dont be embarassed man, nothing wrong with what you are planning, as long as you like it. If is plastic, prep is minimal, break the gloss with a mid grade sand paper, like 220 or 320, clean with soap and water, wet sand with 400, paint away witha good plastic paint like krylon or you could apply an epoxy primer and wet sand that for the ultimate bond. If its wood, use a good primer, 2 - 4 coats, lightly wet sanding with 320 between coats, then any good quality paint, just be sure to paint while the primer is still "open" as in dont sand and then paint 3 days later, Wont get into the chemistry of it, but the sanding needs to be within 12 hours of paint for a solid bond. And use a pre paint prep wipe if you want the best results, but its expensive, so unless you have it laying around, dont bother.
Hope that helps, post some pics when you get it done
