A few steps closer

We finished up the tile in the guest bath and got everything grouted. The tile design we picked turned out great. There were a few cracks to fix on the walls so we didn't get around to painting yet. Luckily we were able to borrow our friend Audra's car so we could get a few of the large supplies we need for upcoming projects - new basement door, toilets, and a bunch of trim. Thanks Audra!! I also did a little bit of detail work upstairs too - hung some lights and finished some electrical switches/outlets mostly. The small work seems to pile up pretty quick, but I don't like to spend an entire weekend doing that stuff as it gets tedious fast. Much more fun to do some of the bigger projects like tiling or flooring and only spend a couple hours a day on the punch list stuff.

First of the tile finished

We finished up the guest bath tile today. The shower is ready for grout and then I can install the fixtures and we can start using it. Next weekend we will pick up a toilet/paint/light and finish this bathroom up. The laundry room is ready for grout too so hopefully I can install the electrical in there and we can start using our new washer/dryer as well. Lots of progress!

New year, same work

We rang in the new year getting a little closer to a finished bathroom. We were on vacation this past week so we got a needed break from the renovations. Now we can get back to work with a renewed energy. First up is to finish the upstairs guest bath. The pattern and the size of the tiles is a bit of a pain, but it's turning out great. There wasn't enough mortar in the bucket to finish the side walls so we started the laundry room floor with the leftovers. Hopefully the walls will be tiled tomorrow and we can get the floor done and the grout done this coming week. Then just add a few details... toilet, vanity, light, trim, paint... OK maybe not so few, but the hard part is behind us. The rest should be relatively easy as the prep work is already done.

 

Guest bath started

Having picked up all the tile supplies for the guest bath last night today I dug into the install. As usual the first row is the hardest and then it goes a little faster. Hopefully I'll be able to knock out some more this week before the holidays get here. We're hoping to have this bathroom ready for us to use by next month. Our 1950's bathroom we're currently using has long passed its retirement age so it'll be nice to have a modern bathroom again. We're using simple 6x8 white subway tile and we're going to add a dark marble in two accent strips along the wall to match the countertops (that we haven't picked out, but hopefully will be something dark). The cabinets are a lighter wood as is the flooring so it should all look nice together. We are way under budget on the materials for this bathroom which is good because our master bathroom is probably going to be more expensive than we had originally planned.

Our drywall guys installed the Durock in the bathrooms so it's an easier install for us. All I needed to do was tape the joints with mold resistant fiber mesh tape and thinset over everything. The floor needs another layer of self leveling compound as the first coat wasn't quite perfectly level. I ordered another brand this time that has a higher working time - 20-25 minutes - compared to the 5-10 minutes of the stuff we used before. It should flow a little better and level itself out better.

We were lazy so we set up a Dexter-like kill room for the wet saw upstairs. This way we don't have to walk down 2 sets of stairs and cut tile in the freezing cold!

Next project

Not too much got done today besides some shopping. We finally settled on the tile for the guest bath. Hopefully I will get started on it tomorrow.

Head start to the weekend

I had a half day to work on the house so I knocked out some more of the master bedroom hardwood floor that I started last weekend. Once you get going nailing down the planks goes pretty fast. The first row takes and hour or so to get it perfect then you just keep the boards tight and nail them down. The bamboo looks great against the dark paint. There's still white trim and baseboard that needs to get installed so that should lighten up the walls a little bit too.

Not sure what all we'll tackle this weekend, but we still need to pick out tiles for the bathroom so we can get those done and move upstairs in the next month or so. With the holidays coming up we should have some extra time to make some progress on the upstairs. We both want to unwrap the tub and get it installed!

Nothing too exciting

Another weekend passed. Both of us had to work yesterday so not a lot got done. I painted all the closets and the upstairs hallway today. Hopefully next weekend we can start the flooring upstairs and start making some progress. Other than that not too much went on. We did finally dig out the fireplace just in time for some nice fires on these cold nights.