Friday, February 27, 2015

Friday Update - 02/27/2015

Super short update.

Y'all.  Praise him, I am done tiling.  About 2, 948 lbs have been lifted off my shoulders.  If I wasn't such a freak about details and perfection, it would have gone much faster but I am type A all the way.  (I think that could be a shirt.)  At one point this week, there was a mountain of clean clothes laying in the hallway for days.  My floors were filthy (Those of you who know me personally know I can't stand dirty floors).  We ate out more in the past two weeks than we have in two months.  I was a bit of a mess BUT in the grand scheme, it is worth it and temporary.




FURNITURE:

I have a gorgeous bedroom set in the paint booth right now.  It is an off white going to white.


MASTER BATH:

Tiling is done and now I am on to grout.  I tested two light gray grout colors on trash tile.  Never trust the store display.  NEVER.


I am going with Platinum by Polyblend from Home Depot.  Answer me this....why do they have certain grout colors and then not provide the same caulk color?!?!?!  The grout carried by Lowes and Home Depot both do this.  They only carry a few caulk colors so I had to find the matching caulk online and ordered it yesterday.

I haven't talked much about the budget so here is a quick update.  Money planning started back in September and I initially set the budget at $6,500 and things were looking to cost more like $8000.  I went back to the design stage and changed some things. I considered getting it down to $5,000 and it was possible but there were a few luxuries we were not willing to give up so I am staying with the original $6,500.  As long as we don't have any major problems come up, I will be able to stick to it.  That cost is not including fixing the AC intake that we did when the project started or the costs for reorganizing and building stuff for my closet which will happen after.

Here are the cost for the shower as of today.




The only big expense left on the shower project is the door.  I am still debating on us trying to install ourselves or call a professional.  Doors are heavy.  Being level is a must.  My pretty new tile will have to be drilled.  It all makes me nervous and have sweaty palms.  Having said that, hiring someone is probably out of the budget.  So we could buy the door and install ourselves or pay someone to do it and cut costs somewhere else.  Not sure where those cuts could come from so I am thinking we will DIY it.

I hope everyone has a great week.  I promise to post pictures of the tile next week.  I need a few days to rest, catch up on furniture work, and to clean my house.  :)

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Thursday, February 26, 2015

Master Bath - Shower Prep

Hi, everyone!  Today I want to share how we prepped the shower for tile.  There are a gazillion tutorials out there on how to waterproof, hang backer board and prep so I am not going to do a step by step tutorial.  This is more of an overview of what worked for us and at the end of this post, I included a few of my favorite videos and blog posts about bathroom updates.


Planning is extremely important!  There is a lot to think about when you are prepping a shower space and when the space is stripped down, you have to be sure to do all needed changes BEFORE the backboard goes up get done.




BEFORE THE SHOWER PAN:

  • Our enclave originally had a single fiberglass tub/shower unit.  The studs were not perfectly aligned and the subfloor was at a different level than the rest of the room.  We had to add another layer of subfloor to make everything level.

  • We are going to have a frameless shower door which is extremely heavy and needs plenty of support.  We added studs where the door will be using the Kreg Jig to make pocket holes, then screwed the new 2x4s into an existing stud.  



  • All the plumbing was done.  Since we have been married (almost 9 years), we have wanted a shower with multiple shower heads.  Just a big walk in shower that can be for one person with several shower heads on them or can easily accommodate two people.  In the new shower, each side has its own on/off, temperature control and its own shower head(s).  The plumber thought it was overkill for a 3' x 5' shower, and it might be, but it is what we always wanted.  There were a few more options we considered but felt this was best. 





  • The shower niche was framed out.  My only requirement for the shower niche was not to be on the back wall.  The back wall of the shower is the first things you see when you walk into the bathroom and I would rather have a pretty, solid tiled wall to look at than shampoos and soaps. I had to wait until all the new plumbing was put in to decided on where the niche would go.  There was only one spot a niche would fit so I framed out one tall niche that will have several shelves.  (I will be doing a niche tutorial once the entire shower is done.) My only dislike about the niche so far is that it is really close to the back wall so there will be some small cuts of tile.  


    THE SHOWER PAN:

    Once we got all that work done, the shower pan went in.  The original plan was to buy a tile ready shower pan and have a tiled shower floor.  When I changed the budget and decided to go with the white subway tile, I also decided to use a finished, pre-made shower pan.  This saved a lot of time and money.  A tile ready shower pan for a 36" x 60" shower is in the $500-$700 range plus you have to tile over it (more cost).  You can make/pour your own shower pan but it wasn't something I was willing to take on right now.  The finished, white shower pan I purchased cost around $300 and there was no tiling.  You install then you are done.

