Tiling kitchen backsplash

Tiling a kitchen backsplash

We've had a busy few weekends at our lake house at Heritage Lake, updating our 11 year old color scheme, and installing some custom touches. This past weekend we tiled our kitchen back splash. Having never tiled before, I learned a few things that made it much easier than I had expected. Here are my hints: 1) Watch YouTube. There are numerous "how to" videos that were easy to follow. It was great to also watch someone do something while they were talking about it. So much better than reading instructions! 2) Have your pattern or design laid out on a table or counter top prior to beginning the work. Then, it's like a puzzle piece to put it together. 3) Don't put on the adhesive (Quick set or Mastic) too strongly. Having about 85% coverage seemed to work the best. That's where the "teeth" in the trowel come in. If you hold the teeth at roughly a 30% angle, it helps spread the mastic around in the right proportions; 4) Make sure you keep lines straight. Even though we used spacers, we noticed the counter top (especially the longer run) wasn't even. We made the line in our geometric stone pattern (2" x 2", 2" x 4" and 4" x 4") even with a level. 5) Have someone help you, especially if you're not a pro. Even though I was the one who had watched the videos, gone to Lowe's and bought the equipment and materials, my husband was a great help in just holding the tile in place before it set, or if I was making minor adjustments.

We are very pleased with how our project turned out. It wasn't as hard as we had thought. Our kitchen looks much more upscale, and has a warmth it didn't have before. While I wouldn't say it was "fun", it wasn't a terrible experience. The results were well worth the effort! What are your tiling stories? Leave a post and share your knowledge!