Changing a backsplash grout color

Have you ever had a tiled surface that had grout that was a weird, gross, or boring color? Did you think you needed to re-grout it to change it? I did, so I lived with the grout color on our kitchen backsplash for ages, until I stumbled upon grout stain. You paint it over the existing grout, and it stains it a new color!

When we originally installed our cool hexagon tile kitchen backsplash, we used a light grout color. The end result was that the hex tiles all blended together so you couldn’t really see their neat shape. Staining the grout a darker color really makes them pop now, and was totally worth the effort.

And when I say effort, it was… yeah, a lot of work. It took the two of us most of a day to complete. But, depending on how much surface area you’re working with, and the type of tile you have, this job will likely be easier for you. We had a lot of wall to work with, and our tiles are marble, which are porous and hung on to the stain quite a bit. Glazed ceramic tiles are much easier to wipe off and work with.

Tools used for this project:

• Polyblend Grout Renew (purchased at Home Depot)
• Nitrile gloves to protect our hands
• Foam brushes
• Kitchen sponges with a scrubby side & soft sponge side
• Painter’s tape
• Dropcloth to protect counter top

We started by removing the shelves on our wall, and taping off around the edges with the painter’s tape. I then used a little dish soap, water, and a sponge to wash the wall to remove any residue on the tiles and grout. I also laid down newspaper along the counter so the drips wouldn’t stain the counter top. Guess what? The wet newspaper ended up transferring the newsprint onto the counter tops, so don’t do this! We ended up swapping out the paper mid-project for some plastic sheeting and dropcloths we had on hand.

The product instructions say to rub the grout stain just on the grout and leave on for 30-60 minutes. Since we had small tiles and painting this stuff on just the grout lines would have been painstaking, we ended up painting it on the grout AND the tiles–much easier to cover a large surface that way. The trade-off was having to scrub the grout stain off of the tiles. That’s where the rough, scrubby side of the kitchen sponges came in handy–they were rough enough to get the grout stain off the tile, but didn’t scratch the marble or damage it. By the time we’d painted our way across the wall with the grout stain, it was time to go back to where we started and scrub it off. It definitely took some elbow grease to get it off the tiles, but it stuck to the grout brilliantly, and it looked just as we’d hoped it would!

The grout stain says it has a sealer built into it, but I ended up using some Sealer’s Choice on the tiled area behind our stove for some extra protection, since we’d just scrubbed the tiles a bunch and a lot of cooking oil gets splattered there.

Here’s the before and after!

Upcycled styrofoam pantry risers

Earth Day seems like an appropriate time to post this DIY for pantry risers! I’ve had some Styrofoam blocks sitting in my garage for a while now, since I can’t bring myself to throw them away and have been looking for a way to re-use them. You’ve likely come across these before–they’re usually packed around electronic equipment and other items that are fragile and need insulation during shipping. They protect stuff, but they are also garbage and end up in landfills and the ocean and don’t biodegrade, which is a huge bummer.

Anyway, I was recently rummaging in my deep IKEA kitchen cabinets looking for a can of pineapple and inspiration struck–I could use the Styrofoam blocks as risers in my cabinets!

This is a super easy project. My Styrofoam pieces were pretty long, so I just needed to cut them in a single place to make them the length I wanted. They are easy to cut, too. The only downside–the little bits that come off where you cut them cling to everything, so I recommend wiping them up with something wet, otherwise they can scatter and grab on to the nearest piece of fabric.

Tools I used for this project:

• Styrofoam blocks (I think you can purchase these at a craft store, but please recycle old pieces if you have them. If you’re paying money for materials, I’m sure there’s something better suited for risers that’s more eco-friendly)
• Sharp knife (I used a serrated bread knife and it worked nicely)
• Cutting board
• Measuring tape
• Pen for marking measurements

Measure the inside width of your cabinet, then measure and mark that on your Styrofoam. I added a couple of millimeters so that I could wedge the pieces in and they wouldn’t move around. Cut the Styrofoam and place it in your cabinet. That’s it!

I put in a few layers to make my back row taller, and if you’re stacking these you may want to glue them together or wrap a piece of packing tape around them. Since I didn’t want to bother with that, I made my pieces just a smidge wider so they would wedge into place and not move or tip over.

This project took all of 20 minutes, and I can finally see all of the food at the back of my cabinet. No more hunting for things or having them expire before I get a chance to use them. Yay!

Refinishing a table

A cherry red stain that looks dark orange in the sun

I became the proud owner of this red entryway table/desk a few years ago when I found it on the side of the road with a “Free” note taped to it. It was a bit beat up, but the only major thing wrong with it was a veneer top that had gotten a lot of water damage. At the time, I simply chipped the veneer off, sanded it down, and stained the top to match the rest of the piece. However, I recently decided I’m over the red color, and a more natural wood stain would look much nicer.

There are a few ways to remove paint and stain from wood–the easiest *might* be with a liquid paint remover product that you dump on, let sit, then scrape off. I didn’t have any of that stuff, nor did I really want to experience the fumes that likely play a big part in that process. What I do have are some electric sanders and a lot of elbow grease, so I got to work.

Things I used for this project:

• An electric palm sander (like this one from Dewalt)
• A multi-tool for detail sanding (like this one from Ryobi)
• Sandpaper in coarse and fine grits
• Tack cloth
• Safety glasses and a mask
• Towel, iron, and metal scraping tool (for the veneer removal)
• Wood stain (I like Watco Danish oil)
• Polyurethane (I used Varathane)

I worked on this project outside, in my yard. I’d recommend doing this somewhere with a lot of ventilation–you’re going to get sawdust everywhere, and the polyurethane has a strong odor to it.

I started by sanding off all of the red stain. Make sure you’re wearing some glasses and a mask to cover your nose and mouth, otherwise you’ll eat the sawdust you kick up. The palm sander with a piece of very coarse sandpaper in it worked really well. I followed up with the multi-tool which has a triangular-shaped sanding part on it to reach into the joints and more detailed areas.

After removing the stain, I found a side that still had a piece of veneer on it. That stuff typically doesn’t sand off easily, so I slapped a wet towel over it, then ran a hot iron over the towel for a few minutes. The steam loosened the glue under the veneer and I was able to peel it off in strips using a metal paint scraper.

I then went over the entire piece with a fine-grit sandpaper to smooth out any rough patches. The poor table looked awfully naked, but I really liked seeing the different types of wood used to make it, and the variations gave it some personality.

A little bare…

Time for some stain!

After a coat of stain

After wiping off any remaining sawdust with the tack cloth, I rubbed on a coat of the Danish oil. The wood soaked it up and turned a nice golden brown color. I let that sit for 2 days, then applied a coat of polyurethane to just the top. I also let the poly sit for 2 days. It smells STRONG, so make sure it’s fully cured before you bring your furniture inside. The Danish oil does offer some water protection, but I added the extra coat of poly since the table gets a lot of use and we sometimes set wet stuff down on it.

And here’s the result! In photos it doesn’t look like a radical change, but I think the natural wood color looks so much prettier than the dark red. Overall, a relatively easy project that you can complete in just a few days!