House Remodeling Thread (long)

[pll]

I'd go with the lighter pink. Nice shower curtain!

[Helene2013]

light too. As much as I'm a colour-freak for bikes (as you know hihi), I need some calm in my bathroom and bedroom. hihi Especially if a room is small, darker would make it look even smaller.

[ny biker]

Still busily making decisions, lots of time researching and looking at photos on the internet, plus visits to various showrooms.

Re: the paint for the walls -- the lighter shade in my earlier photos is Glidden Heirloom Pink. It was one of the first two samples that I tried. From the beginning I thought it was very cheerful but a bit too cool and purple-ish at times.

Having now spent hours looking at paint chips for other colors, and testing samples for...8? 9? other shades, I've decided that Glidden's Heirloom Pink is the winner. Is it too cool? Maybe. But everything else is too warm.

I did like the S-W Lighthearted Pink (the darker sample in the photos). It was kind of berry-ish and reminded me of sherbet. But it was too dark, so I got another sample that they mixed at 50%, and that seemed like a whole different color rather than just a lighter shade of the one I liked. So I'm giving up and going back to the Glidden Heirloom Pink. When your first gut reaction is "cheerful," you should probably listen to your gut.

Moving on, I'm almost ready to order the custom vanity and matching wall cabinet. I knew pretty much what I wanted before I first met with them, but there are still many details to consider. The vanity will be 30" wide by 21" deep and 31" high. I could have gotten something a few inches taller (kitchen cabinet height) but decided that wasn't necessary and the shorter height saves a few $$. There will be two drawers on the left and a cabinet door on the right. The door style is Shaker and the color is white. The wall cabinet will be 20" wide by 30" high and 9" deep(!). That's more than twice as deep as I had expected, but I'm not complaining because I need the storage space. There's room to partially recess it in the wall, which will look better than having it stick out a full 9"

I'm going to get a beveled-mirror medicine cabinet instead of one that matches the vanity and wall cabinet. The added cost of the custom medicine cabinet was just too much. I've seen one online that's oval shaped, 24x36, which I think will do nicely.

For the vanity top, I think I will go with a white marble-like quartz from LG Hausys called Viatera Minuet. I can get a remnant of it for a very good price. I also want to have shelves for the shower niche cut from the same remnant. I'm a little worried that it won't look quite right with the white vanity, though, so I'm going back tomorrow to look at it again.

I've also made decisions about the shower niche. I'm hoping it can be 12" wide by 30" or 36" high, with two shelves inside it. I want the back of the niche to have the same color tile as the shower wall tile, but in a much smaller size. BTW did I mention I've decided to go with the American Olean tile instead of the Tile Shop tile? The trim pieces (such as the bullnose pieces) are sold per-piece, and they are much more expensive from the Tile Shop. Since I'm splurging on custom cabinets, I'll go with the less expensive wall tile. Anyway so the wall tile will be white 9x12 in a subway pattern, and I think for the back of the niche I will use 2x2, either in a grid or a diamond pattern. I really wanted a 2x4 subway pattern, but it's not available to match the wall tile. Which is okay, since I've seen some photos of niches that use the 2x2 with a larger wall tile in the same color, and it looks good.

Then there's the grout. All along I had planned on a white grout for the walls, because I don't want the tile pattern to be too in-your-face. But today I'm reading that many people have problems with white grout becoming discolored from sunlight or hard water. So I'm going to use Laticrete Silver Shadow instead. It's a nice soft silver gray -- I used it for my kitchen backsplash. It will also work for the floor tile, I think, which should save me a few dollars.

So I'm almost done with most of the decisions and starting to place orders. I still have a few things to figure out, like the shower curtain rod. I don't want to break the bank on that but also don't want one that rusts in a few years. And I need to pick out door hardware for the cabinets. Also a light switch -- I want a dimmer switch, and I might need two of them because the contractor says he'll install a light over the shower/tub if possible, otherwise he'll put one in the ceiling in the middle of the room.

