I Painted My Vinyl Floor

Can you  paint a vinyl kitchen floor?  Should you paint a kitchen floor?  How do you paint a kitchen floor?  Would painting the floor be worth the effort and time?

I struggled with answering those questions.  I came to 2 conclusions: 

1.  I really couldn't make it any uglier!

2.  Eventually we're going to install real tile anyway.

Just to give you an idea of my kitchen/dining-room  floor plan, I made this simple diagram.
The black represents floor covered in counter-tops, fridges, etc.
The yellow is my ugly vinyl flooring.
The grey is carpeting (yuck!).
Eventually, we're going to rip everything out and tile the whole thing,
but that project is possibly years away.

So you can see that I really didn't have a ton of vinyl flooring to paint.  Considering the back-breaking and mind-numbing work required in painting the small area of flooring I DID paint, I would never consider painting and stenciling a large area.  I have a new found respect for all you crafty people who painted and stenciled entire rooms.  Wow!  What a lot of work!

My inspiration!  Check out this fab post by Shabby Coast Cottage!
[Photo by Shabby Coast Cottage]

I got my stencil and learned the technique from this lovely post by JDC.  
[Photo by JDC]

TL: Primer | TR: Floor paint
BL: Tracing stencil | BR: Painting stencil

Here are the steps I followed to paint my floor:

1. Removed drawer under my stove. (mine's not a broiler)
2. Cleaned the floor with ammonia and rinsed it well.
3. Sanded the floor with 150 grit sandpaper.
4. Vacuumed and wiped up all sanding residue.
5. Taped off edges, trim, and bottom of fridge.
6. Painted on a layer of KLEAN-STRIP EASY LIQUID SANDER.
7. Painted on KILZ 2® Latex Primer.
8. Painted on BEHR PREMIUM® Porch & Floor Paint--2 coats.
9. Traced stencil guidelines with gel pen.
10. Stenciled in BEHR PREMIUM PLUS ULTRA® Semi-Gloss Enamel.--2 coats. 

I bought some clear varnish to use as a top-coat but have yet to apply it.  It's been several months since I've painted the floor and it's holding up so nicely, I doubt I'll ever paint on the vanish.  

Here's a couple more "afters": 

The texture of the floor is still evident, but I like it soooooo much better.  I mostly clean the floor with warm water.  When that isn't enough, I have a swiffer thingy that I use and it works great.  

How about you all?  Would you ever consider painting your kitchen floor?

Happy crafting and big hugs from Montana,

Before you click away, I'd like to invite you to join in my current sewing/craft challenge.