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I have been loving my painted kitchen cabinets, and have known that I wanted to eventually get a new backsplash to keep it flowing with the rest of the kitchen. Even though replacing backsplash is not a huge job, I wanted to save money and give it a whirl myself with paint…(because you know, if it can be painted, I want to try it!).
During this process, I use General Finishes Milk Paint in “Antique White” and stencil with “Seagull Gray” (I love that combo of colors too, one of my favorites!). I sealed up my painted backsplash with General Finishes High Performance Top Coat. This is what my kitchen backsplash looked like before… brown tile!
Here are a few videos taking you step by step on how I achieved this finish!
Part one…
Part two… I got my stencil off Etsy at Pearl Design Studio – tile style number 18. She can customize it for you to the exact size of your tiles!
And here is the finished product! I am absolutely in love! It’s been some months, and I am happy to say that it is holding up great! No scratches or anything, and very easy to clean as well!!! And aren’t the new wall plates for the outlets the perfect touch to my new backsplash?! Enjoy!
-Hailey
haileyduncanhome.com 
So pretty! Great work…I’m inspired!
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Karen thank you so much!!! So glad you stopped by!!!
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This looks awesome! Thanks for the idea – we’re currently in the process of planning our kitchen redo on a major budget and my MIL suggested we paint the tiles. I was considering it but I really wanted to give it a bit of personality and the stencil will really help with that!
Thanks for the post!
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HORRAY! So glad to hear it, it’s going to look fantastic!!! Have fun!
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Where is your faucet and cabinet hardware from?
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Hey Anna! My faucet is Kingston Brass in matte black and my hardware is Hickory Hardware! Hope that helps!
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Love the look of your backsplash! I have large tile in a diamond pattern on my backsplash that I’m wanting to paint but I’m wondering if chalk paint might be easier? Any thoughts/experiences to share?
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Yay!!! I think you’d love it! Chalk paint would work great for this project as well, I’d just suggest using a polycrilic sealant instead of wax (which is what’s typically used over chalk paint)! That way you will be able to wipe it down easier without any wear!!
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Is it possible to paint shiny tiles?
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I would say probably so! Just make sure you use a quality primer that will adhere to that shiney surface before you start painting!
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Yes! I had a mix of shiny and matte tiles, and the paint went on both perfectly!
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Where did you purchase stencil from?
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Where did you get the plug/socket plates from? I need those in my life. Thanks for the stencil share! I will order for sure.
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Oh you’re so welcome!!! Here is my affiliate link for these plates…Amazon for the win!!! I have really loved them!!! https://amzn.to/31zHW54
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Did you have any problems with the painters tape taking off your base paint when you taped down your stencil?
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Hi there! Not at all!!! I used small pieces of tape on just the corners of the stencil, no need to tape it down to heavily!
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Did the paint job hold up over the years of kitchen life? ( grease, food splashed, water, cleaners, etc) what was the wear and tear?
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I just finished the backsplash in our kitchen & I LOVE it. Everyone thinks it’s real tile:) Thank you for the tutorial and inspiration. Would of never thought of stenciling tile!
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Love!!!! I was reading up on the general finishes topcoat, did you have any trouble with it yellowing over the white?? I really want to do the colors you have but am scared of the yellowing and they even say to not use it over the brightwhite/lighter colors.
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Hey Erica! Not sure if I missed this comment before, but yes I do use GF HPTC over my whites! As long as your not using too much product you shouldn’t have any issues with yellowing!
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How would I stencil this backsplash? It has some going lateral and then some diagonal. Thank you for your help and insight!
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Hey Karin! Hmm, that’s a tough call! You could stencil all of the regular squares, and then paint the diamonds the solid color that you are using as the stencil color…does that make sense? It might look odd if you try to stencil the diamonds with the same stencil!
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What size tile/stencil did you get? Mine are 4×4 and wondering if that will look too busy and small. Should I just get an 8×8 stencil and do 4 squares in one stencil?
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Did you video your painting of kitchen cabinets?
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This turned out so amazing. I can’t believe the difference the paint made. I am working on a little kitchen makeover in my Palm Bay, FL home and think this would be a perfect solution for my backsplash. After I have my cabinet painters come I am going to give this a try!
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Hi! I just painted my backsplash after seeing this, love it! Thanks so much for posting, it’s a great idea and simple but makes the space feel so different. I have a question though, how did you convert the outlets to hdmi and a nightlight? I have a phone jack and a cable jack that I would love to put something in but my husband isn’t sure how that works. Did you rewire or buy some sort of converter?
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I loved it ! I need to do the same , to light up the kitchen, I am not ready yet, so thanks since you video give me some direction.
greetings from Winnipeg
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