The Great Outdoors

Trading Up has no backyard. A lot of front, but no backyard. Therefore, when you want to grill or party, or just sit outside and people watch, you're stuck in the carport. Also stuck in the carport are the bulky garbage and recycling bins, all of which makes outdoor entertaining a little cramped (and stinky). Gus thought it would be good (and cheap) idea to move the existing (albeit sad looking) fence back about 20-feet to open up the space and hide the bins.

Simple project. 2 hours max. And you can do it with beers!

Master Bath Part II

This was supposed to be the second and last part; I don't dare say only Part III remains because as this bathroom rehab rolls into month five, I am seriously considering renting a front loader to completely level this room. People can crap in a bucket. I'm over it.

Notice the Blue Tape? That means the sink still doesn't work. That is bad.

The weekend was kind of a bust. The tile work got finished and the cabinet cut, but we couldn't install the sink because either we are completely clueless or the manufacturer sent the wrong part. I'm going with the latter. We've started corresponding via email so perhaps he'll send the correct part and I can finish the work myself, or he'll say "Go fly a kite" and I'll be forced to leave terrible reviews about him all over the Internet. Then call the plumber.

Today I made a little more progress, sanded and painted the ceiling and finished staining the top of the vanity, but overall disappointed in progress.

And It Really Really Works

What do you know about grout color sealer? Well if you have tile you should really consider getting to know it because this stuff ROCKS! I don't get too excited about commercial products. If you don't need special training and a letter from Congress to order something, I generally tend to think of it as weak. 

This product has definitely changed that line of thinking. It's called NA 6700 Grout Rescue (which still sounds kind of contraband-ish). It's recommended for really dirty grout lines, but I was using it to match the old grout with the new tile work in the kitchen. For $10, I didn't pay much attention to the direction on the bottle, just sort of wiped it on till I got a good match.

Before

After

Master Bath Part I

The master bath hates me. We didn't get off on the right foot. When I first walked into Trading Up it was all 'oos' and 'aaas' until I saw the bathroom. At first I thought it had been designed for little kids (or dwarfs) because the ceiling was so low and the cabinetry was only 28-inches high---making the tub and toilet look miniature. From that first walk-though it was slated to receive more work than any other room. 

I don't think the bathroom ever got over my initial reaction to its diminutive features and decided to make my life as difficult as possible ever since [recall the flood(s), mold, and most recent mite infestation]. Either that or its haunted. 

Knowing I have its best interest in mind, it seems to slowly be forgiving my callous tongue. 

Before - Loo for Little People

Dropped ceiling contained old fluorescent light (already removed in this pic)

A little early morning demo

Ceiling completely removed

Crew hangs the new ceiling frame and can lights (notice the 9 extra inches!)

$75 Craigslist dresser to convert into new vanity

Vessel sink courtesy of Amazon

That Was a Good Idea

Everybody likes to tell you how rewarding DIY projects are, but let's face it, there are plenty of screw ups. Screw ups, mistakes, projects not turning out quite how you imagined are a-plenty in the reno world. So it's nice when, occasionally, trying something new turns out better than you expected. 

Despite the Terrazzo Restoration, the floor was left with hundreds of tiny divots from the previous carpet tacks. The contractors filled the holes with unmatched concrete and epoxy, which didn't look terrible, just unfinished. Gus suggested I paint a strip of white around the entire floor just beyond the quarter-round. I thought he was crazy.

Terrazzo Divots (brown and white patches)

Eventually the idea started to grow on me. After the 420 crew finished the trim (in only a day ---it would have taken me a week), I decided to give it a try. Mostly I am just tired of moving furniture and want nothing more than to simply unroll the rugs and CLEAN THIS HOUSE.

A can of concrete floor paint and a little blue tape and it doesn't look half bad. Yes, I will tell my father he was right. Here's how it went: 

Tape the Edges

All the way around the room

Keep going...

Apply 2 coats of white floor paint

And you're done!

Pretty cool, huh?

 

 Some shots of other miscellaneous projects that finally got checked off the list this week:

Dingy Dining

  

Followed by Cluttered Dingy Dining

Beautiful :)

These are the cheapest ceramic tiles I've ever loved!

Scary Front Door

Less Scary Front Door

It is time to get this house painted!

Oh yes, I almost forgot, mama dove is still hanging out in the carport. The "squabs" hatched about 2 hours before the Boston bombings. They double in size everyday--mama can barely sit on them anymore!

Trading Up's First Squatters

Silence

It's just after noon on Tuesday and the floor crew is gone for the day. They won't be back tomorrow either. While there's nothing I like less than an unproductive day, there's much to be said for sound of silence (thank you Paul and Artie ;-).

Dining Room Floor - Before

 

Dining Room Floor - New Tile

Terrazzo Restoration

It has been a long week. The floor restoration guys were here so long they started to feel like unemployed, couch-surfing cousins. When the rain started on Wednesday, the concrete dust covering everything turned to a white paste. Between the noise of the grinders, my neighbor's 4-day leaf blowing extravaganza, and the power company running an industrial generator at the marina, my sanity was waning. Nonetheless, they finished late Thursday and Friday was a gift of 8-hours of near silence. 

The long-awaited 420 crew returns on Monday!!! Stay tuned ;-)

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After - Sort of. Still waiting baseboards.

In my spare time I finished the guest bath...