I wish we could see the green laminate. I'd suggest living with it for a while. You might grow to love it.

I have '70s wood paneling in my living room, and at first thought I would definitely paint it, but after living with it for a few months, it has oddly grown on me. So sometimes living with something for a while makes you see it's "inner beauty". :)

That said, I don't know anything about this paint but I have heard of granite veneers that are a lot cheaper than buying actual slabs of granite. I don't know a brand name but maybe someone else on this thread will.

Good luck!

Unless you're a professional decorative painter, I wouldn't recommend it. After watching their how-it-works video, all the magic is going to be in the person applying it. Really, its just a few specific colors of paint and varnish on top.

You've bought a home, so you'll be there for a while. Save up for it for a few years and buy the real thing, or Corian. You'll be happier in the end, increase the value of your home, and not be stuck sponge-painting your countertop.

I've seen some amazing stone looking laminate if you're on a budget. We have ugly tan laminate countertops, so we're looking to replace that some time soon. We're highly considering the stone looking laminate since I don't care all that much if it's actual stone. (Actually, real stone you have to take care of on a consistent basis)

i would also suggest living with the current counter tops right now until you can afford something better. the up close pictures of that paint do not look that great. i know if i were to try it that it would come out horrible. then youre left with something even worse than before. maybe just take one of the colors in the kit and paint the counters a solid color?

The prior owners of my first condo painted the kitchen the tile. I so wish that they had left it alone. On first glance you saw red, then you noticed that it was painted tile and it looked cheap. The paint also didn't wear well. I agree with everyone who said wait, save up, and get new counters. It's impossible to get everything just the way you want it immediately after moving in.

Yeah, this looks like a giant mess waiting to happen.

I feel for you on the ugly laminate. We bought a house one year ago with splotchy mustard yellow countertops, and a kitchen renovation isn't in our budget for awhile. For about $20 I bought the Rustoleum Countertop paint in a basic gray. While I agree about saving up for what you really want, that $20 was about the best I've ever spent to just not have to look at the ugly counters anymore. I wasn't even too concerned about the results because I know we'll be replacing them in a year or two. The paint is indeed a little tricky to make perfectly smooth, but it's been extremely durable for us kitchen klutzes. It's not like regular wall paint, it's more like a thick and sticky nail polish. It dries hard and smooth. I'm guessing this Giani kind would be similarly durable. I say go for it, especially if you plan to replace the countertops down the road anyway.

Laminate is an much less-expensive alternative if you cant afford granite or composite surface counters. The High-Def stone laminates from Wilsonart are particularly attractive.

I'm disappointed, but not really surprised, that this is really becoming a thing. Thanks a lot Rustoleum.

For all the people who use paint and epoxy products of questionable nature and origin: do you ever let food touch those countertops?

Why did everyone bother to freak the hell out about BPA in their plastic food/drink containers and VOC's in their wall paint if putting f*cking epoxy onto your countertops is acceptable? Maybe my experience working with the stuff professionally colors my view, but seriously I would never put that crap on a surface that touches food, utensils, or that I touch often with my hands.

I have HIDEOUS gold flecked off-white laminate on my counters AND backsplash, but I'm going to hold onto that crap until I can replace with solid surface.

Ummm...laminate is made of questionable resins and adhesives too, so...

@mcintyree: yes you're right, but i'll trust that over consumer paints that cures at room temperature. laminate is not manufactured at room temperature.

*cure*, sorry.

I'm in the process of selling my home. The master bath has old and stained "cultured marble" for countertops and shower enclosure. I had always intended to replace with something better but wound up needing to move prematurely.

So that the house shows well, I've hired a bath and countertop refinishing crew. For under $600 they are patching and coating both surfaces with a hard, plastic epoxy stuff. It's fantastic and looks like it was built that way. And the price is right--the shower is huge, probably as much square footage as an average kitchen.

You may wish to go a similar route with a plain white/light solid color. They even have stone look (not veined like marble but pebbly). The coating will seal any cracks and be durable for quite a few years. Not perfect but better and livable until you can afford to put in your dream counters.

Search online for "bath refinishing" or "bath resurfacing" and check the company's bbb rating.

I'm going to go against the grain here. We were in the same situation with our house. Green laminate counters in the kitchen. We knew we would eventually replace them, but didn't have the budget to do it when we bought the house, so we decided to try paint instead. Well, it worked GREAT! No joke.

You can see our photos and process here: http://www.oldtownhome.com/2011/8/1/Quick-Kitchen-Counter-Update---With-Spray-Paint/index.aspx

Has anybody ever done a cost analysis of these products? I contacted Formica once because my Library wants to change some ugly laminate end panels in the Children's room. (~70 pieces, no small job.) They said to sand, prime (maybe twice), and paint with epoxy paint (maybe twice). For the cost of materials and, in our case, labor -- we would have to pay our part-time maintenance guys -- it seems cheaper to just get new laminate. I was wondering if anybody actually knows...

