Note: Artifact Graphics does not generally paint home interiors. But since our main illustrator, Michelle Annette Leveille, has been recovering from surgery at home and she has taken on many simple home improvement projects, we thought we’d share one of her “how-to” lessons. – Doc Robin
BEFORE - The kitchen with its pink plastic backsplash
Real tin backsplashes are expensive and difficult to install by oneself. I’m cheap and I just got a hip replacement, so I didn’t want to mess with real tin backsplashes.
Image from HGTV, of someone cutting tin with special shears and gloves. Each panel is generally over $10.
Faux tin press-on tiles looked too faux to me.
These adhesive vinyl tiles look more like they belong in a pre-fabricated house.
It just so happened that I had some remnants of embossed wallpaper that I had used to make a ceiling look like it was covered in antique tin tiles. Here’s how the ceiling turned out:
Michelle’s faux tin ceiling
This is the wallpaper. It’s available at Lowe's and you can order similar products from Home Depot, Amazon, or other stores online. It doesn’t say this anywhere on this package, but it IS pre-pasted so you don’t have to buy extra wallpaper paste unless you want to be doubly sure it will stick.
Paintable embossed wallpaper roll from Lowe's
I followed basic wallpapering technique to hang the wallpaper over the existing pink plastic backsplash. Scissors can be used to cut the wallpaper to its general size, but SHARP X-Acto blades are ESSENTIAL to making fine trims and adjustments to the wet embossed wallpaper.
First wallpaper panel up over pink plastic backsplash
After about an hour, it felt dry, and I used the silver paint I had purchased to cover it.
Silver paint on the embossed wallpaper backsplash
There are a few ways of painting metallic colors. Inexpensive spray paints look good, and Rust-oleum and Krylon have some neat shades and effects, but you have to mask everything and deal with the fumes. Touch-up is difficult too.
Too much hassle for me.
You can also buy two-can process metallic paint, from Martha Stewart and other brands. This involves picking a color, and then buying the two-can combo that makes that color. First you paint on the primer/basecoat color, which is usually a dark earthy shade. When it’s dry, then you open the next can and paint the glittery coat over it to make a nice shiny metal color. The results look pretty good. But the paint is generally only sold in gallon cans, which is much more than you will need for a residential backsplash. And it is costly.
I was very pleased with the quart can of Rust-oleum Painter’s Touch metallic silver that I purchased for about $14. It is shinier than quicksilver, and low in fumes. A little bit goes a long way, and only one coat is needed. The only drawback to it is that it is not water-based. If you are okay with sacrificing a good paintbrush for your kitchen’s good looks, then buy this product.
UPDATE: Rust-oleum no longer carries this product in silver or gold. When it came time for me to paint another part of my house, I used 32 oz. of Modern Masters paint. It was extremely expensive (about $90), it took a long time to dry, and it was not available in big-box stores. However, the manufacturer sometimes has online sales. http://www.modernmasters.com/default.asp
The silver wallpaper looked like real metal pressed-tin tiles, but I thought it looked too new. Besides, the shade of silver clashed with the peach walls now. It needed some verdigris patina to match the other room accents.
I wanted the green shadows to be in the recesses of the pressed tin. This was easy to accomplish, as you will see. But first I experimented on small scraps of wallpaper with green paints that I had on hand, to see which approach would be best.
I painted each color of green paint onto a separate scrap, waited for it to dry, then lightly painted the silver paint over the upraised ridges of the wallpaper. Here are the results.
I liked this color green with my kitchen, but the Viridian paint was a Windsor-Newton water-based oil, which would not dry for days. It mixed with the silver paint on top of it and smeared.
These colors had a nice way of flowing, like real liquid oxidation. The greens are Caran d’Ache “wax oil crayons.” The end result was beautiful, but when I splashed water on them later, the colors ran. Not good for a backsplash.
This is green-black color acrylic craft paint with silver brushed over it. I thought it looked like the tile had been burnt.
