Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comHi guys! I’m comin’ at ya with a quick kitchen update because (sadly) not much has changed. We arrived home from vacation and immediately put on our tile pants (literally) and got to work. Click through for a peek at how the tiling process is coming along, what’s on the to-do list in the coming week, and of course- the promised source for the beloved tile!

In case you missed the first five updates, find them here: Kitchen Update #1 // Kitchen Update #2 / Kitchen Update #3 / Kitchen Update #4 / Kitchen Update #5

Things are moving & grooving and we’re hoping to grout this weekend! We’re actually ready to grout right now, but I’m making Emmett wait until Saturday morning because I’m filming a little “How to Lay Floor Tile” video for you guys. It’s easier than you’d think! Since he does all of the construction after his full-time job in the evenings, it’s dark outside and the lighting is no beuno… at least for a quality video (subscribe on YouTube for more of those!).

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comI posted the intro image on Instagram earlier in the week and had SO many questions about where this miraculous tile is from. Don’t worry- I won’t bury the lead. Lots of people guessed it was Tabarka (which I absolutely love), but sadly that was wayyyy out of our budget. You know how we are about the budget. STRICT.

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comTo make a long story short, after weeks of searching through crappy (and ugly) tile that actually fit within our budget, I found this tile on Wayfair and felt like I hit the lottery. It’s a large field tile (18″ x 18″) that is made of terra cotta, and is produced in Spain. It looks like a mosaic, but it’s actually printed rather convincingly. It came in at $5.31 per square foot and we were trying to keep it under $6 s/f. To give you a comparison, our gorgeous bathroom tile cost $27.50 per square foot, which is a little spendy, but we only needed 30 square feet for that project. Whereas, in our kitchen we need 300 square feet. You can see how it adds up rather quickly, so finding this particular tile with the look I was going for was a super score!

Click here for the kitchen tile link!  And don’t forget… the tiling video tutorial is coming soon- most likely next week.

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comThe tiling process is actually going pretty well. Emmett is speeding right along. The worst part has been moving everything from the kitchen into other rooms. It’s making our house feel even smaller than it already is. I thought the kitchen was pretty empty, until we had to move every single thing out of there to tile. The new appliances are currently hanging out in the living room. Emmett actually tried to convince me that the best place for the fridge is in the living room anyway (eye roll… I was not amused). I don’t care how accessible the beer is, a fridge does not belong in a family room. Ha!

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comIn regards to cabinetry and what’s on the to-do list…. yesterday I had to pop into Sherwin-Williams because our sample cabinet came back the WRONG color. You can imagine my surprised face when Emmett handed me the sample. He had no idea what color I picked, so he assumed it was supposed to be white. It turns out they forgot to tint one of our cans. I ended up having them make a custom paint color all together and I think it was a happy accident! I’m actually glad the sample came back inaccurate so I was able to really get what I want.

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comNext week, we’re hoping the cabinetry will be totally finished! The floor will be done, and we’ll be ready to install the lowers. After that, things should start to move pretty quickly. I’m living for the day I can put my dishes back into cabinets and regain the rest of the house. Things are 100% chaotic and I’ve been feeling under the weather (along with both dogs). Between vet visits, human doctor visits, cleaning up dog vomit (disgusting, I know) and the reno… I’m trying to tough it out and be patient for the light at the end of the tunnel. We’re so close, yet so far!

Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #6 - roomfortuesday.comPer usual, I have to apologize for the terrible iPhone photos throughout this post. I can’t bring myself to dig out my fancy camera when the space is looking chaotic and messy (as expected in a reno). I promise, once it’s “pretty enough” to shoot, I’ll find the motivation to setup the tripod and make use of my camera again. Happy Thursday, friends! The next update will be… CABINETRY!!

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23 Comments

  1. I am so absolutely with you as far as the angst of living through home improvements goes (some very strange people seem to relish the chaos, which totally does not compute to me!) – the progress that you have made/are making is fantastic though, I am envious of your final result already!

    1. The state of chaos while renovating doesn’t agree with me either, Sally! Thanks so much for your sweet words- it makes the process a bit more bearable. Here’s to hoping the light at the end of the tunnel arrives sooner rather than later ;) xo

  2. Looks fab! I have yet to tackle a ruling project, so I’m looking forward to your video!!

    Curious about the tile – are there grooves so you can grout on top of the tile to make it look like more smaller tiles or is the printing that good!?