Did I mention I'm also working on choosing a new hardwood floor for the rest of the condo? I've almost got a color choice nailed down, but am still getting estimates from a couple of installers.

This Old Condo... the saga continues.

p.s. Why I need dimmer switches: because when I have to get up at 5 am for summer bike rides, it's still dark outside, so I need a very dim light until I my eyes can adjust. Seriously, it's about the early bike rides.

[ny biker]

Here are some photos.

This is the quartz counter top I chose for the vanity. I found this picture on another forum; I think it was taken in a showroom. It shows how the counter looks on a white cabinet with white wall tile.

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I took this today at the fabricators. This was outside in bright sunlight. The floor tile is top left, wall tile sample next to it, then the wall paint and cabinet samples. They are all perched on the edge of the quartz remnant.

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I put a deposit on the counter remnant today. Because it's a remnant I'm paying less than half the regular price. :D

P.s. wow I really had a lot to say yesterday, didn't I?

[NoNo]

Oh, reading this is making me so excited to move into my house! I close in about 3 weeks, my first home. I'd always rented and been happy with it, but lately I've been feeling crammed in my space what with trying to run a business out of it. I'd always assumed I couldn't afford to buy in my area as it's super expensive. Even my realtor said my price range was really for condos, but I was sure I could find a house that wasn't a total dump. Sure enough, on my third trip out, I found a cute little cape that's in move-in condition. The only real issue is the kitchen, it's the original one from the 50's, including the appliances. I debated over whether I wanted to fix it right away or wait, and I'm going to wait until I can save up the money. I may have to buy an oven, but that can always be put into the new kitchen when that gets done. I think I'll do a few little landscaping changes this summer, and a little painting, but that's it. I need to recover financially before I start making a bunch of changes. But I'm SO SO excited to get in there and make it mine! I need to read through this whole thread and gain from your collective wisdom.

[rebeccaC]

Nice choices ny biker….it does look like the quartz has a carrera look! The only things I’ve done, and that was before moving in, are some painting, changing a carpet area to wool and installing dimmers on ALL lights!!!.....but then I’m a candle person too. :)

Enjoy the ownership journey NoNo….if I had more time I’d luv to be able to build equity through my own major remolding work on a home. There are some interesting looking really well made new retro looking kitchen appliances being used in some of the remolding here. A friend did a small older beach house here that way and it works/looks great. If you’re so inclined you might want to look into that for ideas too.

[NoNo]

Well it took longer and was more frustrating than I'd expected, but I'm finally in my house! The work has begun to freshen things up and get settled. Here are some before pics.

The dining room:
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The far end of the living room with the massive wardrobe:
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The other end of the living room with the alcove:
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My bedroom:
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[NoNo]

And here are some after shots. Mind you, I've been there less than two weeks, so I think I'm making good progress. But upstairs is going to take a LONG time to paint. There's just too much dark blue trim to paint over.

The dining room. Just a fresh coat of paint was needed:
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The near end of the living room. Fresh paint and a new comfy couch and chair!
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The bedroom, partially painted. Going with grey and white. Look at all those slats that have to be painted! ACK!
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The far end of the living room, with the wardrobe removed and put in the basement:
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The alcove. Put on a coat of kilz and stained the edges. Still not sure how I feel about it.
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Other improvements include a new lantern outside, new sconces in the bedrooms, a new faucet in the kitchen, lots of hedges clipped, and my friend cracked the code to the safe in the basement! Oh, and I set up my new soaping room for the business! So awesome to not have to share that space now. Eventually I have to paint the guest room and there's still more unpacking to do, but it's moving along. Some day I'll remodel the kitchen, and some footings need to be added to the deck, but that's all the house really needs. I don't know how to pace myself, though, I just want to do it all now. That's not going to work.

[rebeccaC]

nice...congrats!!!! don't know about kilz but I do like a whitewash look on the alcove. you photos show some nice floors and some nice details upstairs. looks like a lot of painting, when do you work on it and do you enjoy a remolding focus?

