Budget Friendly Wall Makeover - Create Make Decorate with Nikki

Hey there friends! I am super excited to share with you all an easy way to jazz up a boring wall by using peel and stick floor tiles to give a budget friendly wall makeover. When we re-modeled our kitchen 15 years ago, we had a computer desk area built in the den that is just off the kitchen. The cabinets in this space also match the cabinets in the kitchen. The computer desk has served its purpose over the years, but it’s time to get give this space a little makeover and give it a new look.

Here is the area that I will be working on. I wish I taken a picture of it before I removed the shelves that were on the left of the photo where you see the gray wall. It was a built in shelf that slid out in order to occupy a printer. By removing the shelf, it opened up the space a lot.

Using peel and stick floor tiles to makeover a wall space.

The space is generally dark and doesn’t have a lot of lighting, so I definitely wanted to go light and bright with some character. I thought about wall paper and even stenciling the wall myself, but wall paper can be a bit expensive. While, scrolling through Pinterest one day I came across a post on peel and stick floor tiles. I loved they way they looked and I thought to myself, why couldn’t I put those on a wall… so I did!! Onto the internet I went to find what I wanted. Luckily, I found the exact ones over at Walmart for a little over $11.00 for a box of 10! The price was perfect, so I purchased 2 boxes. You can also find these exact peel and stick tiles on Amazon for $11.78 for a box of 10. You can find them here.

First, I began by peeling off the existing wall paper that I had on there and giving the walls a good cleaning.

How to apply Peel and Stick Floor Tiles onto a Wall

To begin, you need to measure out your space. My space was exactly 7ft long and 2 feet from top to bottom, so I needed 14 tiles in total. Next, just remove the paper from the back of the tiles and place onto the wall.

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Now, it should be that easy, right? I thought so anyways! After applying a few, they started to fall right off the wall! What was I going to do? My walls have a little bit of texture on them and the paint finish is eggshell, so there wasn’t too much of a glossy feel to them. I wasn’t sure why they weren’t sticking good because the tiles are plenty sticky when you peel the paper off. Off to the garage I went to search for something that I could use. Thankfully, my husband had some 3M multipurpose adhesive spray that I figured would work.

I went back and sprayed the adhesive spray onto the wall and then applied the tiles to it. I was back in business! Or, so I thought! I’ll explain later. On a side note…using a small roller like the one above helps to smooth out any air pockets underneath the tiles.

The whole process went fairly quick and I think it took me all about an hour to do. Luckily, I didn’t need to make any cuts. They fit perfectly!

I was so happy with how easy it was to do and how pretty it looked! It really made the space look so much bigger and brighter. What do you think?

I decided to leave it alone for the night and make sure that the peel and stick tiles had a chance to set. You can see above there to the left the problem that would be waiting for me in the morning.

What to do if the peel and stick tiles aren’t sticking.

When I woke up the next day and went to check on the wall, about 5 of the tiles came loose! Not what I wanted to see. I figured the 3M spray had done the job. It did, but it didn’t.

Grabbing the adhesive spray, I removed the affected tiles and sprayed it again. The directions on the spray tells you to apply it and then wait until it gets tacky to place the object over it. I was sure that’s what I did the day before. Maybe I didn’t apply enough the first time, so I made sure to get the entire area where the peel and stick tile would go, paying close attention to the corners. It worked somewhat. Eventually, there was lift in most of the corners. To solve this, I took small tack nails and hammered them into the corners of the tiles. Finally, all was well!

After a few trial and errors, I am very pleased and happy with how this project turned out! It really brightened up the space like I wanted it to. It was fairly easy to do and I would definitely use these peel and stick tiles for a wall project again. Overall, I spent under $25.00 to decorate this space. I turned it into a cute coffee bar for now and later it may serve as a butlers pantry. This will be the first part of the makeover that I want to do in this room. Eventually, I want to turn it into a semi-formal dining room. Stay tuned!