How to makeover your kitchen tile on a budget with fabulous results.
Transport us back to 1995 and this tile is spot on. But it is 2023. It needs to go.
Dated tile seems to follow me wherever we go. Nick and I had a salmon pink tiled bathroom from floor to ceiling at our very first house together in Tennessee. No doubt if was high home fashion in 1950. Young and newly married, we gave the bathroom a brand new look by painting the tile and adding wainscoting around the base of the bathroom walls.
When we moved to Verona, Italy years later, we found an incredible apartment with an amazing view. But the previous occupant had lived there for decades with no updates whatsoever. We were just renting the place, but somehow we convinced the landlord to allow us to update everything on our own if they sponsored the materials. Floral 60's tiles from floor to ceiling, pink walls and ceilings covered in years of smoke emitted from the wall heat registers....it was a HUGE project. We painted the tiles on the kitchen wall, the floor, and both bathrooms. Our landlord's jaw dropped after seeing the transformation. It looked great!
Fast forward a decade with us purchasing our first home (together).in Oregon and the kitchen tile backsplash makeover was a must. With one glance I felt like I was transported back to 1995 when stencil and floral were hot. It was an eggshell white color overall - not so bad. But there was a decorative floral tile strip sporting brightly colored yellow sunflowers and pink tulips. I'm sure in the late 90's this was all the rage. Well done previous home-owner, well done.
Needless to say, by the time we made it to our most recent home purchase, having to paint the tile was a quick and easy DIY task. Tile paint today has come a long way and is A LOT more durable I'll have to say. However, it is a lot more runny like nail polish so you have to be really careful and know what you are getting into.
Our Tile Backsplash Makeover Process
Read all of the tile paint kit instructions first! I'm summarizing the process here below but do not substitute it for the instructions on your kit. This summary is just to give you an idea of what goes into painting your tile.
Here's a summarized process of painting tile:
1.) Clean the tile REALLY well. Scrub it like crazy and use a strong degreaser.
2.) Sand the tile down and use steel wool. This smoothes the surface out and roughens it up just enough to allow the paint to adhere properly.
3.) Clean it again. Use soap and water to clean it. You can also use tack cloth to remove any dust particles. Then make sure it is all dry.
4.) Prep your space. Tape off the edges where you do not want paint and put down any paper or plastic to protect your countertop. Use a really good painter's tape like frog tape to ensure it sticks well. Fixing mistakes later is not easy.
5.) Mix you resin and activator according to your tile paint kit instructions and get painting. Be very careful not to put too much paint on your roller or drips will happen. I used a small roller and a small paint brush as needed to get in any smaller areas.
6.) Follow the kit's instructions if you need more than one coat.
7.) Remove the tape while the paint is still a little but tacky but not all the way dry.
8.) Let the paint cure for several days before touching it or allowing it to get wet.
Painting the tile was the fastest project for this kitchen transformation. The paint goes on fast and covers well. I completed all the backsplash in just a few hours.
The Result
Here's the full before and after transformation from floor to ceiling. If you are curious about the process of redoing the cabinets or the countertop, check out those Articles on the DIY page.
I know - that is A LOT of white! I would have painted all the cabinets the hearthstone color of the kitchen island if I knew how much I would like it beforehand. And then the island maybe a darker catchy color like a slate blue or something. One day we will update those appliances as well. That will break up the white for sure. But for now, it looks really bright and fresh and I love it!
The brushed nickel hardware bars add a lot as well. They are very handy (haha) for hanging towels or other useful things as well. Hardware dresses up these cabinets beautifully.
One house we updated with all black hardware. I love the contrast of the black against the white cabinets. However, depending on the hardware you get, the black wears off the metal after time and use and it begins to look drab. So we stuck with brushed nickel for this place.
What do you think?
Have you tried other methods to updating your backsplash that turned out great?
I would love to learn more!
