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How To Paint Your Countertops To Look Like Granite

Giani Granite Paint received. This post contains affiliate links. I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

Wondering how to paint your countertops to look like granite? We were excited because we have been remodeling our kitchen and used Giani Granite Paint for our countertops. In our first post Giani Granite Paint For Countertops Review you can see the initial steps of painting your countertops.

We started the next steps of the Giani Granite Countertop Paint and after priming the countertops (which even the black prime color made our countertops look tremendously better!) you have to wait about 8 hours, which for me turned into 3 days! I got busy with work, life, fantasy football….

But now I’m back in the saddle and the next step is to apply the color paints, or the minerals.   There are 3 colors that come with the standard Giani Granite package.  We chose to go with the Chocolate Brown color, which consists of 3 shades of brown:

  • Light brown which is a tan color
  • Medium brown which is like a suede
  • A dark chocolate color

To apply the colors/minerals you use the included sponge and dab it in the medium color first and lightly press the sponge to the countertop, you are supposed to do this in about 2-3 foot sections, and then you apply the lighter color, and then the darker color.

Giani GraniteOne really neat thing about this technique is the intermixing of the colors, there really is no right or wrong pattern.  When you think of granite, it is kinda random and all over the place with different shades.  Also, mixing up the colors adds some depth and an effect that looks really cool when finished.

Countertop PaintWhen you finish with the first section, you move on to the next and repeat, while overlapping a little bit so the paint does not dry in “sections” and you have a continuous look.   One big hint, is not to apply the paint too thick, there were a couple of sections that I applied it too heavy and it dried with a peak, and required a couple of extra steps to sand it down before moving to the sealing or final coat.

Lastly, after the paint dries in about 4 hours (or 1 day for me), you can lightly sand down the countertops with a fine sand paper (600 grid is recommended) to remove any spots where the paint dried a little higher than the rest of the area.

Applying the final coat, which is a sealant, is a breeze, it takes minutes and you just have to make sure not to leave any lines or roller marks, again, do it in sections, and backroll over prior sections so there is no line dividing it.

I applied the first coat and had a couple of dimples from the paint being applied too thick still, so I sanded it down again and then applied another finish coat and it looks awesome.

Giani Granite ReviewGiani recommends multiple coats of the sealant, but no more than 3, so that is where I am at now.   You are instructed to wait a couple of days before putting anything on the countertop and I believe it requires 14 days to fully cure before you are supposed to use it for every day use – like small appliances – toasters, blenders, etc.

Tesa loves it our “new” countertops.  I agree, they really do look awesome, and I am very happy with it as well.

The application and process for using the Giani Granite Countertop Paint is very simple and anyone can do it, you do not need to be an artist or a contractor.  A funny comment, one day when I was working on it, Kora came up to me and said “you sure are working hard on making this counter beautiful”  little did she know that is was such an easy process!

Check out our results!  And once this dries, it’s off to do the other side and the rest of the kitchen!

Way Before

(Read Giani Granite Inspires to learn about this before photo)

Kitchens

Before

(Well after we switched the stove and fridge, knocked down tile, drywalled, installed new cabinets…)

Kitchen Countertops

After

Giani Granite Reviews

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Comments

  1. Hey Taysa and Dave, Could you please comment on how your Giani countertops have held up after approx. 2 1/2
    years of use? Are you still satisfied with the product? Thanks!

    • Yes, it’s held up amazingly well and still gets lots of compliments. We are very glad we did this and would do it again in the future. We highly recommend it.

  2. Can you tell me how it is holding up now that a good deal of time has gone by? I’ve heard stories from others that 8 months to a year later the counter tops are bubbling and peeling and not holding up. I’m curious as to how yours are. Thanks.

  3. Hi,I love the pattern that u did with the paint..what kit did u use?they have different ones and the tan colored kits came with a tan base coat?let me know so I can order the kit u got please,thank u..

  4. This turned out really well. I’m surprised that it looks so good, especially because it sounds like it was pretty easy to do. Thanks for sharing.

  8. This looks awesome! My question is, how durable are the products once painted?? Do they nick or scratch easily or are they as durable as most countertops?

    • It’s holding up beautifully and we are getting many compliments on it from everyone who visits. We had a great experience with Giani Granite and hope you do too!

      • I am super curious about the durability.. what about scratches and every day normal wear and tear.. ? I realize I can just sand it down and put on another top coat; but I’d hate to have to do it all the time..

        thanx for your honest feedback!

  12. This looks phenomenal – I so want to do this on our countertop in our master bathroom. We have granite in our kitchen and I love the look, but the bathroom has cheap laminate and this would look SO much nicer! Great job ‘Tired Dad” :)