These tiles around the old fireplace were originally many shades of beige and brown. Hmmm... Not really my cup of tea!
As part of the gradual Mexican make over creeping through the house,I decided to paint them. The geometric design seemed to suit a Mexican feel - they just needed some COLOUR with a capital C O L O U R- and if any colours deserve to be in capitals, it's HOT PINK and ORANGE.
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Sorry! There isn't a before picture but this is early in the process!
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When I explored the idea of painting tiles it suddenly became a bit complicated and expensive! That's because I went the the hardware store. The hardware store suggested special tile cleaner ($$ca-ching!$), tile primer($$ca-ching!$)and special tile paint ($$ca-ching!$). But as this wasn't a wet area or going to get much wear and tear, I decided just, simply, to paint it!!!
I cleaned it well and primed it with some acrylic house paint. I painted the first lot of tiles using a cheap mis-tint I had out the back. It's an orange oil based gloss I have been using on the picture rails. Being oil based and thin it was a pain to paint with. Not recommended!
But I even liked the tiles at this stage...
Next I actually had to open my wallet (and watch the moths fly out!) and buy a test pot of HOT PINK which was more than enough to complete it.
But the best trick was the grout pen! Found at the hardware store, the pen is easy to use and finishes off the tiles well. The white grout lines are just drawn on!
Next were the floor hearth tiles. A little tricky because the surface is uneven but it looks neat enough (hooray for no more gaps!) and lastly a frame edging (cut to size by our good friend)made from left over architraves from earlier wall rearranging. I painted it with two coats of acrylic gloss and stuck it on with liquid nails.
Add some all important donkeys and voila! All in all, a cheap Mexican make over and a major improvement on the brown tiles and rough edged gaping hole that was there.
Oh and just a note about the fish tank. My partner has had this fish for years and looks after him well. He has thought long and hard about the clean fish bowl idea and has come to the conclusion that a fish would prefer a bit of privacy and somewhere to hide. More like a pond. The water on the inside is clean! No fish OR donkey were harmed in this renovation.
