Homeowner makes DIY stencil to transform floor for under £50 – and what a difference!

A pipe leaking is up there with the most dreaded of homeowner nightmares. But one homeowner turned it around and made the most of replacing the floor after a leak sprang up in the utility room.

Nicola Hill from Stoke on Trent, decided to embrace the silver lining and transform her utility room floor completely. And wow she did an amazing job, and best of all using a homemade DIY stencil (yes, really!) and two shades of paint the whole job cost less than £50.

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Utility room floor before

After discovering a leak in the room Nicola was left with no choice than to take up the laminate. What she discovered underneath were 1960s tiles which were in great condition, albeit splashed with old paint.

Seeing that the floor was inn a workable condition Nicola decided to save on the budget and do some savvy DIY. She first set about cleaning them. However after using an acidic tile cleaner, the tiles were left with a white powdery coating that wouldn’t budge. Not good enough to leave bare, so she had an idea.

First she cleaned the tiles with sugar soap to prep, before applying a base coast of Frenchic paint in 'Swanky Pants'.

Nicola then decided to totally transform the tiles by creating an amazing geometric floor pattern using stencils and Frenchic paint - and she spent just £40 to £50 on the entire project.

'I came up with the floor idea from seeing other people’s outdoor patio areas on Facebook' she told Latest Deals.

Just like this one...Homeowner uses decorative stencil to carry out impressive 'Yarden' makeover

DIY stencil made from cardboard...

To make this makeover all the more impressive, Nicola's partner actually made the stencil by hand after she made an error with measurements.

She explains, 'My partner is a maths teacher so the maths side of it was worked out by him, although I ordered the wrong size stencil as I didn’t listen to him! He therefore made me one from a cardboard box which allowed the repeat pattern to work on the 9” tile.'

'The stencil was made out of dense cardboard - a Ted Baker dress box actually!' – see, we knew it was a fashionable design!

She started the stencilling from the middle, working outwards. Detailing, 'I used masking tape and used a limited amount of paint on the stencil brush to do the first coat and dried it with a hairdryer, then applied a second coat by dabbing the stencil brush.'

Nicola shares details of the colours in the stencil, they are After Midnight and Blackjack. Both also Frenchic Paint.

'I did every other tile first so as not to smudge it, then my partner made the edging stencil to fit the border and I did this as I got to the wall.'

After: Nicola's stencilled utility room floor

Just goes to show if you have the time and the patience it really pays to get creative. Nicole described the process of stencilling as, ‘painstaking but worth it.’ We’ll say, the new floor looks incredible!

Related: Living room flooring ideas - from wooden flooring and tiles to durable yet stylish carpet

Feeling inspired to give it a go?