Emulsion is a water based paint that you use on your walls but you can use it on furniture if you sand and prep properly. I use it on pieces that need a reasonably tough finish but you need to sand it to get an interesting finish.

Hi again. Finally took the plunge and had the kitchen resprayed. So much lighter and a great job by the professionals. Hard to remember the mustard kitchen now, except the photos remind me.

you can buy an additive for paint that slows the drying down on water based gloss/ semi gloss paint. We have painted the back of our island with same problem. waiting for weather to cool down before we redo.

Part of the appeal of the cupbaords in your photo is that the clever cabinetmaker has used real timber, possibly a timber veneer, to grain match the doors. This means that even though are a lot of doors the timber has come from the same tree, and the grain pattern is continuous across the doors. Not all kitchen cabinetmakers have this level of craftsmanship and such a good eye for detail, and such craftsmanship comes at a price. The products that you mention are good imitations of timber grain, but like a wallpaper have a "repeat". This means that it is next to impossible to get grain matching across doors. For some people this doesn't matter, but some people find mis-matched timber grain really annoying. You need to decide what type of person you are, and decide to spend big, or look at other options... The photo is of some mismatched, timber-look doors. Best of luck, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls