6 Hours to a Tin Tile Backsplash

One you do the dry lay, and you have the tiles cut to fit, it’s time to lay the double-sided tape on each panel. Place the bottom of the panel on the countertop, and put it in the corner where the countertop and wall meet. Lay it onto the wall so you’re covering all the visible drywall— no gaps between countertop and tile. Overlap each tile about a 1/16 of an inch, moving left to right, Clark advises. Hans cut off pieces of the double-sided tape and adhered them to the bottom edging piece and each tin tiles. Pressed against the wall gently. One by one, she added the adhesive, and went left-to-right, pushing the panels and edging against the wall. 

Step 8: Add the lighting strips

After attaching the tin tiles and edging, Hans secured the chargeable, magnetic lighting strips under the cabinetry. “You can just tap them to turn them on, or leave them on, and they react to motion,” she says.

Step 9: Add the new outlet covers

Once all the tiles are laid into place, install the outlet covers with a flathead screwdriver. Before you put the outlet covers in place, check that the tin tile does not touch any electrical wiring. Hans chose outlet covers that were the same brushed nickel shade as the tin tiles. If they don’t match, Clark recommends painting so they don’t stand out, then installing. “[Outlet covers] should sit over the top of the tile so there’s no gaps,” she says.

With her project complete in less than six hours, she was still full of energy by the end of the day. “I taught a yoga class, and still went to a concert in the evening,” Hans says.

Ultimately, the finished tin tile backsplash adds a genuine sense of depth to the kitchen. “Somehow, it makes it feel like the ceiling is taller,” she says. “I love the way it looks.” Hans estimates the project cost her about $250 total. “I think if I hired someone it would have been like $800,” she says. While there are a few tiny mistakes Hans might spot, they aren’t prominent enough for anyone else to notice.