Kitchen Backsplash Stencil

A fun project I started recently was to create an extremely cheap, but functional backsplash. I already had extra paint from my previous painting project in the living room and dinning room areas, so I was able to use that paint in addition to only a few more items! This cut down on costs and used the paint that was just sitting in my basement.

First step I made sure I taped off the edges of the cabinets.

After taping, I removed all of the outlet covers and prepped for painting.

I started off using a drop cloth, but it became fairly dangerous once I had to stand on the counters to reach the top portion of the walls above the cabinets. I highly recommend not standing on the drop cloth unless you can find a way to secure it and prevent any risk for slipping. 

For the base paint colors, I decided to mirror the dining room wall with the same dark green called Behr Alligator Skin  from Home Depot. I had painted opposing walls in the living room and one wall in the dinning room. I decided to keep things consistent with all of the first floor area (minus the half bath). The other walls are painted also with Behr paint in the color Wasabi green shown below. I chose both in a matte finish, which I do not recommend if you have children, but it worked out great for this project. 

If you are using latex paint you haven't used in a while, be sure to stir well and also add some water if need be. I personally always prefer latex for interior wall paint over oil bases just to cut down on the mess. 

This is the far left corner of the kitchen near the refridgerator. I decided not to continue the stencil above the cabinets to really create a backsplash effect instead of a wall detail effect. Of course, it always would be an option to continue the stencil pattern above if you prefer. 

Here you can see the paint is on the wall and now it's time for the challenging part! I decided to add a Polycrylic, also from Home Depot to protect the paint against splashes and messes. I didn't even use a quart, so it really didn't require much Polycrylic at all to cover the small area. I chose a simple stencil pattern to add some interest as well! Note: the areas that are exposed from the stencil will not be protected, so you may want to avoid too large of a pattern with thick lines on your stencil. It hasn't been a problem so far and still looks much better than my plain matte white walls from before. 

I purchased a stencil from Michael's made by FolkArt that was simple and I liked the size for such a small area. This was extremely cheap (only $5.99) and is a very thin, almost flimsy stencil. If you struggle with stenciling and brush work, you may want to purchase a thicker one. I felt confident using this one and had no problems with it's sturdiness or flexibility. I also was not shooting for the stencil to be perfect in order to add some character and charm. 

Make sure you line up each stencil by overlapping to ensure you are staying in line with the exposed areas that are not covered in the Polycrylic. Any areas that seem off or you aren't happy with you can just go over with the center section of the stencil once it's dried. Also you can touch up the exposed pattern with paint using a small watercolor brush. 

I also used a mini sponge roller, which will cause some texturing when you use a Polycrylic. If you want a smoother effect, be sure to use a traditional mini roller, not a sponge roller. Initially the sponge roller looks like bubbles, but it dries looking a little like the surface of concrete. 

In the process of working on this project I also learned it's much easier to start the stencil at the top and work your way down when working under a cabinet in a small space. The edges that don't line up perfectly are not easy to manipulate from an upward direction. One option with solving this, if you are looking for an extremely clean and perfected look, would be to purchase a few stencils and cut them to line up with the overlapping edges. I just held the edges down with my fingers and dabbed with a brush. There is a chance you will bend the stencil when doing this, so be sure to get the large areas covered first and then start on the edges. 

Also, for the edges that the roller couldn't reach, including the sockets, I simply dabbed extra Polycrylic into the corners. Again, I was not shooting for a perfect look so this was not too time consuming and I used a cheap older brush for the job. 

Here are the end results!

It's very difficult to see in photos, but is definitely noticeable in person. The light is reflecting in a way that it doesn't seem to catch the camera, but it turned out just the way I wanted. Now time to enjoy! Cheers!