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fiberaddictThe fumes are getting to me...so I decided to go ahead and post photos! The kitchen is nowhere near done - we still have tile work and cabinets to refinish - but the counters are at the sealing stage. So....
I had this house built in 2003. I had ordered slate-gray counters....this is what I got:
Closeup:
I like green...but it wasn't what I had in mind. When I bought the paint for the kitchen, I didn't even consider the counters...so I ended up with a 70's vibe in there. Ah, well - it was OK. But the green bugged me....I finally got the push to do something about it. Paint's cheap...so, here we go:
First up, remove the laminate from the wall. We were going to tile over it, but decided it was too easy to pull off, so...we had a party.
The darker areas are where there was more glue - it was harder to remove those areas. Ah, well...you can see some of the drywall was damaged; we'll be fixing that before we start the tiling.
Before you can do any sort of painting, you need to clear and clean the counters. I used a 50/50 vinegar/water mix, and scrubbed them down really well. Then I rolled on 2 coats of Oil-based Kilz.
What a difference that made! We jokingly talked about stopping here, but...I can't stand white walls. White counters would have driven me batty!
I started with 2 base colors. You could do 1 if you wanted - I wanted a subtle depth. Both colors are close in shade, so neither one stands out. The rag is harem cloth - you can use cheesecloth, old t-shirts, or even paper towels. You can even use sponges - well, you'll see. :grin: Oh - make sure your rag/sponge is damp before you start - it'll soften the colors. (Or, you don't have to - I was going for more delicate-looking effects; you might have a different idea in mind.)
Here's how I "prepped" the paint - I used a small plastic plate as my palette.
I did the same thing (on a new plate) for each "layer" of paint. Some layers had 2 colors, some had more; I used glaze on most of the later layers (it "thins" the paint, and makes it more subtle. Sorta...float-y. I like the end result - you may not. The glaze is optional. :grin:)
I couldn't get a good shot of the first layer of paint - my camera read the yellows as white. It looked like delicate sandstone - the colors floated over the white. Rag painting makes a soft "smush" of color - and, unfortunately for my camera, the 2 colors I used were too close to the white primer. There were still blotches of white showing (which I wanted), and....well, take my word for it - it looked like sandstone. Pale sandstone.
Here's the 2nd layer prepped:
The cloudy paint is the glaze. I just squirted it on, and the sponge mixed it as I picked up more paint. Sponges make a more definite "shape" when you paint than rags do - you may like it better. I don't - but real rock isn't consistent in texture/color, and that's what I was going for.
Here's what it looked like after the 2nd round of painting:
Basically, I kept doing the same thing - I'd let the paint dry, grab a new plate, decide which colors I was going to use, and sponge or rag them on. I took photos..but really, how many photos of basically the same thing do you need? :lol:
Anyway - it took maybe 2 hours to do the whole thing. I let everything dry overnight, then this AM I started the polycrylic. THIS is what it looks like after the 2nd coat of poly:
Closeup:
We had decided up front that I wouldn't try for REAL rock; I was going for rock-ish. Just rocky enough to fool the brain into thinking "real". I think I succeeded - I am insanely happy every time I glance at the kitchen. We'll see if I stay that way; right now? This is what I wanted. :grin:
I'll post pictures after we finish the tile and the cabinets...but it'll take a bit. Tonight SG has to cut the wood for the "rock" backsplash, and I have to paint and poly-coat them. Tomorrow, he'll repair the drywall, and rip out the laminate on the other side of the kitchen (yes, I've already painted that side. The multi-tool we have cuts with minimal damage, and the wood will cover up any oops-es), and Friday - Lord willing! - he'll start cutting the first row of tile so we can start on that. I'm hoping that next week we can start on the cabinets.....
I had this house built in 2003. I had ordered slate-gray counters....this is what I got:
Closeup:
I like green...but it wasn't what I had in mind. When I bought the paint for the kitchen, I didn't even consider the counters...so I ended up with a 70's vibe in there. Ah, well - it was OK. But the green bugged me....I finally got the push to do something about it. Paint's cheap...so, here we go:
First up, remove the laminate from the wall. We were going to tile over it, but decided it was too easy to pull off, so...we had a party.
The darker areas are where there was more glue - it was harder to remove those areas. Ah, well...you can see some of the drywall was damaged; we'll be fixing that before we start the tiling.
Before you can do any sort of painting, you need to clear and clean the counters. I used a 50/50 vinegar/water mix, and scrubbed them down really well. Then I rolled on 2 coats of Oil-based Kilz.
What a difference that made! We jokingly talked about stopping here, but...I can't stand white walls. White counters would have driven me batty!
I started with 2 base colors. You could do 1 if you wanted - I wanted a subtle depth. Both colors are close in shade, so neither one stands out. The rag is harem cloth - you can use cheesecloth, old t-shirts, or even paper towels. You can even use sponges - well, you'll see. :grin: Oh - make sure your rag/sponge is damp before you start - it'll soften the colors. (Or, you don't have to - I was going for more delicate-looking effects; you might have a different idea in mind.)
