Faux Stone Tile Painted Backsplash In The Kitchen

I needed a backsplash update in my kitchen.  Last year we got new countertops, and I knew I wanted to do something different to the walls and backsplash area as well.  I was hoping to get stacked stone or stone mosaic tile, but it didn't work out.  Next, I looked into using tin ceiling panels, an idea I had seen online.  At the same time I had begun to experiment with faux painting, and while searching for more backsplash ideas, I found a couple of blogs where people had painted their backsplashes to look like stone.  During Spring Break I decided to try mine.

I used a stencil to help with mine, though many people just tape off the area with painter's tape.  I looked this morning to find the website and stencil I used to share with you, and can't find it.  It was a tile stencil, and it had large diamonds on one overlay, with smaller ones to fill in the empty spaces in between on the top overlay.  I ended up doing only the large diamond shapes.

For paint I used my trusty Lowe's and Home Depot paint samples.  I LOVE those things.  I have so many of them I'd be ashamed to admit the number.  You see I am addicted to paint and paint colors. Really!  And spray paint. 

I wasn't doing any blogging yet so only have a few before and afters to share.  I took these to share with my husband who was away on the tug at the time.

Step 1:  Taping off the top of the countertop and the bottom of the cabinets.

Step 2:  Measuring and Getting Started.  I wanted a full design at the end of the counter next to the fridge, so I started there and worked backwards to the window over the sink.  This picture is after it was dry and I was cleaning up, but you get the idea.  On the other end of this wall I started with a full design starting at the corner and traveling toward the sink.  This worked out well for me.  In the picture you can see my stencil, the natural sea sponges I used to do the painting, and some of my little sample pots.  I used 6 different colors layered on top of each other for this faux granite effect.  The colors were a light cream, beige, medium tan, two different browns, and black.  I used the beige as the base, then the tan, then the browns, and highlighted with the cream and black.  It matched up really great with my countertops.

Step 3:  Getting in the groove.  In the corner on the oven wall, I started with another full design and worked to the left.   Please ignore the mess and dirty dishes in the sink.  Let me warn you if you decide to try this - it IS NOT a quick project.  This took me all of one day and evening (with breaks for paint drying time) and a little bit the next morning.

Step 4:  This summer I decided to change out my hardware to copper and add copper accents.  This project was one of my first blog posts.

Remember the light I got and didn't like the color of, so decided to add more copper accents.  Here is what it looks like now.

Now that I have lived with it a while, I am considering going back and doing the second overlay to add the accent "diamonds".  If I do, I am thinking to do them in a darker black based shade to help tie in the black appliances.  (like this combo I did on my scarred up living room end table top). What do you think?

New Style Stenciled Walls

Are you addicted to Houzz.com?  It's one of my favorite sites, along with Facebook, Pinterest, and Ebay.  My friend Sharon turned me on to this website, and I almost wish she hadn't, because its one of those where you can spend hours looking at other people's house layouts, paint schemes, decorations, and style.  I think Houzz is where I first developed my obsession with all white kitchens (and boy are there some pretty ones on there!).

Another thing I have seen on Houzz recently, and I also see popping up on blogs is whole wall stenciling.  These are not border stencils like the kind that were popular 18 years ago when we built our house, but total wall ones that have a wallpaper effect when painted on the wall.  At first I didn't think I liked them much, but they have grown on my considerably, and now I am ready to try one.

Here is the one I am thinking of trying.  My plan is to do one wall in my master bedroom as an accent wall.  Right now I have pale gray paint in there with one white accent wall and white trim.  I am thinking to stencil that white wall using the gray color I have on the other walls.  