    Installation was pretty easy.  The pan is large which makes it awkward to handle but with two people, it is easy to manage.  We tested it in the space to make sure it fit and we also marked the new drain location.

    SIDE NOTE:  Since we live on the second floor and have access to all our plumbing in our garage, we did not have to install the new drain at the time of the shower pan installation.  Most of you will have to hook the drain up to the plumbing when installing.




    We cut a new hole for the new drain, laid a mortar bed, then put in the shower pan.  Make sure the edges are level!  The bottom of the pan is sloped for water drainage so if the pan edges are level, your pan floor should be sloping towards the drain.




    PLASTIC WATERPROOFING:

    Next came some plastic waterproofing.  I have read and watched countless blogs, articles and videos about shower prep and tiling.  Some people did this plastic barrier step.  Some didn't.  We decided it was a small cost for more water protection.  Just in case something fails and water gets behind the backboard, this plastic barrier will carry the water down into the shower pan instead of water going into the wall.  We decided to only put it 4 feet high since that is where most of the water is when you take a shower.  The plastic is just stapled in a few spots to the studs then we used a crazy strong tape to adhere it to the shower pan lip.




    BACKERBOARD:

    I went with Hardi Plank cement board for the backer board material.  Wear a mask and eyewear for sure when cutting this stuff.  It makes a mess!  We used a jig saw with super strong blades to make cuts.

    SIDE NOTE:  A drill driver makes things much easier when you are screwing them in place.  I started out using our regular drill and the screws were not going in the studs all the way and were pulling the board back.  In this video, he suggests a drill driver and he is right.  It made things MUCH easier.  Lucky for us, our sweet neighbor let us borrow his.

    Hanging backer board is pretty self explanatory.  You cover the wall.  :)  We went all the way to the ceiling since my tile will go all the way up.  Also, we checked the level periodically to make sure our walls were straight (even after all that checking we have one that is off a little).  




    The previously framed out niche is covered with backerboard as well.




    After the boards were up, I filled and taped the seams.  I used Mapei white thinset and a fiberglass mesh tape.  Every single seam had to be done plus I put thin set over every screw.







    BACKERBOARD MEETS DRYWALL:

    One of the biggest frustrating factors about doing an update is old products (drywall, fittings, hardware) are not the same size as the new.  Seriously, people....why can't you improve a product without changing the size and keep it easy on us DIYers.  Way back when, during the kitchen renovation I had a BAD week because of issues like this.  Read about it here--> That one time I almost got violent.  

    Our problem this time was the backer board is not the same thickness as our existing drywall so at the seam where they meet, there is a big difference.




    One of the videos below addressed this problem.  I filled and feathered out with drywall composite.  It took a lot!





    This stuff took 24 hours to dry.  I filled and feathered.  Let it dry over night.  Sanded smooth in the morning then went back and filled again where needed.  This process took a few days because of dry time.

    Once it was all dry and sanded even, I used Ziissner oil based primer to seal it and make it a better surface for adhesion.  Nothing sticks to drywall composite very well except primer.  ALWAYS PRIME IT.

    After that, I put 3 coats of the waterproofing product.


    WATERPROOFING:

    There are several waterproofing products out there.  These products create a plastic coating so if the thin set cracks at the seam, the plastic coating will hold together and keep any water from seeping through.   Red Guard and Mapei are popular because that is what is carried by Lowes and Home Depot. I honestly do not know if one brand is better than the other.  I went with Mapei because I was already at Lowes on the day I needed to buy it and it was on sale, which made it about $10 cheaper than the Red Guard.



    This stuff is easy to work with.  It goes on just like paint.  I used the cheap bristle paint brushes and a roller.  I put 3 coats on every seam and screw except in the niche, I put 4.  :)  You do not have to cover every inch of the backer board with this stuff.  Some tutorials I read, did.  Some didn't.  Its a personal choice.  I didn't.  Although after all the seams, screw holes and the edge seams were covered, it looks like I tried to put it all over.  :)







    It is now ready for tile which will be in another post.  Things didn't go exactly to plan on the tile but such is life in a reno.  We don't always get what we want...and I definitely didn't get what I wanted but it is still beautiful and I can't wait to see it all come together.