Here's how I "prepped" the paint - I used a small plastic plate as my palette.
I did the same thing (on a new plate) for each "layer" of paint. Some layers had 2 colors, some had more; I used glaze on most of the later layers (it "thins" the paint, and makes it more subtle. Sorta...float-y. I like the end result - you may not. The glaze is optional. :grin:)
I couldn't get a good shot of the first layer of paint - my camera read the yellows as white. It looked like delicate sandstone - the colors floated over the white. Rag painting makes a soft "smush" of color - and, unfortunately for my camera, the 2 colors I used were too close to the white primer. There were still blotches of white showing (which I wanted), and....well, take my word for it - it looked like sandstone. Pale sandstone.
Here's the 2nd layer prepped:
The cloudy paint is the glaze. I just squirted it on, and the sponge mixed it as I picked up more paint. Sponges make a more definite "shape" when you paint than rags do - you may like it better. I don't - but real rock isn't consistent in texture/color, and that's what I was going for.
Here's what it looked like after the 2nd round of painting:
Basically, I kept doing the same thing - I'd let the paint dry, grab a new plate, decide which colors I was going to use, and sponge or rag them on. I took photos..but really, how many photos of basically the same thing do you need? :lol:
Anyway - it took maybe 2 hours to do the whole thing. I let everything dry overnight, then this AM I started the polycrylic. THIS is what it looks like after the 2nd coat of poly:
Closeup:
We had decided up front that I wouldn't try for REAL rock; I was going for rock-ish. Just rocky enough to fool the brain into thinking "real". I think I succeeded - I am insanely happy every time I glance at the kitchen. We'll see if I stay that way; right now? This is what I wanted. :grin:
I'll post pictures after we finish the tile and the cabinets...but it'll take a bit. Tonight SG has to cut the wood for the "rock" backsplash, and I have to paint and poly-coat them. Tomorrow, he'll repair the drywall, and rip out the laminate on the other side of the kitchen (yes, I've already painted that side. The multi-tool we have cuts with minimal damage, and the wood will cover up any oops-es), and Friday - Lord willing! - he'll start cutting the first row of tile so we can start on that. I'm hoping that next week we can start on the cabinets.....
no subject
Date: 2012-01-04 06:07 pm (UTC)I have the same countertop stuff, only mine is grey with blue flecks.
- Hearth
no subject
Date: 2012-01-04 08:35 pm (UTC)here's a photo of my (cluttered) kitchen with the black granite countertop and backsplash (my son's choice of colour). We went for the full height backsplash because the wall was a mess. It would have cost as much to level it and tile it as it did to have the whole thing done in granite. There's a couple of other shots of the kitchen in that set, as well as some of the rest of the
messhouse.no subject
Date: 2012-01-04 09:46 pm (UTC)And...I'm glad I'm not the only person with more stuff than space! I'm slowly working on organizing the house - that's this year's project. IF we can convert the garage (which requires first building a shop/storage building), I'll be able to have a "normal" house and a studio. :fingers crossed:
no subject
Date: 2012-01-04 10:43 pm (UTC)I've cleared out a good chunk from the basement and garage this year and with the new closet we put in last weekend, I've got space to put some of the stuff away.
This year's goal is to get all the stuff squared away. Then next year I'll paint it all.
aNNa says:
Date: 2012-01-05 03:17 pm (UTC)But I don't at all like what you've done. Will you say mean things at my blog if I tell you it's vomit colored and nasty? (((:P))) Cuz... I think I have different taste than you, V. Love you bunches, but your counters are now officially ugly. And I... need to learn to keep my mouth shut...
Re: aNNa says:
Date: 2012-01-05 03:39 pm (UTC)The green was OK....but I had my mind set on gray. I never could get past the fact that the counters weren't what I ordered. I tried....
And. I LOVE Forest Green - our bedroom is a soft, mossy forest - but. In this kitchen, it'd be too dark. It's not a small kitchen...but the way it's arranged it feels "close". I had to go back and sponge gold over the orange-y walls, because the orange - which isn't that dark of a color! - made the kitchen too depressing for me.
I think, once you see it finished, you might like it a little better. (I can "see" the finished kitchen, with the tile....and I think it'll look good. We'll see if I can tile as well as I "see" it....) And if you don't like it, that's OK. SG does, which is what counts here - he's VERY hard to please!
From ali
Date: 2012-01-05 04:24 pm (UTC)It really looks like it has texture on my monitor - such an illusion that I was thinking - how will you clean that rough of a surface??
The green counters looked fine alone - but next to the warm honey colored wood in the picture - I am sure hearthy can imput more on the colors - it's gotta be warm or cold - cool green/ grey with warm honey - and neutral cabinets...I can see wanting to tie it together more...
Wanna see the whole thing once the tile is up up up!
Re: From ali
Date: 2012-01-05 07:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-06 03:43 pm (UTC)Hearthy says she personally sucks at home repair and would be thrilled with the results you got. Again, better than gey with blue dots.