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Are you looking to paint floor tile in your home? This is an easy step-by-step DIY guide that any beginner can follow to paint floor tile easily!
Painting floor tile can be such a cost effective way to update your home. If you live in a fixer upper like myself, you might have floor tile in your home that you aren’t too fond of keeping around. I have painted floors in my front entryway and I have painted floors in my bathroom using this technique. When you paint floor tile, you can save yourself thousands of dollars that you would spend on replacing brand new floor tile in your home. If you generally like the location of the floor tile in your home, but just do not prefer the color or style, then consider painting floor tile to give it a modern and fresh look in your home rather than going straight for the demolition in a home renovation project.
In this post, you are going to learn all about how paint floor tile, how to use a stencil on floor tile, the best paint for floor tile, and much, much more!After following this DIY floor paint tutorial, you are going to be a pro and extra prepared on where to start when painting floor tile.
This post is all about how to paint floor tile that every beginner DIYer should know about in 5 easy steps.
Here is the painting floor tiles before and after. This before and after of painted floor tile in my home shows you the power of the rustoleum floor tile paint! This before and after painted tile can give you an idea of what is possible. I chose a trendy farmhouse floor tile stencil because that was the main design aesthetic in this home. This trendy farmhouse floor tile stencil gave the entryway floor tile some much needed modern style to my home. Be sure to take into consideration the overall design aesthetic in your home.
Check out this post where I talk about different design aesthetics here.
How To Paint Floor Tile
Step 1: GRAB YOUR TOOLS
These are the tools you will need to paint floor tile. You won’t need a ton of tools to paint floor tile, but you do need the right tools! Luckily, these tools don’t have to cost more than $100! That is much less than the cost of buying brand new floor tile and floor tile grout! The items you will need for this painted floor tile project are floor cleaner, base coat paint, stencil color paint (if you are choosing to do a print), top coat to seal and protect the floor from damage, foam roller brushes, and painter’s tape.
FLOOR TILE PAINT
I used a stencil and rustoleum floor tile chalk paint to paint our entryway tile. I also used a floor tile stencil to paint our bathroom floor tile. I painted the floor tile “linen white” by rustoleum and painted the stencil on the floor tile “aged grey” also by rustoleum. You can choose whatever colors you’d like! I thought the grey and white would be a nice soft pattern, but don’t be afraid to have fun with color! There are a range of stencil styles on Amazon as well! Check out my favorite floor stencils in my Amazon StoreFront here.
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Buy rustoleum floor tile paint on Amazon here.
PRO TIP: Please make sure you measure your floor tile so that you are purchasing the correct size floor tile stencil. My floor tile was an odd 13 x 13 size and I made a 12×12 stencil work, but if your floor tile is an odd size, then you might need to look into a custom size stencil.
Buy the floor stencil I used on Amazon here.
Buy the rustoleum floor tile paint on Amazon here
You will also need a foam roller to stencil floor tile paint as well as the top coat. This was the best option I found on Amazon for the price! I would suggest getting a few rollers so you can just toss them after you are done.
Buy it here on Amazon
Please be aware of the size can you are purchasing. For example, If you are going to paint floor tile in a kitchen, you might need more than if you were to paint floor tile in a bathroom. Also take note of the finish. I use a matte finish when I painted floor tile in the bathroom, but I used the clear satin finish in our entryway. I would suggest the satin for easy cleaning.
Buy it on Amazon here
Step 2: Begin with cleaning your tile floors really well. You’ll also want to prepare the space by cleaning the tile floor REALLY WELL. Make sure there is no dirt, dust, or other liquids that could come through the paint and discolor your base coat tile floor paint. I used this Krud Cutter to clean the floor, and also made sure to vacuum. You do NOT want any hair or dust to stick to the paint, so be very thorough!
Buy it on Amazon here
PRO TIP: You might also want to tape your stencil into place. I’ve tried so many painters tape and frog tape is still the best in my opinion. The last thing you want is you tile stencil to be moving as you are painting the print. It can cause chaos when you are trying to get the perfect painted floor tile.
Step 3: When you paint floor tile, make sure to COVER your tile in your base paint, for me this was white chalk paint by Rustoleum. Let it cure over night.
PRO TIP: you might want to have a fan there while it dries to help with drying time if you are short on time completing your painted floor tile diy project. I like using fans for a range of diy projects. If you’re anything like me and HATE the smell of strong odors, having a fan will also allow for more air flow and easier breathing. I personally like this oscillating fan that is also child proof as I have littles running around. It also doesn’t hurt to have a fun for summer diy projects.
Step 4: When you are ready to paint floor tile in bathroom or entryway, add a stencil over top each tile, tape into place, foam roll the print paint over top. Let it cure over night.
CHECK THIS ONE I FOUND ON AMAZON THAT IS STUNNING!
Step 5: Add your top coat. I used polycrillic satin clear finish on my ceramic tile. Let it cure 24 hours before stepping on it if you can help it! I also use floor tile paint in my bathroom. This bathroom had the same dated tile and I absolutely needed to change it. I went with a bolder modern style stencil pattern and I loved how it turned out! It might look a little blue at first, but don’t worry it dries clear! This top coat was definitely the strongest in odor, so if you have a fan anywhere, I still highly recommend it for your paint floor diy project.
Find this exact floor paint stencil here.
Check out some of my favorite bathroom accessories that are pictured here in this picture.
Still debating which pattern to go for?
I didn’t take many pictures of the painted floor tile process, but I did make a youtube video of the ENTIRE painted floor tile process for you to watch as your guide. You’ll see all the mistakes I made and even a MAJOR pivot at the end because I wasn’t completely in love with the first way I completed the diy painted floor project. This helped me with my bathroom painted tile floor diy project later on, so this was great practice! This can help you decide to go for an extra clean look, or perhaps a more rustic and imperfect look that I completed. If you found the video helpful, be sure to subscribe for more DIY projects.
Still debating which pattern to go for your paint floor tile diy project?
Check out my Amazon Storefront category “paint floor tile” for a range of options if you are planning to paint floor tiles in your bathroom or kitchen.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
