One of the drawbacks of renting a house or an apartment is that a tenant often has little choice in the choice of carpet, paint, and Formica counter tops. While carpet can be hidden beneath rugs and the walls can be decorated with posters, a person is usually stuck with the counter top found in the kitchen and bathrooms.
Fortunately for those of us who rent, covering up a Formica counter top is not impossible project and can be done in a way that is totally reversible when the lease is up. If you can’t stand the looks of the counter top in your kitchen a day longer, then one of these easy makeovers may work for you. If you browse the best rated investment properties in Singapore, you will come across some of the best listings
Contact paper
Contact paper is a special kind of paper with a self adhesive backing, and is a fantastic low cost way of giving an ugly Formica counter top a whole new look. These days, contact paper is usually called “self adhesive shelf liner” and is available in limited patterns at most discount department stores.
How contact paper works is that you cut the paper to the proper size, peel away the paper backing that covers the adhesive, and then stick the paper directly onto the Formica counter top. It you created a little wrinkle or are slightly off, the paper can be lifted and repositioned. What’s nice about using decorative contact paper is that most of it is washable, which makes it a great solution for kitchen counter tops. It is also is very easy to remove.
Shelf paper is priced between $6-10 a roll and comes in 18″ and 24″ inch widths. While the width isn’t enough to span the width of your counter top, it can be pieced together so that the seams aren’t very noticeable.
Aubuchon Hardware has one of the best lines of contact paper I’ve seen, with over 80 patterns in stock including some fantastic textured prints, plaids, and bold patterns. Amazon.com also carries a fine selection of contact paper by Decora, including a faux marble print that looks quite elegant.
Self adhesive “peel and stick” vinyl wall paper
Designyourwall.com carries an incredible line of contact paper that’s marketed as self adhesive vinyl wall paper. The patterns are as pretty as decorative wallpapers and are grouped by themes including metallic, solids, mattes, tile, wood grain, and decorative. Designyourwall.com even carries faux snake skin and red crocodile adhesive wallpapers for the more adventurous.
These self adhesive wall papers are easier to work with than contact paper because they don’t stick to each other. Most of the wall coverings offered by this company measures 18″ in width, and comes in 49 foot rolls which is enough to do both a kitchen and the bathrooms. These peel and stick wallpapers average around $65 a roll and are also washable, making them a terrific solution for covering up an ugly kitchen or bathroom counter.