[ny biker]

Very nice!!

[missjean]

I like your dining room, it's so nice and sunny!

[ny biker]

So I'm working on "the last big project" in my condo. It's time to rip out the ugly dirty old wall to wall carpeting and get new floors. This will be for the living room/dining area, the bedroom and the hallway in between -- the entire apartment except for the kitchen and bathroom. I had been looking into new hardwood, but then decided that cork would be a good choice because it provides better sound insulation and also is a bit warmer underfoot. It took some effort but I found several local floor places that do a fair amount of cork installations -- most places either don't carry it at all or they carry one brand and make it pretty clear when you talk to them that they really just want to deal with wood floors or carpet. Three of the places I found are in the Maryland suburbs north of DC which is not convenient to my home or office, so I can only go there on Saturdays. Fortunately there is also one installer located a few miles from my house.

So I drove up to Maryland several times, looking at samples, borrowing them to look at at home, returning the samples, having long talks with the people who worked there to try to understand the features of cork. I'm looking at getting a click-lock floating floor. The hard part is finding the right color. I would like a medium brown, not light but not too dark either. I've seen some dark brown samples that are really nice and rich looking but I've heard that dark floors show dirt and I am too lazy when it comes to housekeeping -- I prefer to spend my time riding my bike. Also I think dark brown would look okay with the green walls in the LR/DR but would seem heavy in the bedroom with the light blue walls. So, medium brown. But here's the hard part -- many shades of medium brown have strong red, yellow or orange undertones which I don't like -- they don't look right with the cool paint colors that I've chosen.

After much perusal I thought I'd found a near-perfect shade -- Dark Oak from Duro-Design. But then I found out that it comes unfinished and has to be finished on-site, which will cost more to install and will mean I'll have to wait 10 days for it to cure before I can put the area rugs in, which adds the expense of hiring someone to help me move the furniture around to put down the rugs. More important, Duro-Design says it needs to be refinished every 5-7 years and I don't have the time or money to pack up my house and refinish the entire floor that often. I mean really, that's just impractical.

So back to square one. My choices are: go with a darker brown and accept that fact that it shows dirt and is too dark for the bedroom; go with something lighter than I really wanted which won't really look right with my dark brown and black furniture (and also tends to show dirt, from what I've heard); or give up on cork and get hardwood.

Right now all I know for sure is that I have to drive back up to Maryland on Saturday to look the samples again.

[emily_in_nc]

Tough dilemma, NY!

We are hoping to install a floating cork floor in our motorhome in a year or so (budget is too tight this year with all the more essential things we've had to purchase for it). From posts I've read in RV forums, it appears that for our small space, this is a pretty easy DIY project, so with my handy DH, we will order the materials and DIY. I looked at a bunch of them online from Duro Design (http://www.duro-design.com/index.cfm/floating-cork-flooring/), and I am sure we will have a hard time with color choice too. They have 54!!!! :eek:

DH and I both have light-colored hair, so I will probably go with a light color as dark floors really show the hairs. Our dog is black and white, so both dark and light floors are going to show her hairs, so that's a wash. Dark floors do show dust, and light floors show dirt more. The light oak floor we had in our house in NC was VERY forgiving compared to floors we've had since (dark and white), so I think I'll stick with that tone -- not super pale but a bit on the blonde side. That's also the color of our motorhome's oak cabinets.

I can't help you with your decision since these kinds of decisions are super tough for me too (and I haven't seen your furniture, etc.), just wanted to empathize. I bet whatever you pick is going to end up looking nice! Please post back with your decision, and hopefully some photos afterwards!

[Pax]

We agonized over our new tile, trying several samples, moving them all over the place at different times of day to see how they'd look in different light. Finally picked one and had it installed, I didn't like it! It seemed darker than I was expecting when you could see so much of it... but after a short time I stopped caring, then stopped noticing.