    1. Thanks, Sarah! Tiling is easier than most people expect… hopefully the video helps explain it in an easy way. I’m hoping to share that next week! To answer your question about the tile- the groves will all be grouted, but the printing is really awesome. I’m picky about stuff like that and I ordered a couple samples before committing to make sure it was super convincing. I’m pretty impressed! I’ll shoot some detail shots after the grout is finished. xo

  3. You may have covered this subject , but how do you know what to spend for your house so that you don’t price yourself out of the neighborhood. I have lived in this house and I have watched the neighborhood value dwindle, but I would like to do some improvements , but am concerned that I won’t get the money back on my investment.

    1. Check out this post on resale value: https://roomfortuesday.com/ways-to-add-value-to-your-home/ … Luckily, we have lots of friends who are real estate agents and help to comp our home to others in the neighborhood. We’re always evaluating the market and basing our budget on the resale value. Hope this helps! xo

    2. Gigi, I think Sarah’s post is super helpful (I’m somewhat in the same boat as you — I’m trying to make my fiancé make improvements to his hideous 60s popcorn ceiling, gross carpeting totally dated condo) but I know based on his HOA fees that there’s a ceiling to his resale value so the improvements I want to make are basically to replace the major eye sores etc. but not due major renovations since they won’t pay for themselves.

      Anyway, in your case, I think it might depend on WHY home values are declining in your area — I mean in general most of the country has rebounded and then some from the Great Recession — so is there some sort of unique economic situation in your area that’s causing housing values to decline? Is it possible that the situation isn’t quite as bad as you think?

      Either way, can you change light fixtures and paint and do cosmetic things to make it look better?

      1. Great questions, Kelly! Gigi- Definitely think about those items Kelly brought up, and I’d also recommend consulting with a professional real estate agent, getting an appraisal, or sitting down with a financial advisor before nailing down a budget. Emmett and I have done all of those things… it’s really helpful when deciding how much to spend. Then you can focus on what might be a priority. Good luck!

  4. angelica gonzalez says:

    love everything Sarah!! I can’t wait until we tackle our kitchen! Right now, we are about to pull the trigger on our hall bath and i am so excited!

  5. Your tiles are exquisite, Sarah, well worth the effort it took to find them.

    BTW, that’s one cool modern art installation in your living room. Cheers, Ardith

    1. Sarah
      I’m looking for your kitchen floor tile but Wayfair is not featuring it anymore. Does it have a name i can search? Any info would be appreciated

      1. Hi Tess! Unfortunately it has been discontinued and is not being sold anywhere. I’m sorry! xo

  6. You are amazing! I love the tiles. I can’t wait to see the finished project.

    1. Thank you, Traci! I’m looking forward to finishings things… I feel like the reno has been dragging on forever and ever. Ha! xo

    1. Thanks so much, Karen!!

  7. Lesli Gibson says:

    Love this! I’m a new follower of yours and feel like I found your blog at the perfect time! I fell in love with a tile similar to this one (also on Wayfair!) that I want to put in my kitchen, but I haven’t pulled the trigger yet because I’m undecided on backsplash. The busy backsplash I currently have will clash with the ornate floor tile. Have you already decided on the style of backsplash you will use (if you do backsplash)?

    1. Thanks so much for following along Lesli, I’m happy you’re here (from one Gibson to another), ha! Yes- we’ll be installing backsplash tile, and you can catch a glimpse of it in this post: https://roomfortuesday.com/kitchen-reno-progress-update-5/ it’s a marble mosaic that is pretty neutral. I definitely don’t want to detract from the pretty floor tile pattern. Hope this helps!

  8. Cathy Johnson says:

    Your cabinets are gorgeous. What type of hard wood are they? I’m in the process of updating my home. I’ve chosen a light variation alder but am concerned about the hardness of alder. Do you have any experience with alder cabinets?

    1. Thank you, Cathy! The cabinetry is solid clear alder. My husband works for a custom cabinetry company and works with this type of wood often- it’s great for kitchens and high traffic areas!

  9. What type of wood are your cabinets?