Brochure Pictures for the Home Tour

I am so excited and honored to have my house on the Restoration Exchange Neighborhood Tour on October 2nd. Time flies. It means I will have officially been in the house for almost exactly a year. And I've been a homeowner well over a year. What a whirlwind year it's been!

Here are the pictures (many of which will be in the brochure that people on the tour will receive.) Hope to have a good turnout. Hope to see you here!

Front room/Formal Living Room

Dining room that I made into a living room

My pride and joy

Yes, I still have the original push button lights

The reason behind this entire journey

Forgot that I had refinished these!

Master Bedroom/New Attic Space

Adjoining Master Bathroom

Period correct lighting and mirror

Most of my door knobs look like faces! 

Looking more lived in every day!

Making old Tile look... Better

One of the things I decided to keep original was the main floor bathroom. I had the tub re-glazed, but put in a new vanity and toilet. Some things just don't need to be original. I added wainscoting but left the light fixtures and original medicine cabinet. 

I also left the floor. Good, bad or otherwise, I really liked the original tile. But it looked horrible. Grimy and gross. 

So a few weeks ago, I started the arduous and extremely gross job of getting down on my hands and knees and giving the floor a cleaning of a lifetime. I scraped up paint, construction debris and frankly, things even I wouldn't talk about in public. I just...can't even. 

And then last week, it was time to re-grout the tile. I'll be honest, I didn't know what I was getting myself into. But I learned very quickly. And I made mistakes, which I tried to remedy but now know I can't. But my manicure survived!

Here's the lesson I learned: 50+ year old tile, which hasn't been sealed, will absorb the color of the grout (in some spots). I thought I had gotten the grout off in time, but I don't think it really mattered. It was going to absorb the color regardless of what I did. 

First mistake. Only do an area that you can reach. So I waited a little bit to sponge off the entire floor (without the bottom of my feet being completely black...because who doesn't do this barefooted?) Unfortunately there are some individual tiles that now look to have dark gray thumb prints. I waited a week and tried (with some success) to scrub those tiles but I couldn't get them perfect. But again, I'm assuming the floor is over 50. So I'm not being too hard on myself. 

What I learned is that I should have sealed the tile before laying the grout. I think. To be honest, I'm not sure. So I sealed it the next day (after scrubbing) I think it looks good! A little more shiny and clean! 

That's the first pass compared to the rest of the floor. 

Finished product. It looks better. And clean. So so clean!

See the lower right hand corner? Nothing a few well placed floor mats can't cover up, right? But for now (besides touch up paint and refinishing the door) I'm done in the bathroom. Finally!

Labor Day Labor (of love)

I've written a new list of projects that don't necessarily need to be done before the Home Tour. But one task does and I've been dragging my feet starting it. 

I chose to keep the original floor in the main floor bath, knowing full well that it would require regrouting and maybe a glaze (haven't fully researched that). But in the meantime, I've struggled with how to get years of dirt, compounded by time and construction mess, off the tile and out of the grout. And I finally found it!

Bar Keepers Friend! I bought it to clean up the burner trays on my electric range when I realized that possibly, this would work. It's abrasive, but these tiles are pretty worn down, so I wasn't too worried. 

And low and behold... It's working!

I swear this isn't "my" dirt. I've mopped and cleaned this floor more times than I've ever wanted to. Trust me. 

And when I get back from my Labor Day relaxation, I plan to finish. But in the meantime, I'm thrilled with this product and the outcome! And it's inexpensive!!