Excellent solution to ugly counters
I have had this product on my counters for over a year now and I could not be happier! The counters in my home are awful. White with ugly blue edges.I knew one day I was going to cover them but I just wasn't sure what with. I went through one day and hunted down something I liked and I thought this would be great. When it arrived I was pleasantly surprised at how thick it was, and how overall durable it seemed. I made sure I cleaned my counters, edges and backsplash very well and off I went. A couple of tools I would highly recommend: Scissors. A craft/utility knife set. Small tube of kitchen caulk I also highly recommend measuring. I didn't because frankly I love to wing it and then be bummed out I have to wait for another roll to arrive. I'm a glutton for punishment I suppose. Nonetheless. I started applying the contact paper from the top of the backsplash, down tot he counter then forward, with the roll going horizontally across the counters. I don't have one long counter area so I did make sure to closely, roughly cut it down to size so I wasn't working with so much excess. The trick is a little patience and only peeling and folding down the backing just enough so you're not accidentally sticking everywhere. That being said, if you do, this paper actually releases nicely without stretching or ruining the adhesive. It takes a little oomph but it works so you have forgiveness. I only ordered the 15in wide so I worked all the way across the back of the counters, then started working along the front half and edges. I had enough extra from the 2nd row to nicely fold down on the edge of the counter. Make sure you work out all of your bubbles before you put the 2nd row down. I did rough cut the front pieces down a bit too so I didn't have a ton of excess hanging, plus the long strips would be great for areas I knew I'd need thin strips to cover (like around the curved edges of the counter). Once I got the top down and bubbles pushed out, I tightly wrapped it along the edge. After whatever adjusting needed to be done, I took my little craft utility knife and ran it along the bottom edge of the counter to remove any excess. Take your time here so the cut is smooth and even. I did have to improvise some with a section of my counter that juts out with a curved edge. I kept the grain still going horizontally instead of trying to do anything fancy with the 90degree turn. The biggest challenge for me was around the sink. I did my best here, using my utility knife a lot to slowly work around the sink so the paper was close enough for caulk to cover nicely. I wasn't worried about perfection, just closeness. One thing I would love to note is that the places where two parts of contact paper connect really are not noticeable with the dark color. I can't imagine it would be very obvious with any of them really. Unless someone wants to nitpick it, they'll not really notice. The texture of the surface is obvious that it's not actual counter, but the quality of it makes it look way better than the old stuff your mom used to buy from the store! Durability is pretty darn good. You will have to change some habits you may have such as placing hot cookware directly on it. My old countertop I didn't care but with this, it will create a ring. My poor son forgot and set the pot down on the counter from the stovetop. Thankfully we caught it, but worst case scenario I would have cut that section and peeled it off to replace. That is a fantastic advantage to this. Also, no knives on it! My husband cut something on my counters within the first week and boy was I mad. At first it was not noticeable really but after a few months the settling of the paper on the surface has created a nice white slit. I could take a small piece to cover it but I haven't. It's been there for a year, so maybe one day I'll do it. I recently made a floating counter in another area of my kitchen to help with keeping open floor space and to house my microwave and Keurig. I ordered another small roll of this to cover it to match. Perfection. I'm so glad I did rather than keep the dark brown wood color of the shelf I used. I think for the excellent quality of this, the value is excellent. It's a very nice, classy instant upgrade if you're looking for a cheap option to get you through. Some homes are worth redoing counters, some aren't. And some people can afford to do that, and some can't. That's ok... because this awesome stuff exists! Read more