We had burn-marked, fake butcher block laminate counter tops that we just recently replaced with good quality Wilsonart laminate. It only cost a few hundred dollars and made a world of difference in the look of our kitchen. Professional installation added to the price but it still was very affordable. Certainly worth getting an estimate.

If you need straight runs of laminate, the off-the-shelf countertops at the big box stores are the way to go.

In my opinion, faux finishes are really tacky. Instead of trying to make it look like something else, just save up and get the real thing, or something else... If you love the look of granite, you won't be happy with a painted-on version and you'll replace it later anyway.

And if you can't afford to save up for granite, I would substitute it with something else, like tile or wood, or just a simple nice colour.

In my opinion, the reason stone countertops are desirable is that they are more durable, easier to clean and look nice because of their natural beauty. I think tile countertops can also look nice as well as wood. But wood-finish looks terrible, as does anything that is an imitation.

In one apartment I rented... the countertops were covered in really old floor linoleum (might actually look kind of cool now but it was awful 20 years ago.) I bought a roll of marble printed contact paper and cut it to fit the counters... looked rather pretty. Peeled it off when I moved out.

That may be a good temporary solution until you can save up. You'll have to use pot holders and trivets with hot pans etc...

For all the people who use paint and epoxy products of questionable nature and origin: do you ever let food touch those countertops?

Well, I haven't done anything with my countertops, and I didn't care about the BPAs, but... no, I don't let food touch my countertops, unless it's something I'm about to wash. I have cutting boards.

Also, unless labor is exorbitant (which may very well be the case) I vote you replace with cheap butcher block or just paint with a solid color rather than attempt this particular effect.

You could also cover it with either stainless steal, chalkboard or (better) copper adhesive sheets. Copper is better because it actually kills about 75% of bacteria naturally.
http://www.amazon.com/Metal-Brushed-Copper-Contact-Paper/dp/B000KKMO7W/ref=sr_1_32?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1319760155&sr=1-32
It's not a perfect solution but it might be nice until you save up enough for the stone counters you want. Good luck.

I redid my kitchen two years ago with this kit. Simply Amazing!!! I cook daily and my kitchen takes alot of abuse. No problem. I am not artistic but my cabinets turned out beautiful. Even professionals are amazed.

Faux is never the way to go! It never looks quite right and can cheapen everything else around it. Save up for the real thing and make the laminate work in the meantime.

Yes, I have used it and recommend it for your predicament. Honestly, we moved into our house last year and were dealing with original white / light gold "marble" formica from 1970. While we save up to gut our kitchen and replace the countertops, we decided to give Giani a try. We figured that for $50, we had nothing to lose. I painted them about a year ago, and I am really happy with them. It doesn't look "just like granite", but at least they are black and not white fake marble formica. Is it slightly tacky? Maybe...but most people don't pay attention or even notice. It's a temporary fix.

As for durability, we have had them about a year and they have held up great - no chipping or changes in the finish. Go for it!!!

Regarding chemicals, we don't regularly put food on our countertop anyway. That wasn't a concern.

Here is a link to our kitchen pics:
https://picasaweb.google.com/sarahaskell/KitchenMakeover?authuser=0&feat=directlink

Yes! We use the Giani paint for the counter tops in our last house. The counters were hideous with dings and burn marks. I am not a pro but practiced and took my time to get things right. We followed the directions and did not use any harsh chemicals or sponges. We did have a couple tiny dings from our toaster but I just touched it up with the black base coat and it worked great. We sold the house after about a year and a half later and they still looked great! For the price it was totally worth it!

Just paint them a solid color for now. Laminate isn't ugly when it's simple; the counters just won't be a focal point.

Frankly, I think a lot of granite can be hideous. People seem to think just because countertops are granite, that they are nice...nooooo. I agree w/the butcher block suggestion too. That's so much more interesting than boring old granite anyway.

I beg to differ with many of the previous comments! I just painted a client's formica kitchen countertops with the Giani kit - the client discovered it, I had never heard of it before. I was skeptical but went ahead with the project and was extremely pleased (and surprised) with the results! I think it looks great and the kit was about $78 or so. Granted, I am a faux finisher so my application of the paint is probably different than someone who has never done it before. You can view photos on my facebook site: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=308856449147804&set=a.265263876840395.73287.167290749971042&type=3&theater

Anybody planning on using Giani Granite paint? I did it in my kitchen a few days ago, and it looks absolutely fabulous! I couldn't believe it. We did it over our old ugly laminate counter tops and also covered a wooden butcher block table to match. It actually feels like stone when it is done.
I highly recommend this product! Instead of paying a few thousand dollars for new counter tops, we spent about $80.00. It looks just like it does on the videos they show and my counter tops look like real granite - even up close!