Hi, my honeys! Boy, do I have a super fun DIY to share with y'all today! It's no secret that I've had struggles with my health this year, and that means lots of medical bills to pay! Some projects have been put on the back burner, but we've been able to do mini makeovers with the help of sponsors/collaborations and my parents! Well, there was one project in the kitchen that I didn't have a sponsor for, and that's our kitchen backsplash. I've disliked the busy pattern of the tiles and how it was too much with going on with our granite countertops since the day we moved in four years ago, but we had been putting off changing it because of cost! To replace backsplash tile involves a messy demo, hundreds of dollars, and an unusable kitchen for a period of time.
I wracked my brain for months thinking what could we possibly do, and I came across a type of paint from Wise Owl called One Hour Enamel paint that people on Pinterest were using to paint over their existing backsplash tile! It dries to a satin-y, tile-like enamel finish, and even covers grout really well! WHAT?! Genius! It's a bit pricey at $40 a quart, but a little goes a long way. I didn't even use a half a can for this project because I primed really well! Also, this is not sponsored--Wise Owl has no idea I did this makeover or am writing this post! I did quickly want to give The Salvaged Boutique in Lakewood, Ohio a shout because they gifted us one extra pint when my husband went to go buy the paint at their store! As soon as I got the idea, I thought, as soon as I'm up to it, this is a project I want to tackle on my own. In fact, it's the first project I've done entirely by myself this year. My husband has been such a peach in completing projects from me, and we've hired in help a few times, too.
I have been having a string of good health days since I started new meds, a lower carb diet, and I've been getting back to my entire health routine (finally cleared to exercise this week!). I grabbed my supplies, pulled up a chair--my blood circulation is not great right now--and decided to tackle this project for however long it took me to complete it. It ended up taking about two days for me because I had to do lots of resting in between and one nap today haha! But I got it done all by myself, and for that I am super excited! The details for the project are below, and I'll start off with some before photos so you can see what we were workin' with!
BEFORE:
SUPPLIES:
dish soap
one can of primer paint (I used Clare paint's Zero VOC primer--low odor)
one quart of Wise Owl One Hour Enamel Paint (I chose the shade Snow Owl)
STEPS:
Wash your backsplash well with a degreasing dish soap. Allow to completely dry overnight.
Tape off any areas and edges you do not wish to paint with your frog tape.
Apply 2-3 coats of primer depending on how dark or porous your tiles are. I needed to apply three coats. I went and laid down after each coat while it dried. Yay for rest!
Use your paint brush to get all the edges, corners, and over the grout lines.
Once your primer is laid and slayed (yassss! lol), use your roller to apply one coat of the Wise Owl One Hour Enamel paint. It is thin and drippy, so smooth out any drips or bubbles with your paint brush before it dries. Work quickly, because it says it dries in an hour, but really it starts to dry much faster than that!
Wait an hour, then apply your second coat of Wise Owl One Hour Enamel paint. If after an hour, the tiles look fully covered, you're done! If not, add one more coat, or do touchups where needed.
Stand back and be shook by how different and amazing your kitchen looks!
Ok, ok! I bet you're really ready to see the after! Well, I won't make you wait much longer! I just want you to know this project is EASY PEASY, and if a person with health issues can do it, you can too! My only regret for this project is that I didn't do it years ago, LOL! I'll let you be the judge now, but I think you'll agree with me that this completely transformed our kitchen. It looks more open and clean, and I can't believe I achieved this in two days with no help and for $40 since I had the rest of the supplies already on hand. Anyway, here's the grand reveal, honey:
AFTER:
I hope y'all love the change as much as we do, and I also hope you enjoyed this DIY blog post! If you want to see more of these projects, let me know on my Instagram @peonyandhoney -- I am giving away one quart of the Wise Owl One Hour Enamel Paint in shade Snow Owl to one of you, so go enter on my Insta! Thank you so much for reading, and if you do this project, please do send me photos! Big hugs y'all, and AMEN for my first solo home project of the year!