Tiling...finally!

Made some progress this weekend. I finally started tiling the bath/shower surround after a lot of planning and measuring. Anticipating all the surface transitions takes some thought (for me anyway).

I selected a 12"x18" tile. I like the look of large tiles plus it's less grout to maintain. Placing large tiles is actually  more difficult than smaller tiles. Maintaining flatness (preventing lippage) is a challenge because it is very difficult to press the tiles into the thinset due to the amount of tile surface area. This makes the progress seem slow. Anyway, I am pleased with the look and am looking forward to completing this step. I anticipate late nights this week since I will be in "The Big Easy" all next week.


Just getting started tiling the bath/shower walls.

I decided to purchase a used tile saw rather than rent so I can take my time tiling. When I have rented them in the past I feel rushed because the clock is ticking so to speak. I found a decent one on CL. What I didn't realize is that this type of saw cannot accommodate cutting large tiles lengthwise. I had to make a larger bed attachment. I had plenty of scrap wood left over and it seems to work well so far thought I have to flip the tiles to get all the way through.

 

Tile cutting station with custom bed attachment

I anticipate allot more tiling and cutting this week. It will be interesting when I have to go around the plumbing openings. I suppose I'll figure that out as I go. I'll post more later this week. Thanks for stopping by.

Quick update.

So, I am going to try a new strategy; more frequent short posts. Hopefully this will prevent one year passing between entries. For the past several days, I have been working on finishing the walls and the tub surround. I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just need a bit more sanding and one more coat of Redgard. Next step is to prime, paint, and then tile.



Tub surround with Redgard waterproof coating painted on.



Westerly view showing new door entry and the toilet area.

 I ordered the vanity faucet yesterday. It was a tough choice between these two designs. There is something about faucet/fixture designs that I find intriguing. Maybe it's the design nerd in me, but I think a nice faucet provides a makes a statement; smilar to how fine jewelry completes an outfit.   

Option A

Option B

I stumbled on another great blog of 'old home fans' documenting their home reno. Impressive work with fantastic results. The whole house is amazing and the kitchen is superb. Enjoy.

https://madisonsquare.wordpress.com/ 


Oh, I went with Option B.

Unbelievable. Has it been over a year since I posted? This year has gone by incredibly fast. Probably had something to do with work, home projects and lots of travelling in there, too.

I bought a new laptop earlier this year and still need to install my photo editing software so I will be light on photos until I can get that situated. I'll post what I can.

As far as home projects, it's been a busy year. I painted the remaining bedrooms late last winter and at the beginning of September I started a complete bathroom remodel. So that is still in progress and taking up my evenings and weekends. I hope to have it complete by Christmas. It is the last room to be remodelled and I will very happy to be finished with this project.
I almost don't remember what it looked like. These are some "before" shots. Terrible plastic wall tile, ugly shower tile, some weird wall covering, and lots of doors. Just bad all over. 

I think someone did a minor remodel in the 50's. I found a date on the pedestal sink from 1952, the floor tile is not original, and some of the plumbing, but not all, has been updated to copper.



I hate the shower. I'm tall. The shower head is way too low and soffit creates a clausterphobia inducing box.



Separate doors for the main bath and "water closet". There is also a connecting door inside.

After demo, new framing for the entry and linen closet. The old cast iron tub is in the background. Took three guys to get it down and loaded in my junk truck. It weighed over 350lbs. They certainly don't make them like that anymore.

A view of the throne.

I made a lot of progress in the last month or so. Dad, again came over to help out for a few days.  I definitely would not be this far if it weren't for him.


Today. Notice the height of the shower head spout.

Now that the walls are closed it is starting to take shape. I am putting bamboo flooring on the lower portion of the walls. I need a good surface to secure it to so that is what the plywood substrait is for.
All the new ceiling lighting is in. It is much improved. The old bathroom only had two wall sconces by the sink.



View of the new entry with just one door!



 My objective for the rest of this week is to finish installing the cement board around the tub, and finish the second and third coats of drywall mud. I want to start tiling the tub next week. I'll post more photos and progress next week. Hopefully, I will have some more progress to show. Thanks for tuning in.

On the road again...

I know, I know...too long since my last post. Usual story. It's been a super busy summer so far. Busy at work and lots of traveling.