Good luck with your pick, NY!!

[Helene2013]

We have darker wood floors in some part of our home and never again for us. EVERYTHING shows, even after just washing the floors. Also the fact that it is darker, it seems the rooms are smaller.

So if you are not a Mr.Net person, you may regret the choice. Worst case scenario, can you get the lighter brown you were looking for and just repaint at some point the walls to something else. It is much easier/faster than having to re-work on floors.

[emily_in_nc]

So if you are not a Mr.Net person, you may regret the choice.

What is a Mr.Net person? :confused:

[Helene2013]

Mr. Net is Mr. Clean in English. :)

[ny biker]

The thing is that I really love the wall colors. I spent a lot of time choosing them. So I don't want to change them to match new floors. Also I don't want a floor with a warm undertone because I really don't like warm colors for decorating. I think I am in a minority in that respect. :)

I am definitely not Mr. Net/Mr. Clean, so I am working on freeing my mind of all the flooring decisions I made in the past year or so. I need to be open to lighter colors, as long as they're not too light. And I need to stop telling myself how rich and beautiful the dark chocolate/mocha samples are.

The people at Duro-Design are very helpful, Emily. When the time comes, you can request samples directly from them. If you're doing a click-lock floating floor, they can tell you which colors are available pre-finished. If you want the glue-down tiles then I think they're always finished on-site after installation. Glue-down tiles are better in places that are exposed to water/flooding, such as kitchens and bathrooms -- I'm not sure if that's a concern for an RV. I would imagine that installing any floor in an RV is relatively simple, in the sense that you're not dealing with the types of leveling problems that my condo and many other old homes have.

[emily_in_nc]

The people at Duro-Design are very helpful, Emily. When the time comes, you can request samples directly from them. If you're doing a click-lock floating floor, they can tell you which colors are available pre-finished. If you want the glue-down tiles then I think they're always finished on-site after installation. Glue-down tiles are better in places that are exposed to water/flooding, such as kitchens and bathrooms -- I'm not sure if that's a concern for an RV. I would imagine that installing any floor in an RV is relatively simple, in the sense that you're not dealing with the types of leveling problems that my condo and many other old homes have.

Oh good to know, thanks! I didn't realize that was the company you were dealing with too. They had been recommended on an RV site.

We will definitely go with the floating, click-lock floor. For one thing, it's much easier for DIY, and for another, with a moving "house", like an RV, you don't want things that are rigid since there is a lot of flex and motion when you're on the road. So floating floors are much preferred. Our current floor (the part that isn't carpet) is, I'm pretty sure, a floating laminate floor, but it's much shinier than we prefer (the reflections on it from the windows show every paw print, every dried drop of water, foot smudge, etc) and too dark as well, and it's cold in the winter. And pre-finished is the only thing I'd consider. It will be in the kitchen area, but I'll probably leave the existing vinyl in the tiny bathroom, as it's okay and in good shape. We always use a rug in front of the sink area, so I don't worry too much about water in the kitchen. Sure, flooding could happen, but that would hurt just about any floor, so we won't plan for that much bad luck!

[ny biker]

So, update. Apologies for the long rambling post here but since I'm making this decision all by myself, this helps me to think it through.

I've gone back to several of the flooring stores and spent a fair amount of time reconsidering samples that I had previously rejected. I ended up bringing home several samples that are cork but with an HD image printed on them, so they look like wood grain. I also brought home one sample that has a real cork look, in a tan color called "coffee" (which is more coffee ice cream than black coffee). A couple of the wood-look samples I brought home are a light grayish-brown. This is a trendy color right now but I ruled it out because it doesn't look good with my furniture. The coffee-colored cork was in the running for about a day but then I decided I don't like the way it looks in lamp light. And really it's too light.

So I've narrowed it down to two of the wood-look cork samples -- "Oak Fumed" from Ecotimber and "Kilmartin Pine" from US Floors. The color of the Ecotimber sample is definitely good. I think the US Floors color also works but I haven't seen it in sunlight yet -- it may have too much yellow in it.