    VIDEOS:

    Great video about a shower enclave renovation.
    See it here ---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psf9cnYoVts

    This Lowes video and the series it belongs to is good as well.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veXDnGSpOKo

    One of my favorite bloggers recently updated her bathroom.  She has tons of tutorials and info on her blog.   Here is the link to her renovations page at her Key West home that includes bathroom tips and tutorials -->  The Space Between Blog


    Tomorrow I am going to shower you the tiled shower and update you on the budget.

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    Friday, February 20, 2015

    Friday Update - 02/20/2015

    And it is Friday again.  This week was extremely productive and I am looking forward to doing my tile work today!

    FURNITURE:

    The baby furniture is done and will go home tomorrow.  I really like the color the client chose for their baby boy nursery.  The big bedroom set has a few pieces prepped for paint and will be put in the paint booth when the nursery furniture is picked up.







    MASTER BATH:

    The shower is ready for tile, y'all!  Last weekend was crazy busy with picking my mom up from the airport Friday night, then taking her to her house (about 2 hours away from where we live) on Saturday.  We stayed around on Saturday to visit my grandmother and my brother and his wife. Our only day to work was Sunday afternoon so we worked hard to get all the backer board installed.  It is definitely a two person job.  I tried to do some of it last Thursday by myself and I injured my hip a little.  Not fun.   I am glad we were able to get it done before Blittle went back to work.

    During the week, I taped and filled all the backboard seams and I had to do some work where the backer board meets the drywall.  There was a height difference and a seam.  Then I waterproofed everything.  Monday I am going to post details about shower prep.  Its not really a tutorial (kind of is, kind of isn't) but it is the steps we took for our shower.  I'll also include links to the videos I watched and found really helpful.




    I am hoping to get a lot of tiling done today.  I tried to get the first row done last night and I had some issues.   Today, I am going to try a method I saw on one of the videos to see if that is successful.  Cross you fingers and wish me luck!

    MISC:

    I have a skin cancer PSA (Public Service Announcement).  Three weeks ago on Monday, I went to the dermatologist about a bump/beauty mark/thing on my nose.


    See it on the right side?  It is flesh colored and looks very innocent.






    It showed up late 2007/early 2008.  Yes, that long ago.  It had all characteristics of a pimple when it started growing but then it never went away.  Many, many, many times I have mentioned that I wanted to get it cut off and people kept saying that the doctor won't cut it off because it will leave a scar so I never went in.  Fast forward to January 2015 and the bump started to hurt a little and it got bigger.  I finally called the doctor.

    An intern came in before the doctor to look at me.  She asked the generic questions, looked at it, and within a few minutes was done.  As she was leaving she said it looked like a basal cell and he would probably remove it.  I had no idea what that was so I didn't worry but I was excited about the removal part.  Then the doctor came in.  Same thing.  Asked questions, touched it, looked through his special magnifying glass, etc and within a few minutes of walking in the room he said it looked like a basal cell CARCINOMA.  I know that word.  Cancer.  He said it is rare to get a bump that young (I was 26 in 2008) but it can happen.  It had all the characteristics of basal cell carcinoma but I had never heard of it.  All these years I have been worried about my dark spots and knowing the ABCDEs looking for warning signs.  I live on the coast, I vacation at the beach and I love being outdoors.  Skin cancer is a risk for me.    Never did I think the flesh colored bump was dangerous.

    Something that has bothered me over the past few weeks is not one person that I have come in contact with over the past 7 years ever mentioned that my bump looked like a basal cell or that I should go to the doctor about it.  Not one.  Not even doctors I have seen over that time.  Are there that many people out there that don't know about basal cell carcinoma either?  Or do people just not want to comment on a bump on someone's face?

    I had something that looked exactly like cancer GROWING ON MY FACE and no one said anything and I was clueless.  That is scary y'all.  I felt so stupid and I hate that feeling.

    So to make a long story longer, he took it off right then in the office.  After he removed it, he said it looked very fibrous, which is not a characteristic of basal cell (per his words), and that it might have just been a growth.  It was sent off for biopsy and at the end of the week he called to tell me it was negative for cancer and that it was a rare kind of tumor/growth.  RELEIF!

    Basal cells are very common and do not usually spread but it was good to know I am not showing signs of skin cancer yet.  Hopefully, the growth is a one time thing and I won't have anymore pop up. If I do get a new one, I will be going to the doctor immediately.

    Moral of this story: GO GET YOUR SPOTS CHECKED OUT.  Flesh colored and dark spots.  All of them.  Read about the ABCDEs and read about basal cell carcinoma.  If there is any question, go to the doctor.

    www.skincancer.org has tons of info.

