sides

I have a 2000 civic ex. It came stock with the plastic side moldings/skirts. Can i have these painted to the color of the car (and have it look good) or would it be better off to just buy some new sides?

If your car is an ex, the moldings should already be the color of the car.

As for the skirts, yes you can paint them. Just remove them by unscrewing the screws on the bottom of each skirt, clean them very well, prime, and paint them with a normal automotive spray can from your local autozone, schucks, whatever.