But I had two concerns about the wood-look cork. First, is the wood image durable or is it easily scratched or marred? So I did a test with the Ecotimber sample. I put it on a hard surface (tile bathroom floor) and then I dropped a hammer on it from shoulder height (roughly 5' off the floor). Then I dropped it 5 more times. There was not a single mark from the hammer. I also tried scratching it with my fingernail -- really digging in -- and then I put on a high-heeled shoe and dug the edge of the heel into the cork. These two tests did leave marks but the cork has rebounded a bit and the marks have become less noticeable over time. BTW I also dropped the hammer onto a sample of engineered hardwood (oak) that I have at home and it left two dents. So the cork sample won that test -- it resists damage well. (I haven't tried the same test yet with the sample from US Floors -- if I decide I like the color I will try dropping things on it.)

My other concern is that the wood-look cork looks too fake. This is the main reason that I am still undecided. I think the main issue is the finish. I walked around one of the flooring stores looking at hardwood as well as LVT and laminate that look like wood. Almost all of hardwoods have a high-gloss finish. The fake wood-look products, including the two cork samples I'm considering, are all completely matte, no gloss at all. I think this is what makes it possible to tell that that they're not real wood.

On the other hand -- there was one hardwood sample with a very matte, totally unglossy finish. And it was from a brand that is considered high quality. So maybe a matte finish is not so bad? And when I first saw the Ecotimber wood-look cork at the store I ignored it because I thought it was hardwood. So it did fool me. The only reason I brought the sample home was because the guy in the store told me it was cork. And in general I'm not completely opposed to something that is fake wood. As long as it doesn't scream "cheap and fake" I think I'd be okay with it.

There is one more cork sample that I want to see in my home but haven't been able to get my hands on yet. I think the color is okay. The possible problem is the texture -- it's pretty busy and in photos that I've seen online it kind of looks like it's peeling. I'm still hoping to be able to bring a sample home so I can decide one way or the other.

So in summary my decision is:

- cork that is a good color but is imprinted with a wood-grain image that may look fake
- cork that is a good color and is a real cork texture but may look like a bad skin rash
- give up on cork and get hardwood

I'm leaning toward rolling the dice on the cork with the wood image that might look fake.

Here are some photos from the internet. The first two are the "Kilmartin Pine" from US Floors; both photos are from the manufacturer's site. The third and fourth are the cork with the good color but with the texture that concerns me. I think this actually doesn't look so bad in the third photo, which someone took in their house and posted on a decorating/remodeling forum. It does look bad in the fourth photo which is from the manufacturer.

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[ny biker]

(These are related to the last post on the previous page.) Here are some photos I took. They show the sample of Ecotimber cork in "Oak Fumed" next to a real oak sample. The coffee-colored cork is also included. These were taken under artificial light.

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[emily_in_nc]

I can definitely see your dilemma, NY. I looked at all your photos and am not sure which I'd pick either! I like the look of the actual cork but would I like it all over the floor...it's hard to say. I suspect after a brief getting-used-to-it period, I would. It's just "different" compared to the hardwood I'm so used to.

I have seen that very matte fake hardwood in a couple of stores and casual restaurants and liked it; I wonder if it was cork? I do remember thinking that it was probably not real wood; for one thing, it was not as hard (so maybe it was cork), but I don't mind "fakes", so long as they look nice. I think it does look nice, though the color of the one you are looking at is darker than I would because of showing light hairs and dust.

Decisions decisions! It's definitely a big decision so you want to feel good about it.

