Last year we renovated our kitchen and installed a back splash
behind our counters. We used small ceramic tiles (4" x 4"). The
plain tiles we used were very inexpensive, less than $1.00 a
piece. But, we needed a bit of color, so we ended up buying a
few decorative tiles to place in between the plain tiles.
The problem with the decorative tiles was the cost!! Each tile
cost $8.00 a piece!!! Needless to say, we didn't buy many of
them. But, they really did make a decorative difference when
placed in between the plain tiles.
I was telling a friend of mine about the cost of these
decorative tiles and she told me what she had done. She has
wonderful decorative tiles, but as I found out, she paid much
less than I did.
She bought plain tiles. First, she cleaned the tile and gave it
a base coat of water base clear varnish. (the varnish she used
is J.W. etc.'s Right-Step water base clear varnish)
Once the varnish dried, she then applied acrylic paint and
incorporated a design it. (if you feel you don't have any
artistic talent, you could use a stencil)
Again, once the acrylic paint dried, she finished the tile by
giving it two more coats of the water base clear varnish. (make
sure you allow at least 12 hours drying time between coats of
varnish)
In the end, her decorative tile was more beautiful than the one
I had bought for $8.00. But, her tile cost under $2.00, and a
bit of her time.
All you need to make decorative tiles is plain white tiles,
some acrylic paint, a water base clear varnish and some
imagination!!!!
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