... swell. i tried the directions from some folks at the hardware store. but some are not coming off. plus i'm just losing my patience.
so ... i am thinking maybe i can put a protective tape and plastic wrap or something ... some kind of sleeve over it and paint. then go back and touch up with a little thin paintbrush.
has anyone done this?

 

[user 26]

i am thinking i can cover them by twisting masking tape on tight ...

 

[gillumhouse]

Are you using a roller or a brush to paint the cabinets? If roller, the masking tape should work. If brush, why not use the little paint brush (like a kids watercolor set brush) to paint around the pulls first, working outward to where you feel comfortable with the larger brush.
As the late Bob Collins, a WGN radio personality always said - no good deed goes unpunished. Here is a BIG HUG ((((((( )))))))) in hope it helps. I wonder if your sister is also having to deal with the prospect of the impending arrival and you just happened to be there as the "dog to kick that will bite the cat...." It hurts, no matter what.

 

[user 26]

my sister just had a second knee replacement and came home from rehab, and promptly hurt herself so is now in a wheelchair. it's a bit of a messy muddle
i am using paintbrushes (all sizes) and i am going to wrap the handles with tape and yes! paint very carefully with a little brush like you get in with watercolors for kids (or used to!)

 

[Madeleine]

i am thinking i can cover them by twisting masking tape on tight ....

i am thinking i can cover them by twisting masking tape on tight ...

Generally you can use masking tape because then you don't end up with a lot of little brush marks around the hardware. I usually paint with a smaller brush around the hardware, long strokes and have a damp cloth the get the mistakes off right away. Without A/C you are a saint. (Of course that would make you St Luke being as you're painting...)

 

[swirt]

Is it that the hardware won't come off because you can't get the fasteners our (screws or wrought nails)? Or is it that they are so stuck to the old paint that they won't come off?
If it is the former, drilling the old fasteners out may not be a bad option...but then you have to come up with an alternative fastener in order to put them back on.
If it is the latter, a heat gun would likely do the trick to soften the old finish so you could pop the hardware off.

 

[user 26]

I am too x#%! To be a saint. I guess I was looking for permission to take the lazy way around.the old screws are stripped and tiny.sister is fine with this lazy approach .... So ...

 

[Arks]

Use the blue painter's tape rather than masking tape. It's easier to remove. I've seen cases where masking tape was hard to remove, and left adhesive behind, especially if you wait a few days before removing it. The painters tape uses an adhesive more like Post-It Notes. Strong enought to work but easy to remove.

 

[user 26]

dabbing around the hardware flush with the cabinets just looks so messy compared to smoooth brushing across the surface.
this morning early i had another go at it.
was able to borrow a cordless drill with an adapter and really tiny screwdriver bit ... some of those old screws ... well i don't know where they came from or if they were just badly damaged.
wd40 and then some more hand screwdriver action and a tiny pry bar kind of thing. then more wd40 and finally all were removed with the drill or the hand screwdriver and little pry bar that i think is a sewing machine tool. so, 4 fatalities ... two handles (and numerous screws that were stripped) one small section of cupboard door that sheered off and one thumbnail. but those cupboards are getting painted!
not bad!
i got some of the blue painters tape for sensitive surfaces. it's a bear trying to paint around the black gasket around the built in dishwasher. (a home job)