How to Grout Tile

The first time I grouted was in my kitchen at my old house. I had no clue what I was doing and I was SO scared I’d mess it up! I spent hours grouting (we put in a TON of subway tile) and I learned a lot.

For this kitchen, I tiled behind the oven and now it is time to grout!

how to grout tile

Let’s start with the video tutorial so you get an overview on what I did. Then, I’ll dive in with more details below:

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SUPPLIES

step 1

Start by mixing your grout. You want to make sure to mix enough to cover a good sized area, but not too much. For behind my stove, that was easy, but I’ve grouted too large of an area before and it was tricky to get it all off before it totally dried.

Pour the grout in a bucket and then mix it with cold water until it’s the consistency of pancake batter. Before I’d grouted, I was nervous that I wouldn’t get the mix right- but it’s easy to tell when it too watery or needs more water. Mix the grout for a few minute then let it sit for 10 minutes.

Inspect your tile and make sure all of the tile mortar is off the front of the tile and from between the grout lines. It’ll look much better at the end to have it off now.

step 2

Remix the grout with the flat margin trowel and now it’s ready to put on the tile. Use a float at a 45 degree angle to apply the grout and make sure to get it in all the grout lines.

step 3

Once you have the grout lines filled, take the float at a 90 degree angle and scrape off all excess grout. Let it dry 10-20 minutes and then use a damp sponge to clean off any left over grout. Make sure to not get your sponge too wet or you could get the grout of the lines.

step 4

Finally, once the grout has dried 2 hours, go back over the tile with a microfiber towel or cheese cloth. This will remove any haze (or traces of grout that will muddy up the front of the tile).

after

After I pushed the stove back and added a few accessories (like that pink cast iron pot!), I was so so pleased with how it looked! The star tile adds a bit of whimsey and fun to the space. I really love it!

To celebrate this area being done, I dressed my dog in a chef’s outfit and laughed and laughed! Lucy isn’t cooking, but I sure wish she knew how 😂😉

Here’s a close-up- you’ve got to love that Spanish tile. This about wraps up my kitchen projects. I’ll share after pictures of the whole room and a budget breakdown in a few weeks. Stay tuned!

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