Maybe This Will Help

Most of you are aware that Mr. T works for a company called Mitsubishi Fuso, as he has for nearly 16 years. Almost all of you realize that he travels about 80% of the time. Some of you might even remember that he is a District Sales Manager, working with Fuso dealerships on the Eastern seaboard from the upper reaches of Maryland to Charleston, SC, and inland to Greenville, SC, up to Roanoke, VA. But I'm guessing few of you could identify the actual product that his company manufactures and sells (through those dealerships).

Well, operating on the theory that "a picture is worth a thousand words," I give you a picture:

New Fuso purchased by Black Dog Salvage:
"Salvage Dawgs"

So, what are you looking at? I was messaged this pic yesterday and wanted to share it with you. That's Mr. T in the red (Fuso!) jacket on the left. And he's standing with one of the principals of Black Dog Salvage in Roanoke, VA, taking delivery of their new truck. The Fuso is in the middle.

Does the name Black Dog Salvage ring a bell? If it does, then you are probably DIYers like we are. If not, you will want to check out their program, Salvage Dawgs, which is currently in their second season on the DIY Network on Thursday nights. They have recently begun filming for their third season, so you can tell it's gathering a loyal viewer base. [Follow that second link to read the heart-warming story about the Salvage Dawgs.]

And, guess what truck will be used in that third season? Woo hoo...the Fuso!

Hopefully, that helps you understand what Mr. T does for a living...other than travel a lot.

Now, since he IS traveling, I think I'll fix a nice pot of cooked cabbage...which I love, but he hates with a passion. Says the only way he can tolerate the smell is if he is in another state. Ah well, his loss...

 

Kitchen Redo Redux Number Two

Everything takes longer than it takes.
-- One of Murphy's Laws of Life

I must say...I never imagined that redoing our kitchen would take almost six months to complete. Not in my wildest dreams.

All I wanted was to replace the World's Ugliest Formica Countertops with granite. And create a tile backsplash that would incorporate some hammered copper tiles (from our kitchen redo project in O'Fallon), and some glass mosaic tiles (although not for the entire backsplash)...with a clean, bright white ceramic background. Oh, and add some undercabinet lighting, since our kitchen is quite dark, especially with the cherry cabinets. And, while we were at it, I wanted to finally install a stainless steel organization system I purchased 7 years ago from the no-longer-open Home Expo in St. Louis for that MO kitchen...but never installed. Was that too much to ask?!

You've read all about the countertop installation which took place back in June, under Mr. T's supervision, while I was in Lville with Daughter-With-The-Broken-Foot. Need a refresher? Click here.

Here's a photo he took after the granite guys finished, looking at the "ceiling tile" backsplash we used over the stove.

Then came Bell's Palsy...and my life turned sideways for a while. When I was finally able to see again (after my cataract surgery), I felt comfortable in making tile selections, thinking we'd then call the tile guys back in to finish the job.

While selecting the tile, I was convinced by a fellow (whom I have never seen before in my life) that we could do this part of the project ourselves...and live to tell the tale. (Remember that post? Click here for a refresher.) After all, we have painted, wallpapered, built a deck, and-most recently-a patio together. We could do this!

I took these pictures as we were starting last Saturday, to remind us of what the wall looked like before our backsplash became a reality.

On Day One of the backsplash project, we worked long and hard on getting the design over the stove as close to perfect as possible. We'd looked at...and fiddled with, and redesigned six ways to Sunday...this part of the project for a couple of months now, as we had purchased tiles to "play with" (like a puzzle) on the breakfast bar. Here's what that part looked like after Day One, complete with the blue painters tape we used to make sure the tile adhesive held.

And then here's a close up pic, showing both the hammered copper tile as well as the glass-and-granite mosaic tiles in one of the 4x4 diamond cut-out ceramic tiles we used with a 4x8 rectangle to create a repeating pattern in the 4x4 ceramic tiles.

As a matter of fact, I went to bed on Sunday, dreaming of this idea of a repeating pattern throughout the wall space. Soooo, come Monday morning, the first thing I asked Mr. T to do was remove a section of 4x4s so we could create the repeating pattern. Ahem.

Day Two saw us finishing adhering all the non-cut tiles. Day Three was the hardest so far: that's when the cutting began. I measured, and Mr. T made the cuts with the wet saw. He became quite good rather quickly, with no breaks until it came to a couple of cuts for the tiles around the window sills. Ugh. Not fun.

