Boy, have I seen a lot of homes with out dated, poorly done or simply ugly tile back splashes in kitchens or baths.

In my own home, I've hated the little Ivy tiles above my kitchen counters. They were adorned with deep green, hoaky looking Ivy decals that have bugged me since the day I moved in here.

Well, now that we are seriously looking to put our home on the market, it was time to tackle those dreaded little devils!

 

I primed the tiles with Zinser's BIN primer (available at your local home or hardware store). This stuff sticks to anything! It only took 2 coats to completely cover the ivy design.

I applied one of the designs from our Raised Plaster Small Designs #1 Stencil to the center of each of the tiles.

 

 

A coat of neutral beige paint came next. You can simply use acrylic paints for this project if you like.

 

I sponged cream colored paint over the entire tile to give it a bit more interest.

 

I then diluted brown paint with water and dabbed it over just the raised design, sponging it to blend, to bring out the detail of the design.

 

 

Finally, I added metallic gold paint to only the raised design.

 

The result are fabulous looking tiles that now match my counter tops and give my kitchen a whole new look!

 

 

Kitchen Before

 

 

Kitchen After re-doing the counters with a new granite faux finish and my luscious new tiles!

You truly do not have to spend a ton of money to give your home a new look. Take it from me, you can do it with little expense, a whole lot of fun and step back with pride at what you accomplished!