Breaking the Rules of Backsplash

Andrea Whitley
by Andrea Whitley
5 Materials
$50
4 Hours
Medium

What to do, but mostly what not to do when applying your own tile backsplash.


Enjoy the selfies. I took them to show family without intention of a DIY.


Because this was more of a NIWID (No Idea What I'm Doing) project.

It's been a dream of mine to do a kitchen backsplash! I started with our master bathroom.


I've never actually seen a tile project from end to end, but that's what YouTube and creativity are for I suppose!

To do: Tape up edges of your counter and other objects.


To do: Buy mesh backed tile- it's the kind where it's all together for you, but you can easily swipe an exacto knife to separate pieces. No way I would have been patient enough to arrange individual tiles my first time around.


To do: Measure space across and arrange tile out before you start.


Not to do: Assume it's ok to use just a hand-tile-clipper tool on glass tiles instead of renting a saw or getting tiles cut.

Shards. Shards everywhere.

To do: Use a tile trowel and spread on the thinset. Apply border tile and first set of mesh backed tile.


Not to do: Get bored with tool and start using hands to spread mortar onto wall. Apply mortar really thick in some areas so you can squish it through the tiles like Playdoh spaghetti.


To do: Leave space (those little spacers rock) at the bottom where it meets countertop so your tile is not squished when you apply it. This is where your caulk will go, so do mind the gap.


Not to do: Wear your favorite strapless jumpsuit. Especially when you are the type of person who uses her bare hands for mortar and wipes her hands on herself during projects.

To do: Finish pattern and allow 24 hours for mortar to set.


Not to do: Realize when you were using the tile cutter you actually didn't measure, and now the right side def isn't flush with the cabinet.

After 24 hours, it's time to fill in the grout.


To do: Pick grout that matches your overall look.


Not to do: Pick a random indeterminable taped-up bag of grout from the clearance rack just because you know it's cheap. Because dark grey in your sand-and-reddish bathroom is NOT working.


End up using the mortar as grout filler because it looks way better.


Google "difference between mortar and grout," then convince yourself it's okay.


Abandon grout tool and use bare hands to fill in gaps instead. (I basically find any excuse to do finger-painting.)


Use wet cloth to wipe it off. Then cross your dry, mortar-covered fingers that it won't dry cloudy.

To do: Pick the perfect "Almond" color silicone caulk and commend yourself for such a great find!


Not to do: Think you can get away with caulking with the end of a hammer instead of a caulk gun. Ended up using sophisticated tool of "ziploc bag" instead. (Pic borrowed from the internets).


When all the borders of the backsplash are caulked, smooth it out.


Voila! Mortar hands became caulk hands.

Final step to do: Apply grout sealer strategically to all grout areas. This helps prevent staining and water penetration if you chose grout that didn't have mixed in sealer already, or if you cheated and used mortar like me.

Not to do: get really antsy, use a nonstrategic method where you throw the sealer at the wall in excess so it drips down, and hope you got all of it.

Overall not bad. There are some uneven gaps and edges because I didn't use a saw, but the vertical borders I did keep your eye away from them. As long as it doesn't fall off the wall I'm happy!

Suggested materials:
  • Clearance mesh backed tile, $4 per square foot   (Lowes)
  • Tile spacers, tile trowel, tile cutter ($2, $6, $8 I think)   (Lowes)
  • Bucket of mortar (thinset) ($10-20) GE Caulk in Almond, grout sealed   (Lowes)
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4 of 21 comments
  • Cindy Cindy on Nov 12, 2016
    Hey April, Us girls have to stick together, when it comes to doing projects in the home. My husband is away from home slot working. So I am always trying new improvement's around the house. I keep the upkeep on our home. So hang in there. You did a great job!!!!!!
  • Elizabeth Fencl Elizabeth Fencl on Feb 10, 2017
    Love this post Andrea, great big atta girl! You did a great job with this tutorial and the humor mixed made me laugh! It was great meeting you this week!! ;-)
    • See 1 previous
    • Elizabeth Fencl Elizabeth Fencl on Feb 11, 2017
      The hubby and I had to spend another day in the big city-cancelled flight. LOVE checking out all the projects from everyone at the Hometalk meeting...way to much fun!
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