DIY Faux Tin Tile Ceiling

Our laundry room makeover is slowly taking shape, so I thought I'd share an update, plus the most interesting thing we've completed so far: our new ceiling!

First, let me get you up to speed on what we've done so far. Here's the room after John had removed the washer, dryer, and hot water heater: (Brace yourselves: IT'S BAD.)

This is also after John took up the old adhesive floor tiles and trim, so at least that part wasn't *quite* this ugly before. Still: UG.

As you can see, the ceiling is old stained popcorn. We've slicked out almost all of the other ceilings in the house, but this was one of the few remaining holdouts. (That little green strip is where the hot water heater sits; we couldn't get behind it to paint last time. And the panel in the ceiling is our attic access.)

John laid new tile:
 

And here's the room after we finished painting:

Ahh. That's better.

The recessed shelving on the right used to be an exterior door, believe it or not. John removed the door and built out that recess in its place. (The outside has insulation and exterior siding to match the rest of the house.) Since we never used that door, it's been a super handy upgrade for more storage.

Ok, now let's get to the fun part: our new ceiling!

If you've never heard of this product before, then I'm about to blow your mind:

These are Styrofoam ceiling tiles you can glue up right over popcorn ceilings! No prep work required!

I've already used tiles like these in my office and bedroom closet, and I freaking LOVE them. There are dozens of different designs you can choose from, they're surprisingly cheap (no more than $4 per 20-inch tile), and they go up in a matter of hours.

Here, take a look at my office ceiling:

You can barely see the seams for this design, which makes it look like a big mass of swirly circles up there. So fun!

And here's my closet:

Yes, my closet is pink and has a tiny crystal chandelier in it. WHAT.

Ok, back to the laundry room:

You can work from a corner or the middle of the room. Since we have a light in the middle, that's where we started. Here John's using a laser-level to find the middle line:

 

You can also just use a string or chalk line, though. The first tile is the most important; if it goes up crooked, your whole ceiling will be off.


Working out from the middle. (I cut the center corners of the tiles off with scissors.)

You stick the tiles up with construction adhesive - the kind that comes in a caulking tube. We used Loc-Tite, which I highly recommend. (Don't get the foam kind they tell you to; it doesn't stick! Just get the general all-purpose kind.)

The only trick is making sure you squeeze out really high piles of glue at each spot, the better for it all to smoosh into place once it's on the ceiling.

Making progress!

Once you have all the whole tiles you can fit in place, it's time to move on the smaller pieces. The tiles cut easily with a utility blade, so it's just a matter of measuring your space, marking your tiles with a straight edge and a ballpoint pen, and then making your cuts:

Make sure you mark the *back* of your tile, of course, so you don't have any ink left on the front.

We even stuck the tiles to our access panel, to make it blend in with the ceiling a bit more:

Even with all the small cuts and odd corners, John was able to finish the ceiling in just a few hours.

After you get all the tiles up comes the really time consuming part, though: caulking in all the lines.

These tiles are great, but they're not perfectly square. That means you'll have small gaps here and there between them, which you have to fill in with caulking. Not a big deal, but it does take a while.

Once the caulk is dry, you can paint the ceiling with any water-based paint you like. We debated going bright silver for an extra authentic tin-tile look, but then decided white was pretty enough. They'll just look like painted tin tiles. So, a coat of satin white paint later:

Pretty, huh? We're aiming for a vintage industrial vibe back here, but of course nothing else is finished yet - not even the light. Stay tuned for updates as I have them.

Ok, resources: there are several sites selling these tiles (just google "Styrofoam ceiling tiles") although most seem to have all the same styles. Almost all of the sites have every design at a set $3.99 per tile, but I price-shopped around and found mine for only $2.18 per tile over at StyroDecor. (SOLD!) Shipping was $14, so the whole ceiling only cost me about $65. And the tiles were here a day and a half later - that's the fastest shipping of anything I've ever purchased online!

And since I'm gushing, let me assure you I'm not being reimbursed in any way for anything in this post. (If only...) I've also purchased from Ceiling Tiles By Us in the past, and that was an equally awesome experience. I think they even e-mailed a week later to ask if I needed any help, and to see how the install went.

K, that's all for now! Hope you guys enjoyed seeing what we've been up to the past week!

*****

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