How to Embellish Tiled Bathroom Walls
If your bathroom walls are tiled you may want to brighten up the room by embellishing them. There are several ways to do this with varying amounts of time and skill involved.
You Will Need
- Decorative tile
- Decorative tile border
- Putty knife
- Tile adhesive
- Duct tape
- Hammer
- Box knife
- Grout
- Stencil
- Stencil brushes
- Ceramic craft paint
- Decals
- Rags or paper towel
- Spray sealer
Step 1: Adding Decorative Tiles
You may want to embellish your tiled bathroom walls by removing a few of the existing tiles and adding new ones. You can add those with a solid color, design or pattern. Shop around a tile store for ideas; you may be surprised at the wide variety of tiles you find and ideas you can dream up.
First you will have to remove old tiles. Put duct tape on the tile around the ones you want to remove. This will protect the tiles from being cracked or damaged. Use the box knife to score the grout around the tile you want to remove. After doing this, hit the tile you want to remove with the hammer to break it. The pieces should easily fall from the wall. Use your putty knife to scrape away the rest of the tile and old adhesive and grout. Put the new tile in the hole to check for fit, then remove. On the backside of the tile, put on a bit of tile adhesive then wiggle the tile into place until it is aligned properly. Allow the adhesive to dry then grout the area around the tile. Do this with all the tiles you want to replace.
Step2: Adding Decorative Border
You can embellish the existing tile by adding a tiled border in a design or color to enhance it. You will install it around the top of the existing bathroom tiled walls in the same way you install any other tile. Put adhesive on the back of the tile, and push into place. Use tile spacers to evenly space the tiles and leave an even line between them to be grouted. When all of the tiles are in place, apply grout.
Step 3: Painting or Stenciling Tiles
You can paint directly on your bathroom tiles using stenciling techniques or freehand painted designs. If you are stenciling, choose a stencil that is appropriate for your room and tape it to the tile. Dip the stencil brush in the ceramic paint and tap most of it off onto paper toweling or a rag. Then tap the brush against the tile lightly to apply paint inside the lines of the stencil. When the paint is dry, remove the stencil.
You can paint designs on your tile using a fine brush such as a watercolor brush and colors of latex craft paint of your choice. After the design or the stenciling has dried, apply a coat of spray sealer over the painted area to protect it.
Step 4: Decals
Various types of decals or decorative clings can be purchased that will stick on your bathroom tile and add a design. This is the easiest way to add decorative touches to your tiles and an entire room can be finished in a matter of minutes. Most paint and craft stores sell this type of decal.