It would almost be a reverse of the picture.  I like this stencil because it is not as busy as I have seen. This one is available for purchase on Etsy (another favorite website I forgot to mention).  Here is a link:  Large Wall Stencil Idea

If you would like to see a tutorial on how to use these large wall stencils, there is a good one at this blog link:  Wall Stenciling @ Southern Hospitality Blog

Here are some other pictures of stenciled walls I have grabbed off the web:

If done right I think it would look really good, but it's going to be tricky.  I think it could get out of hand and too busy in a hurry.  The good thing about paint, though, is if you really don't like it when you're done you just get your paint back out and go right over top of it.

What do you think of paint stenciled walls?

Painted Faux Granite Top on a Laminate Cabinet

By Now You Know I Love A Paint Project

Have you tried faux painting?  It's a great little technique to have in your painting "bag of tricks". There are several different styles of faux painting such as wood look, denim, leather, faux marble, and stone. But the one I find the easiest and have used the most is "stone" - particularly granite.

Faux Wood Painting
Google Image from onebowlparenting.com

Leather Look Paint Technique
Google Image from favecrafts.com

Faux Marble Countertop Project
from one of my favorite blogs remodelaholic.com

Faux Granite Paint
Google Image by todayshomeowner.com

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What can you paint with the faux stone technique?  The possibilities are endless.  I've done flowerpots, and hanging light fixtures, and few more things I want to share with you in another post.  But yesterday I decided to try and paint the top of a laminate cabinet we use as an end table in our den.

The cabinet was actually a re-purposed TV cart.  I like to re-purpose furniture.  It's a very cheap way to redecorate and change the look of your house.  The cabinet was starting to look a little worse for wear because it had some damage to the laminate wood top.  My first attempt to "spruce it up" was to mask off and spray the top with some left over Rust-oleum primer, then a coat of Rust-oleum "American Accents" stone paint I had left from a flower pot project.   It hid the damage pretty well but just wasn't the look I wanted.

And once again I forgot to take before pictures.  Well I didn't really forget completely, I got working on the first step, remembered to take pictures, then got worried that it totally wasn't going to turn out, and didn't do it.  Yeah, I know bad Hope...

A-hah, I looked back through some old pics and found one where you can just see a little of it in this pic I took when our recliner we ordered came wrong (but that's another story).  So here you go...before...

and after...

Here is a close up of the paint job, I was going for a dark black and brown granite mix.

It was a rainy day yesterday, so I have not yet put on it's poly sealer top coat.  This really brings it out to look like stone.  But had a few minutes after school today ( 1 day down - yay! ) so I decided to post now.

Here is a look at my tools.  This is why I say it's a cheap and easy fix.  All the paints I used are $2 samples from Lowes and Home Depot.  And my applicator for this particular project was a kitchen scrubby sponge. Yes, I have those expensive natural sea sponges made just for this, and they do a great job, but I couldn't lay my hands on one last night when I got a bee in my bonnet to do this, so kitchen scrubby it was.  And my palette was an impressive foam plate.  LOL

The key to the faux granite look is sponging on many layers of paint.  I started with the brown spray paint stone base which was slightly textured, then I covered it almost completely with black.  They I started layering on dark brown, reddish brown, golden tan, cream, then a little more dark brown and black over the top til I got it like I wanted it.  Just dab your slightly damp sponge in the paint, dab off the excess on the plate, and pounce it where you want it on your surface to paint.  Use a dry end of the sponge to take paint back off here and there.  Sometimes dab your sponge into more than one color at once.  You really can't mess it up.

When you make long "runs" of a certain color you do want them to go in the same general direction as some granite has a grain and "drifts".  

I worked diagonally from top right to bottom left on this project.  Then I changed out the bright copper knobs to antiqued copper pulls.  Not bad!  All it needs now is the top sealed and shined (but not too shiny - some people do a high gloss finish on their faux stone - I prefer satin or semi gloss).

So there's my last project of my summer vacation.  From now on I'll be a weekend warrior.  Have you done any faux painting projects?  If so I'd love to see them.  Please post in the comments section.  The sun is shining today and it's a pretty evening so I think I hear my deck calling my name....