After a two-day break for Thanksgiving, we got right back at it. Day Four we grouted, and Day Five we caulked and began the putting-Humpty-together-again part. While I caulked the parts I could reach (and then climbed on the countertop for the parts I couldn't!), Mr. T worked on extending the outlets...which you have to do because of the increase in wall-thickness due to the width of the tile. And then he mounted the organizers and one of two undercabinet lights.

Here's a couple of after-shots for your viewing pleasure:

Are we done yet? Well, as of this post, we still have a few things to finish: both the coffee maker and the can opener are spacesaver models that are mounted under a cabinet; a magnetic knife bar goes on the wall above where I keep my cutting board; and the remaining undercabinet light has to be returned/replaced due to missing parts. I'm "weeding out" some of the items that used to occupy prime real estate, so I'll have less clutter...I hope.

Then I can return the plants to the area behind the sink...and all will be done.

Ahhhhh! And to think, it only took six months.

BTW, if you are keeping score, I got three out of the four things I said I wanted in this project...and we only did one out of four things That Fellow told me to do. Oh well, I think we win, no matter what the score is!

Kitchen Redo Redux

Remember I told you about getting new countertops installed back in June? (Refresh your memory here.) Out with the ugliest Formica in the World...in with the prettiest Brazilian granite we could find...White Spring. ¡Eu adoro!

Of course, as I spent my Summer in lovely Looeyvul, and I've been otherwise occupied since my return to HPNC, the Kitchen Redo stalled. Not that I haven't thought about finishing it...many times, I've gone online to drool over the bazillion tile selections. I just haven't had the time or energy...or the ability to see clearly enough to make good color choices...in order to make anything happen. Well, that's about to change.

I went to Lowe's yesterday to get some Mumkins (bright yellow mums in orange pumpkin pots, decorated like Jack-o'-Lantern faces) for the front steps. I have two of the same pots from last year, which are now sporting some cuttings I took from Missy M's mums and rooted earlier this year...believe it or not, they are flowering! But, I thought the steps needed a little more flower-power, don't you know? Especially since everything else is winding down for the season.

Anyway. As these things happen, you go shopping for one thing...and wind up with something else entirely. Can you relate?

I drifted from the Garden Center with my mums inside to the Tile area, and proceeded to spend the better part of an hour mixing and matching kitchen tile backsplash possibilities. I then decided to buy a few of this and one or two of that and take it all home to work with.

And that's how my counter came to look like this.

It's a puzzle, really. A mystery. And I do love a good mystery. Only...I'm not so good with more than three options...makes my head spin and my interest in the project switch to "off." So, with Mr. T's help, I am narrowing down the choices before I get too frustrated.

While I was in the tile aisle, I talked to a man who had just tiled his bathroom. He assured me that a kitchen backsplash was a doable DIY project IF you did these four things:

1. Know ahead of time EXACTLY how you want it to look. (Hence the tile puzzle currently on my breakfast bar.)
2. Measure everything to the 1/16" and draw it all out on paper (Hence getting Mr. T involved...he's the "measure twice, cut once" woodworker in the family...and also the resident draftsman. I can't draw stick people.)
3. NEVER start the project when you have something special happening. He said his wife's parents were coming this week, and she was "driving him crazy" to get his project done! (Point taken. I promise not to wait until Thanksgiving week to start my project.)
4. ALWAYS buy more than you think you'll need. You may not be able to find an exact match if you run out. (As a knitter, I'm already on board with that concept.) He was there yesterday because he needed just three more tiles of a certain size to finish his project...and the HP Lowe's didn't have them, nor did the Winston, Asheboro, or Wilkesboro stores. Lesson learned, Tile Master.

So, here's what I know for sure.

A. I want glossy, white tiles as the main element in this backsplash. This kitchen has a great feature in corner windows over the sink, but as one window faces north and the other faces a tree-shaded west, the natural light is weak. We need the reflectivity that glossy white tiles can provide. Plus white is the main colorway in the granite.
B. I want to use a subway tile pattern and size of the tiles. I like that look.
C. I want to incorporate some hammered copper tiles we have left over from our kitchen redo in MO. (Remember: buy more than you'll need!) I love the warmth that copper gives to a space, and with all that white...we'll probably need some sources of warmth! Plus, one of the accent colors in the granite is a reddish hue, which the copper will pick up nicely. (The other accent color is black.)
D. Without going overboard, I want to include some glass tiles...or mosaic tiles...or possibly both...as accents.

So, this Kitchen Redo Redux post will be...continued. Stay tuned!