    I will be telling everyone I know.  If you have a flesh colored bump, I might tell you to go to the doctor.  Don't be offended.  I am worried about you.

    My spot is almost completely healed and does not look like it is going to scar.  I have followed my doctors directions and have kept it covered and clean.  Yes, I have had a band aid on my face for 3 weeks.  I am looking forward to not wearing a band aid and not seeing a bump.



    I hope everyone has a great weekend.  If you want to see tile progress over the weekend, follow me on Instagram!

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    Thursday, February 19, 2015

    1 INCH SCALE FLOWER WAGON TUTORIAL - How to make a dollhouse flower wagon from mat board.







    This is the inspiration for this month's tutorial.  I am making it out of mat board but you could make it out of basswood if you have the equipment for cutting.










    This is my version of the flower wagon.  This could be used for Teddy Bears and toys, too.  It is small, something to sit on a porch.  You could enlarge the pattern and make it for the gardener to push around in his garden.






    These are the beautiful patterns that Nancy made for us.  She even offered a version #2 of the leg, I like both.  On the left of the blog, in the "Things to do, Things to see" list there are instructions for HOW TO RE-SIZE THE PATTERNS.










    This is a good project to use up your scrap mat board.










    Print your patterns out onto card stock to trace around.

    Trace 2 sides onto mat board.

    Keep your pencils sharp.  A sharp point gets closer to the edge of the pattern for a more accurate size.









    Use a sharp blade in your craft knife to cut the sides out.

    Make light cuts first, don't try to cut through in one slice.














    Trace and cut out the front, back and handles for the flower wagon.











    Use yellow carpenter's wood glue to glue everything together.

    Glue the side to the back/front's cut edge.


    That's Digger walking around, "I'm awake, I want attention, now, please".









    I have the sides glued to the edges of the back and front of the flower wagon.

    I want to let that dry a bit.







    Nancy made you a beautiful wheel pattern.  I asked if she could even my pattern out and she did, so your wheel will look better than mine.

    Do you see that I have cut out every other triangle?  You will have 5 holes or spaces and 5 solid areas or spokes.

    Trace the wheel onto mat board.






    Using a sharp blade cut your spaces out first while the wheels are still traced on the mat board.  It's easier and safer to do that first.
    After the spaces are cut out, then cut the wheels from the mat board.

    Don't cut the center hole out, we will drill that.






    I didn't make a pattern for bottom.  I thought it would be better if you measured your wagon and make a bottom to fit.

    Measure the inside of bottom opening, front to back.

    It looks like I have just under 1 1/4".








    Measure the inside of bottom opening, side to side.

    If my ruler was straight, that should be an inch.











    I am using my small square to draw the bottom.  I want the bottom to be square, that is have 90 degree angles at the corners.

    I do my best to keep things square, but that doesn't always happen, does it?







    Trial fit the bottom, always do a dry fit before gluing.


    Glue the bottom into the flower wagon's bottom.










    Mark the center of the round top of the handle with a pencil.

    Use a "T" pin to pierce the surface of the mat board.  There is no need to go through, you just need an indentation for your drill bit to start in.







    When drilling I start out with a bit smaller than I need.  I graduate up in size to the size I need.  Sometimes I use 2 bits, sometimes I use 3 bits.

    I am going to use a toothpick for the handle, find a bit that is the diameter of your toothpick.










    Being that this is a very small part, I know you had trouble cutting it out, you also will probably have some separation of the layers of mat board when you drilled through.











    Apply a little yellow glue between the layers and press together.
    Whenever your mat board becomes separated apply glue between the layers right away.  This will stop problems later on.







    I put both handles on the toothpick and put the assembly up to the wagon to "eye" a measurement for the handle's width.

    Mark the toothpick where you want to cut.








    Remove the mat board handles and cut the extra off the toothpick.

    Glue the toothpick into the holes.

    Glue the finished handle assembly onto the wagon.

    I have most of the handle above the top of the wagon.



    I am going to make the wheels on the wagon roll.  This is a little involved and certainly not needed.  If you want you can glue the wheels onto the side of the wagon after the painting is finished.

    This is going to be our axle brace.

    Cut 2 pieces of card stock 1/4" wide and 2 3/8" long.













    Glue these together with yellow glue.










    Mark the center, 1 3/16" and score a line using the back of your craft knife.

    Measure from the center to each side 7/16" and  mark.













    Score these new measurements, also.












    Measure 1/4" from the new scored lines.


    Score these lines just like the others.