Victorian Teal Medium color acrylic craft paint. It looks like water mineral deposits to me.
Hunter Green color acrylic craft paint. Matched my kitchen best.
The oil paints didn’t work as a background color. I decided to use the remaining three acrylic paint colors in different places on the backsplash. I smeared Hunter Green into all of the corners because a homeowner would not clean the backsplash as well in the corners.
I used the black-green around the stovetop and the outlet as if to indicate that they had gotten hot in the past.
(Note: see tip on how to properly paint an outlet below.)
I painted the Victorian Teal Medium color behind the faucet, as if the bluish tint had been caused by hard water splashes. The varied color also helped the silver faucet stand apart from the silver background.
I filled in the rest of the embossed wallpaper with silver paint, then brushed the silver lightly over the raised parts of the design to unify the piece with sparkling highlights.
Michelle's finished backsplash
That was really easy.
UPDATE: A few months later I decided it needed to look more silver with less faux patina, so I added another coat of silver. Here's a more recent photo:
HERE ARE A FEW MORE TIPS: Try to line up all corners and areas that are divided by molding or visually blocked by appliances. Below, you can see how your eye is drawn to a small step between the stove and the counter where it appears that the pattern is not aligned.
Don’t paint over switches or outlets!
I painted this outlet incorrectly, but I'll tell you the right way to do it.
You shouldn't paint over the switch because it gets a lot of use and it will look scuffed quickly. The same is true of the plug receptacles. Paint that has been scratched off may become lodged inside and disrupt electrical function. And if you have a GFCI switch such as this one, you won't be able to read which button is for testing or resetting.
Here's the right way to do it. Start when you are prepping the area for paint, by using a flathead screwdriver to remove the outlet cover. Tape the screw(s) to the back of the cover so you won't lose them.
Do NOT do this!
There is no need to remove the actual outlet. Besides, you could get electrocuted.
Use masking tape to cover the outlets and/or switches.
You don’t need to cover the hole or the wall, just the outlet.
Paint your outlet cover to match your wall. Use masking tape on the back with details about the paint you used, so you can refer to it if you ever need more.
After you're done painting, screw the outlet plate back on the wall. Do not use a drill! Do it gently by hand, otherwise you may crack the plate. Once it is on, use your finger to dab just enough paint onto the outermost surface of the screw heads to cover them. Try not to get paint into the cracks, so that you can unscrew the covers later if you need to.
Under-cabinet lighting would really draw out the beauty of pressed tin. I have not installed it, as you can see. You may want to consider it, however.
If you feel you gained anything from this, then please repay me by holding the door open for a pregnant lady or someone with a cane. Thank you.
UPDATE: Wow, this post has gotten more visitors than any of my others! It has been over a year since I wrote it. I hope my advice has been useful. Please let me know if you have questions, and also send me photos of YOUR projects! - Michelle
Some wonderful feedback we've received so far:
Notice the beautiful ceiling in the Sitting Room of Don B.
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I am so jealous of your vintage appliances! Thanks for the info on your tin tile backsplash. I can't wait to put some up in my kitchen. - Hillary V.
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Sample boards of Don B… “Which was insanity. Not recommended as it takes days to decide and then you are not sure."
Michelle and Doc, I appreciated your article and gained some tips from it. Thanks. I hold the door open for my wife all the time, she uses a cane. I also wanted to tell you of my project. To be short winded! I put pressed wallpaper (A metal style). I first painted a medium dark blue paint as a backround color, then sponged on a medium green to soften the blue, and to blend the colors leaving the green as the prominent color, with the blue almost washed out. Next I very lightly sponged on gold paint. Very, very lightly, giving the ceiling a somewhat shiny highlight. The ceiling turned out beautifully looking like weathered greenish copper metal panels. It took a few experimental panels to get the right effect. It is looks very satisfying for us and has had many complements. - Don B.
Impressive work by Don B!
We would love to hear your feedback, including any advice and photos you have to share. Please email them to: info@ArtifactGraphics.com
