The good news is that we're more than half done laying the tile in the first floor. The bad news is that we're still not done! We're very happy with the way things are going, they're just going slower than some of us would have hoped. Still, it's been fun to watch the progress that each tiling session brings.
As described in a post earlier this week, Scott spent a lot of time during the week cutting tile to fit around the perimeter of the dining area and kitchen. As each piece was cut, he numbered and labeled it and its adjacent (already in-place) buddy. Pretty Foolproof!
In order to keep the herringbone pattern true, some of the perimeter pieces took on some pretty neat shapes - like this Oklahoma-shaped one.
Another precise cut - this tile fits around a floor register vent.
When it comes to placing each tile, Scott has a good system down. He uses a trowel to add mortar to the floor...
...then he places the back-buttered tile in place. Then he spends a little time making adjustments to ensure the tile is as level and even as possible.
Even the crazy-shaped tiles get the same level of care.
Mama Marita stopped by on Saturday afternoon - this time to watch the U.S. Ice Skating Championships. She's turning into quite the sports nut!
The tile in the kitchen has - so far - been the most difficult to lay. Despite a $2,000 floor-leveling bill, the floor (which spans the old and new houses) is still pretty wonky. Scott will tackle any lippage with his Dremel tool and a grinding disc before we grout.
On Sunday, the tile work moved to the connector hallway. Scott had to play contortionist in order to fit in the tight space at the bottom of the staircase.
Once the mortar is set in a day or so, we can tackle the remaining stair-area tiles.
At the end our our Sunday, about half of the connector is done. We still have the connector-to-parlor hallway, the new-kitchen-to-old-kitchen hallway, and the pantry to tile. My plan is to crack the whip on Scott every night this week to see how much progress can be made before Saturday.
This evening ended the same - with poor Scott on clean-up detail. It takes about an hour for him to scrub all the mortar out of the bucket and off all the tools. He's a real trooper, though, and has yet to complain.
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!
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