"Fixtures, Sanders and Paint" Topic

I'm finally getting things in motion for some major remodeling in my condo. Funds are available to allow the pros to do most of the work, thank God, and also to allow me to go with some quality materials.

The principal job is the kitchen, and my first question is about faucets. When I redid my bathrooms some years ago, I went with Moen and Price Pfister, both for quality and designs and finishes that matched what I was after. Unfortunately, I haven't really found what I want, aesthetically, from these two in terms of kitchen faucets. Kingston Brass has a number of designs that really appeal to me, but I don't know anything about them. Does anyone have any experience or professional knowledge about their quality and reliability? While we're at it, does anyone know anything about Cifial?

Next, I'm looking at a finish or detail sander. This will be for light work, essentially doing a final sand on some oak doors before staining. I will also be sanding down and repurposing the old kitchen cabinets for a storage space. Any recommendations from the woodworkers out there?

Lastly, paint. I've worked with Glidden, which I think sucks, and Behr, which is okay-to-good. Sherwin-Williams has a palette I really like, as well as a great reputation but it's pricey. Is the quality that much more noticeable than Behr? One review I read suggested that two coats of S-W sufficed when three were needed with Behr, so that's a thought.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

My two cents,

As far as fixtures for the kitchen go I always try to go with what the local hardware store carries, simply because they also carry the replacement parts. Having worked as the maintenance guy at hotel/restaurant/gift shops place that installed nothing but the cheapest they could find at the time. It's a pain trying to track down parts. That being said I have worked with Kingston and their stuff is good, not great but good. And most of their internals are pretty generic so finding replacement parts is not hard.

Sanders: If you want high quality, last a lifetime type stuff then I'd go with Dewalt, Milwaulkee, or Bosch. If your just doing a few things with it I'd go the cheap route with Harbor Freight. I have had my HF one for 10yrs now and it still works like a champ. It's done a lot of refinishing projects and for $10 USD you can't go wrong

Paint: That's really dependent on what exactly you are painting. If it's fresh drywall then Behr is fine. If you're painting over existing paint it really depends on the color you are covering. And as much as they taught paint/primer in one I always recommend using an actual primer first. oz for oz SW paints are usually better than Homedepot paint, but when doing gloss or semi gloss that difference really starts to shrink.

Thanks for the input Jakse.

I did a little digging on Kingston and found that the models I'm looking at are solid brass with ceramic cartridges, so that's a plus (no plastic parts). I just emailed my contractor for his opinion and since I'm buying all my hardware independently, I know I'll get an unbiased answer

I'm painting some new drywall and a lot of old that has previous coats of paint. The old is going to need a lot of prep, practically skim coating, so I may just prime over everything anyway. I'm looking for a durable flat that hides well. I've got a fairly small space AND a fairly generous budget, but I don't want to spend 50% more unless the S-W product really delivers.

Thoughts?