A couple trips to DC in May and June. Then in early July, I went to France for a week for work. I was excited about this trip since I have never been to France. And also, as most of you know, I am a huge cycling fan and July is Tour de France month. I was hoping to be able to see a stage in-person, but the timing didn't work out. I was in Bordeaux all week (5th-11th) while the Tour was on the eastern side of the country. It wasn't scheduled to get to Bordeaux until two weeks later. Hopefully, some day I will be able to get back there and see the TdF.

Just a couple days after I got back home, I had to get back on a plane to head to Thailand. Pat's father was hospitalized and his condition was very serious so we needed to get there as soon as possible. Luckily, the outcome is positive. Her father responded well to treatment and is now at home recovering. He still has lingering health issues, but he is home and staying with Pat's brother and doing remarkably well.

I have lots of photos from my travels, so I'll share some here. First, a few photos from Bordeaux. I'll post photos from Thailand in another edition since it has taken me several weeks to get this post up.

I spent a Saturday afternoon wandering around the old part of central Bordeaux with my coworkers. Old Bordeaux is amazingly beautiful. Enjoy!

Making progress...again!

I know, I know...too long since my last update. Lots of stuff happening at work and home. Things at work have really picked up recently which is good. I have a couple new projects designing some cool stuff.

At home, Pat and I (mostly I) have been able to cross some house projects off our list. Pat has been working hard landscaping the flower beds. This spring the tulips that we planted last fall look great.

This is my most recent project:

A car hit the wall a couple years ago and I finally got around to working on it.

 

I also finished refinishing the wall leading down the basement stairs. I really like how it turned out. I'll have to post photos next time since I haven't taken any yet.

  

Other projects that were crossed off the list: final countertops, check. Lighting above sink...check. And the kitchen backsplash...check...finally! It only took a couple days to put it up, but about a year to pick out the tile! We're really happy with how it turned out. I think it adds another dimension to the kitchen design.  

  

During all this we also had to deal with some sick animals as well. Chester had radiation therapy last winter to treat hyperthyroidism. He is doing much better and is back to his old self. He looks much better and has put quite a bit of weight back on. He still has a case of the sniffles from an upper respiratory infection.

And two weeks ago, Chelsey suffered a case of bloat. Luckly I noticed it immediately and rushed her to MedVet. I am grateful to the staff at MedVet here in Columbus. They were amazing and got her into surgery right away. Anyway, she seems to be back to normal. She gets her stitches out tomorrow. I think I am going to have a problem getting her to switch back to dry food only...

Anyway, that's about it for now. More updates soon.

"Summer" vacation

Pat and I returned from our "summer" vacation in Chile a couple weeks ago. The weather was absolutely amazing and a good change from the usual January weather in Ohio. This was our first time to South America and we really enjoyed it. My Spanish language skills are pretty much non-existent. Even though I tried to cram some "survival" Spanish at the last minute, it was only marginally effective. Pat has been studying Spanish for several months and fared a bit better than I.

We spent the entire 9-10 days in Santiago. Pat was taking a diploma course in Global Health at the Universidad de Chile's School of

Public Health. She had class all day for the week so we didn't have the time to get out of the city.

I spent my days wandering around Santiago, seeing the sites and taking lots of photos.

We found a rental apartment in the Barrio Brazil area in central Santiago. It's an older but decent area and very conveniently located to the Metro (subway), downtown and most of the tourist stuff.

Our neighborhood.

Honestly, I didn't know much about Chile before our trip. But I found it to be a very modern city with alot of interesting history, great architecture, good food/wine and extremely friendly people.

Some important government building.

Musicians at Plaza de Arames.

Santiago has alot of interesting (and well done) "street" art.

This is an excellent bakery I found on the way to the Universidad. They made a really good strudel among other pastries. Apparently, in addition to the Spanish, there is a significant German influence here.

The city fruit market district.

The Cenemtario General. Apparently, this is where alot of important people get buried, including Salvador Allende.

Pat at Santa Lucia.

We're already talking about going back again next year. Maybe we will have more time to see more of the country.

Lots of stuff happenin'...

Sorry for not posting an update for so long. In addition to trying to wrap up the last bits of the kitchen project and keeping busy at work, Pat started a new job. It's in Washington DC, so we have been busy finding an apartment and getting her settled there. Initially, she will be there five days a week and evetually transition to four days a week. Luckily, we have a selection of several direct flights into BWI or DCA so that helps keep the commute manageable.

In the mean time, we are alternating weekends, so about every other weekend I head to Washington. It's a great city and the people are extremely friendly. We are having fun getting to know the city and seeing all the sites.






