I've used various brands and my favorite is Elmer's Wood Putty in the tub. Stuff is very durable. Our cabs are 30+ years old and before I painted I had to fill in a spot on where the oak laminate had worn off from years of water running down the counter at the sink. It was in a spot that came to a point. I built it up with the putty, even shaping the corner/point with it. Leveled as best I could, then sanded flush when dry. You can't even tell that the 'corner' in the wood design is actually putty. Painted it 3 yrs ago, wiping, etc. has not compromised it at all. It's good stuff!

As said, you can order new doors and drawer boxes/faces, to facelift existing cabinet boxes. You can put drawers in a space that used to be shelves/doors, or replace fixed shelves with rollout shelves. You don't actually have to remove the cabinet boxes to do this - though it is always nicer to work on stuff on the garage workbench rather than laying on the floor in the kitchen, especially when you start spraying paint. Removing the typical cabinet is usually easy. Base (lower) cabinets usually sit on the floor, sometimes on a separate base that was placed on the floor, leveled/shimmed, and screwed to the sole plate (the flat 2'' x 4'' that is the base of the wall framing). To attach the cabinet to the wall, there is usually a cleat (long flat wood piece) screwed to the wall studs just below counter level. The back of the cabinet box is screwed into that, usually the screws go through a reinforced portion at the upper edge of the back. Upper cabinets are usually hung from a similar cleat, maybe two. If the cabinet goes to the ceiling, there may be a cleat screwed to the ceiling joists, and screws through the top of the cabinet box into that cleat. Basically you open the doors, remove the drawers, lift out any shelves, look for screws in the back of the cabinet box, and unscrew them. If it is an upper cabinet, have something supporting the cabinet box so it doesn't fall. Don't assume the last screw will hold the cabinet up! When replacing the upper cabinets, build a platform from 2x4 that has the same height that you want as your counter-to-upper-cabinet clearance. Place that platform on the counter. Set the upper cabinet on that. You can then fasten the cabinet to the wall without struggling. If you are going to change out the counter and the existing boxes are nothing special, you might want to price out new cabinets, especially from IKEA. Compare to the labor of fitting new doors and drawers, new hardware and maybe new hinges/slides, and finishing/painting. If you are going to hire someone to do this, reducing the labor charge may be the most important thing. Getting the old cabinet boxes out could also give you the opportunity to do other upgrades like undercabinet lighting, more outlets, and so on. Be careful. Before you know it, you'll be gutting the entire house and digging a swimming pool. It won't be my fault!

Thanks for the advice. In the almost 3 weeks since my post, this has become the least of my concerns. The cabinet had to go back to the shop twice. The GC put a gouge in it, they tried resanding (I knew that wouldn't work); they replaced the scratched side but didn't cover all of the exposed side, so it had to go back again. I'm ready to take a hatchet to it and start over. And that's just the cabinet!! I have 3 rooms full of problems and broken promises. Sorry to vent on you.

From what I learned from a KraftMaid rep years ago, it's applied with same machinery as stain. And even though it technically is not a paint, it's thick enough to be considered a paint (if that makes sense). I can't speak of durability, just that I know that all brands of cabinet's painted finishes can have issues with heavy wear and tear and moisture around a sink or trash pull out. And as with all things, you get what you pay for. A painted finish from Debut will not be as good as Showplace and Showplace will not be as good as Plain & Fancy. Here is another opinion from a previous thread by GreenDesigns: "Opaque catalyzed varnish is what all of the major cabinet companies use. It sprays very well and is very very durable. Paint is what low end finishers use, because they don't have the equipment to deal with a catalyzed varnish and it's tons cheaper. Some high end cabinet companies that offer a "hand finished" look complete with brush strokes also use paint, but it's not the stuff you can buy at any local store. Paint is less durable, but it's part of the appeal of an "authentic" look to some people."