[ny biker]

Okay I have made my decision. I looked at even more samples, went back and reconsidered colors that I'd already decided against and rejected them again, even reconsidered some a third time. In the end I chose a wood-grain image in a brown-gray. It's "Oak Weathered" from Ecotimber.

http://ecotimber.com/productdetails?skuid=5745&title1=&title2=

It's a very good image of a wood grain, very realistic. It has more depth than the brown Oak Fumed sample and several of the other wood-grain products that I looked at. It's also a bit lighter than the brown Kilmartin Pine that I'd considered. Ironically it's nearly identical to another product sold by US Floors, the company that sells the Kilmartin Pine. The only difference is that the US Floors product is beveled with an odd silver color on the beveled edges. I almost went with that one but worried about those silver edges. Then I looked again at the Ecotimber product and realized it was just the right color with no beveled edges. I worried that the gray tone was too trendy and would seem dated in a few years, but it really looks good with my wall colors and with most of my furniture. It's softer than a true brown. And the weathered look should help hide any scratches or dings that occur.

Anyway here I sit, ready to place the order. For some reason I'm hesitating. I think it's the overwhelming nature of this project. I've started to clear out closets and put more stuff in storage so there will be less for the installers to move out of the way, but I still have plenty to do in that regard. And then there's that fear -- what will will go wrong, will more of my furniture get damaged, will the installers end up doing a terrible job. I did have a good feeling when I spoke to the installer that I'm going to choose for the job. He's done projects in my condo association years ago and still accurately remembers the way our original floors were installed. He's also a cyclist, which of course has nothing to do with floors but is still nice. :) More important is the fact that I'm not actually buying the flooring from him -- I'm getting it from a retail store that specializes in environmentally-friendly products for home improvement, and the store owner recommends this particular installer for his customers. If the installer had a habit of doing bad work, I'm sure the store owner would not be working with him.

Okay, I'm going to do it. Getting out the estimates, sending an email to the store to say I want to place the order and move forward.

BTW I think it's funny how I've done complete 180s on some of my decisions with this. When I first looked into flooring, looking at hardwood, I wanted a dark wood color. I saw samples of gray-brown floors and instantly rejected them as being too trendy. Then when I started to look at cork, I instantly decided I didn't want anything that was pretending to look like wood or tile instead. But you're right, Emily, there are many stores and restaurants that have vinyl, porcelain or cork floors that look like wood, and many of look them pretty darn good.

[emily_in_nc]

NY, sorry I have been away from the forum and hadn't seen your post until just now.

I *love* your choice! In fact, I've bookmarked it to look at again later as a possibility for our motorhome, when the time comes. I suspect it will be too gray for the other bits we're stuck with, but I do think it's very attractive. Nice choice!

I hope that you will be very happy. Would love to hear how it goes with the install and see a photo or two afterwards. I don't think you'll regret it!

Thanks for sharing! :)

[ny biker]

Thanks Emily! As it turns out, it's backordered right now so it looks like installation will be in July. Though we're already through most of May and I have a vacation planned in late June, so July will be here before I'm ready for it.

Meanwhile I'm addressing some other issues in my condo. I finally had the contractor who did the bathroom renovation come back to do the follow-up work that was needed -- replacing some cracked caulk and filling in the gap in the wall on top of the wall cabinet. While he was here I asked him for an estimate to do something in the kitchen, which he had renovated 5-6 years ago, and he said there he would do it at no charge. So that was nice! It was related to the terrible problem I have with cooking odors from the neighbors' apartments. In going through photos I took during the renovation I saw that they left a gap where the walls meet the floor. Most of it is covered by cabinets and countertop but I wanted the areas behind the stove and dishwasher to be filled in. They did the part behind the stove yesterday but I'm not sure if they had time to move the dishwasher out -- I need to call him to follow up. I don't think this will solve the problem entirely but I'm hoping it will help. I'm also looking into having an air purifier installed within the air handler of my heat pump. It should help remove odors from the air and is also supposed to reduce mold, allergens, etc. It's not cheap but as I seal up every gap I can find to keep the neighbor's smells out of my house, I'm also limiting the amount of fresh air that can get in. (Though the air coming in through the walls from the apartment downstairs is not all that fresh, I think.)

