I need some creative input on how to remedy the brick backsplash in my kitchen. It is about 1/4 inch thick but the worst part is the grout lines look and feel like black tar. Any advice on how to paint, conceal them would be appreciated!
Sounds like you have fake brick tiles on your wall...can't say that I blame you for not liking it!
The easiest thing to do would be to paint the brick in a soft off-white (or whatever color you like). The better, and messier, thing to do would be to pull them off completely and start over. This would probably destroy the drywall behind them so you would need to cut that out and replace the backsplash area with backer board, then re-tile.
Assuming you don't want to replace the brick and do all that work, however, you can paint the black grout lines, texture paint the brick...lots of decorative options there. I would suggest going down to Lowes and looking at their displays in the paint dept. on color/texture effects they offer.
If the brick is real you could also do a scratch coat on it, bringing it all to an even surface, then paint it. This option will depend on how the backsplash fits against your countertop, how close your faucet is to the wall...and only you know that.
I hope this gets some creativity going...good luck with your project!
Posts: 356 | Location: St Louis, MO (Zone 6) | Registered: Oct 31, 2007
Thanks stl_mary! I had been thinking of painting it a more neutral color. Of course tearing it off, and all of the drywall with it, had crossed my mind. I had thought about trying to use a smaller brush and handpaint the grout lines. Thanks for the advice!
I'm so excited, that I just joined this forum to tell you what I saw on Decorating Cents yesterday. The designer was working on the kitchen in a home, purchased for a son and daughter to live in while in college. For the fake brick, she used her finger to stroke on joint compound into the "grout," giving it a more realistic look. I think she adjusted the color of the brick too. You can probably check it out on the HGTV site. I was totally surprised at the change in its appearance. Hope this helps.
The designer was working on the kitchen in a home, purchased for a son and daughter to live in while in college. For the fake brick, she used her finger to stroke on joint compound into the "grout," giving it a more realistic look. I think she adjusted the color of the brick too. You can probably check it out on the HGTV site. I was totally surprised at the change in its appearance. Hope this helps.