    Mark the center of this 1/4" x 1/4" space.












    I used an 1/8" hole punch to punch the holes on the marks I made in the previous picture.










    To take this picture I had to glue one side of the brace to the middle, I don't want you to glue anything, yet.

    Holding the ends of the brace in the middle, insert a pencil straight in making a mark where I have my pencil tip.











    I used the 1/8" hole punch to punch 2 more holes where I just made my marks.












    Now, glue the ends down in the middle.















    Mark the center with a pencil and mark with a "T" pin.










    I decided to drill the holes for both wheels at the came time.  I used a smaller drill bit first and graduated up to the drill bit that my toothpick fits.















    Measure 3/16" from the front edge and draw a line.













    Center and glue the axle brace onto the bottom of the wagon.











    Cut another strip of card stock, this can be 1/8" to 3/16" wide.

    This is for spacers to keep the wheel from scraping the side of the wagon.











    Here is my axle inserted through the brace.









    Roll the card stock around the toothpick and glue.  I rolled my paper around the toothpick twice, no more.

    Don't glue the spacers to the tooth pick.









    I've inserted the tooth pick again and slid the spacers on for a dry fit.










    I've slid the wheels on and measured about an 1/8" from the wheel and marked with a pencil.  This will be the end of the axle.










    With a "T" pin make a dimple, don't push through, you may split the tooth pick.  This will be where you drill a hole to hold the little stick that holds the wheel on.

    I made the dimple a little more than a 1/16" away from my mark.









    I am using my little pin vise drill to drill the hole.  I bought this from Hobby Builders, www.miniatures.com.

    I used the largest bit I could without drilling through the sides.









    After you have drilled the holes cut off the extra length of tooth pick.















    My holes are not perfectly aligned but I didn't split the tooth pick!












    Sand down the tips of a tooth pick for the little sticks.  Dry fit into the axle's hole.











    I was able to glue my spacers into the holes of the axle brace.  If your spacers don't fit into the holes you can just glue them to the outside of the axle brace.









    I used a mixture of glue and craft paint to seal the cut edges of the flower wagon.  I usually add glue to the paint until just before the glue starts to change the color of the paint or about half and half.









    Choose the style of leg you like and trace it onto mat board.

    Carefully cut out with your craft knife.  Make light cuts first and work your way around.













    Here's my leg.










    I want you to sand down another tooth pick, it only needs to be tiny for about 1/4" to 3/8" long.

    This is going to "dowel" the leg into the wagon.  I don't like to butt glue anything if I can help it.  This dowel will make the leg sturdier.










    I want you to make a hole in the center of the top of the leg using a "T" pin.









    I know it's difficult to do and the mat board splits, but drill a hole for the sanded down tooth pick/dowel to fit into.

    We want a hole, material must be removed so the dowel can fit into the leg.










    Glue the dowel into the top of the leg and clamp.  Let this dry.














    Carefully insert the "T" pin into the bottom of the back of the wagon.  Make sure you don't poke through the mat board.











    Drill a hole, removing material just like you did for the leg.  Be careful not to drill through the mat board.












    My leg is dry and ready to be inserted into the bottom of the wagon.












    After a dry fit glue the leg into place.











    The flower wagon assembled.

















    The flower wagon disassembled.


    I am cleaning up the openings in the wheels with small files and sanding the surfaces of all the parts smooth.








    I've painted  two coats of craft paint and sanded.  I will paint another coat and sand with a fine grit sand paper, 400 to 600 grit, which ever you have.










    For my finish I used a finishing wax.  I wiped it on, let it dry and buffed out with a softened piece of brown paper bag.

    You can do this using natural shoe polish, too.  This is the kind in the flat tin.

    To soften the brown paper bag you wad it up over and over again.





    You will have to drill out your holes in the axle for the little sticks to fit.  Be careful not to split the tooth pick.







    Here she is all buffed out.  The wax gives the surface a nice smooth finish.

    For all of you painters out there this has great sides to paint on.  You could also paint the surface to look rusty like it's made from metal.  The surface could be painted and aged, grunged up a bit.

    I know there are metal wheels available and those would look great on the wagon, too.







    With all of the snow I have sitting outside my window this little wagon makes me think of how soon spring will be here!















    I hope to see some flower wagons in the Follower's Gallery filled with all sorts of things!  Remember, my e-mail address is camceiling@frontiernet.net for any questions you have and to submit pictures of finished tutorials.




    Have fun, Expand on it, Make it better . . . . .
    Just keep making minis!



    TTUL  Kris