Corking a Bar Backsplash - May's DIY

I hated my plain Bar area, and how cluttered it always seemed. So I decided to give it a new backsplash with corks. This way I could keep the "Bar" theme. As you can see below it was very plain.

Before you start,  gather your corks. Lots of them! I went to Ebay. I ordered from 3 different sellers to get a variety of used and unused corks from various restaurants.  

Variety is key with this project. Some used, some new, different wineries, etc. 

My wall was approx: 16 x 59 inches long. That's 70 corks per row and I have approx: 12 rows. That's about 840 corks. +plus the edges that needed cutting. I ordered 1400 corks so I could pick and choose the ones I wanted. 

Now start laying out a pattern you like. I went with  2 vertical - 2 horizontal. I also went with the same winery, and same size cork in pairs on every 4th row. (I wanted to showcase this winery,  Elizabeth Spencer, since it's a personal favorite) Then I just selected pairs of random corks that were the same length and width. Each individual row should all match in size, all the way across your backsplash.       

You will need to cut some corks for the edges and tight corners. Soak a batch in hot water for 20 minutes and they are easier to cut. I used a paring knife and small cutting board. I also used a hot glue gun to attach them to the drywall. Yes - directly to the drywall!

 Here's the plain before wall.  It had texture on it, but plain drywall is fine.

You can see I have started a pattern. The corks need to be fitted fairly tight together for a perfected look. Take your time and make it fit nicely. You can see the right corner corks had to be cut to fit.

This project goes really quickly! 

Took about 35 - 40 minutes after I picked my corks to get to this stage.

 Notice the bottom row also had to be cut down to fit the edge seamlessly.

So after about 3 hours it was finished! Hot glueing the corks made it go very quickly. 

Some of the corks fit so tightly they really didn't even need glue!  

So here we are without my glasses and bottles. Nice and neat.

I hope you have fun corking your bar backsplash! It's a quick DIY that can be done in a day in time for an evening cocktail. 

It really added a lot of warmth and color and interest to that corner. I love it!