Mr. Tile Man

Blog posts back-to-back days.  Lucky you!  Here are the finished pictures from the new tile in the master bathroom and kitchen backsplash.  I think it turned out pretty good but judge for yourself.

New green mosaic tile backsplash.

Another view of the backsplash.  Faucet going in tomorrow.

3rd view of the backsplash.

Tile floor in the master bathroom.  New toilet will be installed to the left.

2nd view of new bathroom tile.

3rd view of tile.  It matches the tile in the shower perfectly!

The End is Near!

No, I am not pretending to be Harold Camping with another failed Doomsday Prophecy.  I am talking about the near completion of the renovations at Chamberlain.  


With the exterior curb appeal finished and the near completion of the kitchen renovation, I can begin to breathe a sigh of relief.  This has certainly been much more of an undertaking that I imagined.  My biggest takeaway from this project is that I cannot do it all.  If I try, it will not get done on time, I would never see my wife and I would have to resign from my job.  I had to pick and choose my battles with the overhaul and left a lot of the heavy lifting to the professionals.  I met some really good sub-contractors and some not so good.  However, I learned a lot and I realized I couldn't have done all this without the help of my wife.  Thank you Amanda!


Here are some of the latest photos from my work.

Bright red front door, newly painted trim and fresh mulch.

If you ever wondered what 10 cubic yards of mulch looked like.  Thanks to Steve Brown for the landscaping help.  I bought it from Birch Tree Bark & Stone.  Decent prices and they have coupons.  Plus the salesman wore a MSU hat!

Countertops, appliances and cabinets installed.  All I need is the backsplash.
Previously the refrigerator was on this side next to the range and there was no microwave.

New home for the refrigerator, now across from the range.

New solid surface countertops.  The sink is seamless and was integrated into the countertop when it was manufactured.  Next step is to install the faucet and backsplash.

North view of the kitchen.  Floor trim installation is also on the to-do list.

South view.

Stairs going into the basement.  I updated them with vinyl tiles and added new nose-trimmings.
It looks much more modern than the 1970's linoleum pattern that was there previously.

Big project that went very smoothly with the help of Ron Slocum.
We replaced one of the main water valves.  Make sure you have the right tools for the job!

No turning back at this point.

New valve prior tightening.  I think we even impressed ourselves with how nice it looked and turned out.  Thanks Ron!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like a Kitchen...Well at Least Somewhat.

After completely gutting the kitchen to the subfloor and bare walls, the remodeling work has finally started.  The Thomasville custom kitchen cabinets arrived last Monday that I ordered from Home Depot.  They were installed the next day minus some of the doors that still need to be reattached.

The following day the Staron solid surface countertops were measured in order to build the template.  They will be installed in 16 days - fingers crossed.

The kitchen floor was mortared and tiled also last week along with the slate floor in the the 3 season room.  It was grouted the next day.

Up Next: Paint the kitchen and install the new appliances.

New tile install at the side entrance.  Kudos to Ron Slocum for the diamond layout idea.
Follow him on Twitter @slocumro

New tile floor in the kitchen.
It turned out very well.

Upper kitchen cabinets.

Future home of the dishwasher.

Insert microwave here.

Base cabinets will hug either side of the new range.

The under-mount sink will be installed here. 

The cubby for the new refrigerator!

New slate tile in the three season room.

Another view of the slate.

The finished product turned out great.