[Eden]

I've got my own little (ha… little) home remodeling project finally really rolling. 3 days to lay the stone, 2 more to grout it, but I'm quite pleased with the results so far. The upper part of the walls will be Alaskan yellow cedar paneling - working on getting that ordered right now. We've a port orford cedar Japanese soaking tub that will eventually make it's home here. I cannot wait to take a bath!

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[emily_in_nc]

Oooh, that's lovely, Eden! I just love the style of homes and design in the Pacific NW. So different from where I grew up in the southeast!

[rebeccaC]

beautiful job eden!! is the floor heated?.....and soaking tubs ftw!!!

[Eden]

No heated floor. We could have, but it would have made putting in the waterproof underlayment just that bit harder and possibly more likely to develop leaks. The whole thing is made to be waterproof and the tub made to overflow, and because its wood you clean off before you get in, so the floor should be warmed by the water. I can't get to it right now (it's in a very large cardboard box…) but the tub is quite similar to this one.
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I know what you mean Emily - I grew up on the east coast and it feels like everything there is so much older. The craftsman style houses out here were already quite influenced by Japanese architecture, so the style usually fits in quite nicely.

[tulip]

Been a while but I thought I'd check in. I started this thread many years ago and I'm getting ready to start renovation #2 on the house. It's a relatively small project (removing a wall) that will make a significant difference in the livability of the little house.

[emily_in_nc]

Awesome, and welcome back to the thread, Tulip! Before and after photos would be great.

I guess I should post my little motorhome renovation. We had one wall in the living area that was covered by an awful NASCAR (I assume, some kinda racing) picture when we bought the rig. We found out why the previous owners didn't take it with them since when we took it down, there was Velcro on the wall (not unusual for RVs) to mount it but also some damage. We think they tried to remove it, damaged the wall, so put it back.

Anywho, given that there was wall damage, we decided to cover it all up. Lightly sanded the heat-bonded wallpaper (there's no removing this stuff neatly), primed, and covered it with beadboard wallpaper from Home Depot. Great stuff! Then painted in a cheery "Fresh Sprout" green, added a few of my favorite framed prints, and 3'x2' sheet of steel to use for the many refrigerator magnets we've collected over the years from our travels. (Our fridge is non-magnetic.)

We have many more projects on the list to turn this 2007 motorhome into "ours", but this is a nice start, I thought.

Before ~~ After removing the picture ~~ After completing all the work

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Oh, and I was able to use the NASCAR photo frame (with a new mat) to frame a print from a photographer friend of mine. :D

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[ny biker]

Okay I have made my decision. I looked at even more samples, went back and reconsidered colors that I'd already decided against and rejected them again, even reconsidered some a third time. In the end I chose a wood-grain image in a brown-gray. It's "Oak Weathered" from Ecotimber.

http://ecotimber.com/productdetails?skuid=5745&title1=&title2=

It's a very good image of a wood grain, very realistic. It has more depth than the brown Oak Fumed sample and several of the other wood-grain products that I looked at. It's also a bit lighter than the brown Kilmartin Pine that I'd considered. Ironically it's nearly identical to another product sold by US Floors, the company that sells the Kilmartin Pine. The only difference is that the US Floors product is beveled with an odd silver color on the beveled edges. I almost went with that one but worried about those silver edges. Then I looked again at the Ecotimber product and realized it was just the right color with no beveled edges. I worried that the gray tone was too trendy and would seem dated in a few years, but it really looks good with my wall colors and with most of my furniture. It's softer than a true brown. And the weathered look should help hide any scratches or dings that occur.

<sigh> This floor thing is not going to plan.

I placed an order for one box of the Oak Weathered cork flooring that I finally chose. This was a recommendation from the "color disclaimer" on the manufacturer's website -- order one box to make sure you like the variations in color that you see, while understanding that the whole order of multiple boxes might still have other variations. I figured this made sense for managing expectations, so I ordered the one box. It was backordered, and finally arrived last week. But --- also last week I looked at the manufacturer’s website and found that the Oak Weathered color is no longer on the site. I emailed the store owner who placed the order for me and said, before I open this box, are they still selling this stuff? He wrote back yesterday: no, they have discontinued it.

