The difference you can see
A brush or roller leaves a texture: fine lines, stipple and slight build-up at the edges. On a traditional, in-frame or deliberately rustic kitchen that can look fine. On flat slab doors, shaker panels and anything you’ll see in raking light from a window, it shows. A sprayed coat goes on as a fine, even film with no tool marks, so the doors look professionally finished rather than painted by hand.
Durability
Both methods last only as long as the preparation underneath. Grease, shine and dust will defeat any paint, however it’s applied. Spraying does have an advantage in consistency: it lays an even film thickness across the whole door, including the edges and the inside corners of shaker panels, where brushed paint tends to be thin or heavy.
Time and disruption
Spraying needs more setting up. Everything that isn’t being painted is masked and protected, and the spraying happens in a temporary booth in your home or, if there isn’t room, at my workshop in Necton. Once that’s done, the coats go on quickly and evenly. A typical kitchen takes about a week from doors-off to handover either way, because preparation and drying time dominate.
Side by side
| Spraying | Hand-painting | |
|---|---|---|
| Finish | Smooth, no tool marks | Some brush or roller texture |
| Best for | Slab, shaker, modern and painted kitchens | Rustic or traditional looks, small touch-ups |
| Coverage in corners | Even | Can be thin or heavy |
| Setting up | Masking and a booth or workshop | Minimal |
| Prep needed | Thorough | Equally thorough |
Where hand-painting still has a place
Touching up a chip, painting a single small unit, or a deliberately hand-finished look. For a whole kitchen where you want it to look new, spraying is the better result.