Install Peel and Stick Kitchen Backsplash

​​text by Vicki     ​Sign up to get Mother Daughter Projects updates in your email!

Steph’s kitchen has been in need of a backsplash since she moved into her house three years ago. During the refresh of her newly purchased house, we chose a stone tile but soon returned our sample as our energy and enthusiasm for tacking a tile project waned. It just seemed too daunting to deal with adhesive, grout, and cutting tile with a wet saw.

As a participant at the blogging conference, Haven, we were sent a sample box of Aspect Peel & Stick Tile along with 20 square feet of tile free. At the conference we were able to handle and try the tile in a session. It's one thing to try a product in a sample situation, but quite another in a real life scenario.

The beauty of Aspect’s Peel & Stick tile (with the exception of the glass version) is that it can be cut with simple tools. No complicated wet saws to deal with! The stone tile, which we chose, is exceptionally user friendly. Cuts can be made with tin snips or chisel and hammer.

How-to Steps

First we did a dry run of the tile placement.

Materials:

For tile install:

• Peel and Stick Tile (we used 20 sq ft for this project- Weathered Quartz)
• Tin Snips
• Chisel & rubber mallet
• Scrap wood to put under chisel
• Gloves if hands are sensitive

If removing caulk:

• Heat Gun
• Caulk removal tool 
• Mineral spirits

If priming walls:

• Painters tape (Frog tape)
• Primer (Kilz)

Preparing the wall: We used a heat gun to soften the old caulk. Then we used a caulk removal tool to have a smooth, flat base for the tile.

We cleaned the wall and countertop edge with mineral spirits. Next we needed to prime the wall so we used Frog tape to protect the edges and vertical stopping points. We used Kilz Primer as the tile instructions suggested. Once dried, we removed the Frog tape.

Once the surface was prepped and dried, we moved on to fitting our tile. To cut around the outlets, we used the plate as a guide, marking just within the plate to be sure the plate completely covered the tile.

The tile has natural breaks which we tried to utilize when marking outlet cuts. When a cut ended on a natural break, we just used a utility knife to cut away the backing.

The vertical cuts were easy to make with tin snips.

Horizontal cuts were made with a rubber mallet and chisel.

The backing was very easy to remove.

We did a light fit to make sure the placement was right and then pushed firm to get a strong hold.

When we came to the window molding, we made a paper pattern of the trim. We drew out the pattern, cut it out, and traced it onto the tile to be cut. For some spots, we made a paper guide. We cut out the paper guide and traced it onto a tile. 

To finish the edges, we used a scrap piece of molding and cut it to size on the miter saw. We primed, painted and put it into place using finishing nails.

After this project, we found a contour guide which would have been handy for the angles we had to cut around.

If you’re a frequent shopper in any big box store, you'll see other brands and types of peel and stick tile. They all claim to be easy to use, but it's clear when you start comparing these types of tiles that the Aspect tile is far superior when it comes to looking and feeling like real stone. It's amazing that you can get a high end look in a peel and stick tile! 

We are now looking at using the tile in my (Vicki) kitchen. I’d love the glass, but it's a little intimidating due to the number of outlets in my backsplash and the difficulty in cutting glass. I may go for the metal which can be cut with tools we already have. 

Kitchen when Steph moved into her house

After we made some updates

Kitchen after with new tile

If you’re in the market for a backsplash and don’t want the expense of all the extras needed for installing a traditional stone tile, this product is one you want to consider.

By the way, prices vary for this tile so do your research. We found the best price on Aspect’s own website where you can also order free samples and contact their tech support for additional help. Also, Home Depot has a display were you can see some of the tiles in person.

Please note: We are not sponsored by Aspect Tile. We were given this tile for free to try out. All thoughts and options are our own and based on our experience with the product.
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FYI: We are not professionals, and we don’t claim to be. This is what we found worked for our project. Yours may need a little different approach. Safety first!

FYI: Affiliate links are being used on this page. Purchasing via these links help support MDP!

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