Very frustrating. But I still want a new floor. So, here are my choices:

1. Order a cork floor with gray-brown HD wood image from a different company, US Floors. This would be the same color and image that I wanted, but with beveled edges that are colored silver. From a distance you don’t notice but up close the silver edges are very noticeable. Love the color but the beveled edges might drive me crazy.

2. Order the cork floor with HD wood image in Oak Fumed (medium brown). The image does not look as much like real wood as the Oak Weathered does, but it’s passable. The color is okay in my living room but darker than I’d like in the bedroom. Feeling very lukewarm about this choice, maybe I will learn to like it but maybe not.

3. Give up on cork and find a wood floor in the gray-brown color that I have grown to like so much. The main problem here is that my current upstairs neighbor is the loudest elephant-walking stomper in the history of elephant-walking stompers. The stomping literally vibrates down my walls to my floor. Sometimes it actually makes my furniture shake. So I really really want the sound and vibration dampening effects of a cork floor.

4. Wait and see – the company that I ordered that one box of gray-brown cork from is supposed to be coming out with new designs, but we don’t know what or when.

I don’t know what to do. First step is to return the box that arrived last week. I will be going back to the store in a few days to look again at what they have, including the gray-brown with the silver edges. I already have a sample of the brown Oak Fumed at home.

[emily_in_nc]

Oh boy, NY, that is a real pain. I so loved the floor you chose and was actually thinking about the same one for our motorhome. I don't know what I'd do. Those silver beveled edges sound a bit odd to me. Maybe they are expecting people to use it in a kitchen to tie in with stainless steel appliances? I don't think I'd use it throughout but would have to see it. Unless you are really sold on cork, maybe the wood floor would be best. You are on the ground floor, no? If that's the case, you really don't have to worry about bothering anyone else, so if you like the wood, I'd go for it. There are also some nice tiles now that look like wood as well, but would likely be too "cold" for your area. Great for the south, though!

[Eden]

The next step is to move the tub in. The powder room portion on the other side isn't even really started, but we will be able to have a bath quite soon.

[Eden]

We got ambitious and put the tub in. It wasn't nearly as difficult as I was expecting to get it into place.

[rebeccaC]

Beautiful wood work on the tub and beautiful soaking room…isn’t port orford the traditional Japanese used wood for soaking tubs?
Cleansing and rejuvenating the mind, body and spirit ftw!!!!!!!!

[Eden]

That's exactly what it is. There's a guy up in Alaska who makes traditional ofuro as well as red cedar hot tubs.

[emily_in_nc]

That's gorgeous, Eden. SO serene and relaxing. I live in envy! :D

[JJessie]

Beautiful wood work on the tub and beautiful soaking room…isn’t port orford the traditional Japanese used wood for soaking tubs?
Cleansing and rejuvenating the mind, body and spirit ftw!!!!!!!!

Oh, I was lucky to visit those when I was in Japan a few years ago. I really wanted to install something like this in my home now, but all I can find is this https://www.amazon.com/Freestanding-Comfortable-Bathroom-certified-XDA1407001/dp/B01CYWGKLY. I'm making some renovation now and thanks to guides like this https://sanitaryreview.com/category/how-to/ already managed to install a toilet on my own, all I need is just a bathtub... any ideas?

[Trek420]

We use apartment therapy and Sunset for inspiration. https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/before-and-after-see-a-dark-damp-bathrooms-carrara-marble-filled-transformation-36639620

Now that Knott’s treatment is winding down this old girls thoughts turn to remodeling the house. That and new wheels I promised myself for the road bike. :rolleyes:

First step will be; new heater, then lights (really hate our lighting), bath, then kitchen.