After talking it over for a long time, she (we!) made the decision to join the US Public Health Service, http://www.usphs.gov/. She entered as a commissioned officer, Lieutenant (LT) rank. So now, not only do I have to bow, I have to salute her as well...
Kidding aside, it is a great opportunity and will help her with her ultimate career goals. So far she is really enjoying her job and is proudly wearing the uniform! The whole uniformed service culture is a new experience for us, but everyone we have met has been very helpful getting us acclimated. So far the transition has been a great experience.

While I was downloading these images, I came across vacation pics from Thailand still in the camera. Nevermid, that we have been back almost a year! I'll share somepictures soon. But here is a little peek of our neighbors where we stayed..

-scott

This week's project

Here is this week's project: finishing the walls in the landing leading from the kitchen to the basement.

I cut an access hole to insulate an interior wall that I forgot to do when insulating the kitchen walls. My goal is to get the walls patched and painted by this weekend and trimmed out next week. Need to get this project done!

On a totally unrelated subject, I recently came across a website about a cyclist in California hit by a motorist. His story really touched me because in an instant his life was drastically changed. Before his accident he had so much ahead of him; plans for law school and a recent engagement. Now, because of an inattentive motorist he suffers from a tramatic brain injury. Although lucky to have survived, he now lives at home and is relearning how to walk and talk.

This tragic story is all too common among cyclist. I have been riding for roughly twenty years and several times I have been told of a cyclist killed in an accident with a motorist.

Last night was the Ride of SIlence, a ride honoring cyclist killed by motorists. I decided to participate as a tribute to the cyclist in the story above and to do my part to help bring awareness to this issue.

Now, I know not all cyclists are angels. I have ridden thousands of miles, mostly for training, for many years on public roads and I have seen many irresponsible cyclists as well. What motorists need to understand is that cyclists are extremely vulnerable to cars and other vehicles. Even if a cyclist is being an idiot, is it really worth seriously injuring or even killing someone to prove a point? When you are driving, please share the road and be cautious around cyclists.

Thanks for listening.

Finishing details

Sorry for taking so long to get an update posted. The past few weeks I've been busy finishing up details in the kitchen and now that the weather is nice, getting to work in the yard. Pat and I also went to visit family over Easter weekend. The girls' egg hunt was a highlight...

Ella


Alaire

My grandfather. One of my favorite people to spend time with. His stories from WWII are amazing.

As for home-improving, I finished the peninsula this weekend. I learned that finish woodworking is quite tedious, especially if you make straight cuts and everything (the framing, in my case) else is not quite square. My original plans for the bar were quite ambitious. It included having internal lighting and a unique shelf design. But at this point I just want to be done so I simplified the design and eliminated the internal lighting. It would have been really complex to build. And since I am fabricating it from spare parts from IKEA cabinets I would end up having to make another trip to Cincinnati to buy more "wood". Anyways, I'm satisfied with the results. It's simple and I'm happy to be able to check this off the list.

I've recently crawled out from under my rock and started getting out on my bike again. It's been a few years since I've logged any serious saddle time so I'm definitely not setting any land speed records. I even removed the cyclometer so I don't have to look at the speedo anymore...too painful. For some motivation, I dug out this shot (I'm leading) from a few years ago. Now to get back in fighting shape...

Thanks for tuning in, more news later....

New Photos

Several people have commented as to the lack of new photos. Sorry for taking so long to get an update posted. So as promised here are some photos from tonight. I still have the pennisula wine rack and other some odds & ends to finish up but, we have been using the kitchen for several weeks now. So far so good!


We opted for base cabinets with large pull-out drawers instead of doors. We really like how they provide full access without having to reach into deep cabinets.

The temporary countertop is not holding up very well. I used a water-based urethane to seal the MDF. I learned it does not repel water. I suppose I should have thought that one through a bit better... It is severly watermarked, but will do until we get get the new countertops.


We unpacked most of the kitchen stuff this past weekend. It looks like we have massive amounts of storage with all the drawers and wall cabinets, but it was surpisingly easy to fill them up.

Chester likes the heated floor...

Pat enjoying her new cooktop...


The penninsula is still a work in progress. The cabinets are pulled out in this shot so I can glue the upper trim piece in place.


So that's it, let me know what you think. In the future, I will be more regular with my updates. I'll try to post at least once a week, more frequently if I have anything interesting...which is unlikely.