Ryan Canedy : January 2016

Friday, January 29, 2016

TOH Editors' Picks: More Great Indoor and Outdoor Products

Of the many tools, materials, and other home-improvement products that we discover every month, here are the standouts

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How to Treat and Prevent Ice Dams

Ask This Old House general contractor Tom Silva explains the best ways to keep your roof and gutters free from those dreaded ice dams

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Create a Jewel-Box Dining Room

Pattern play and a color scheme worthy of a Fabergé egg create a lively gathering space that's traditional but not staid

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From Fixer-Upper to Refined Farmhouse

While resurrecting a falling-down circa 1850 home, the owner found poetry in salvaged sinks, antique tile, and a couple of pros who could bring her design ideas to life

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Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Grout Color Has a Big Impact on Your Retiling Project

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One of the easiest and most impactful ways to jazz up your space is with new tile. There are so many choices when it comes to bathroom tile, it can take a while to settle on what you want. Once that’s settled, you still have an important decision to make that may seem less important. That’s picking out the grout for your new tile. Not only does the grout hold the tile in place and provides extra waterproofing to your floor, the color of the grout can have a huge impact on the look of your tile and of your bathroom.

Grout Color

We took a classic tile— the Hudson Penny Round in Black by Merola— to pair with five different shades of grout to demonstrate how important the grout color is to your remodeling project.

Fusion Pro colored grout in five shades

We’re using Fusion Pro grout, which provides plenty of options to get just the right look. It comes in 40 shades, from light to dark, and in warm and cool hues. We picked five shades to test— Bright White, Bone, Delorean Gray, Saddle Brown and Charcoal.

The Bright White grout is a big contrast to the dark tile, and emphasizes the pattern of the small circular tiles. That might be too much of a contrast for some situations, especially if it is to cover a large area. Also, if the tile is meant for a bathroom floor, the Bright White is going to show dirt very easily, so it might not be the best choice. In a tiled wall or backsplash, though, that high contrast could be breathtaking.

One the other end of the spectrum, the Charcoal grout tones down the tile pattern, and emphasizes the texture of the penny round tile. It will be very forgiving of dirt, too.

The intermediate hues aren’t as dramatic as the Bright White or the Charcoal. They could be excellent choices, though, if you’re using a multi-colored tile. You could choose a grout color that brings out one of the colors of the tile. Likewise, you could match the grout color to some other element in the room, say, the paint color or the color of a bathroom rug. Of course, you might not want to re-grout your bathroom if you paint the walls a new color, but if you have a color scheme you know you’ll want to stay with long term, matching or complementing the room’s color scheme in the grout can be very attractive.

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Easy-to-Use Grout

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Of course, the quality of the grout itself is an important consideration, especially if you’re planning on grouting the tile yourself. One of the biggest things that DIY tilers struggle with is mixing the grout to just the right consistency. The grout can’t be too runny, too thick or not mixed well. All of these things can have dire impact on the ease of your job as well as the durability long term.

Fusion Pro is a single component product which means that it comes pre-mixed (you don’t even have to stir it!) It also doesn’t need to be sealed, AND it has Microban in it to prohibit the growth of bacteria, mold and mildew. Add to that all the color options, Fusion Pro grout is a very good choice for your bathroom remodeling project.

Photos and tiling by Mandi Gubler of Vintage Revivals.

If you’re thinking of taking on a retiling project, take a look at How to Retile a Bathroom for a Bright Look here on The Home Depot Blog. And check out more DIY projects, too.

Fusion Pro grout is made by Custom Building Products, which makes high quality grout, mortar, waterproofing and other products for tile, backsplash and flooring projects. Browse our huge selection of tile at The Home Depot.

The post Grout Color Has a Big Impact on Your Retiling Project appeared first on The Home Depot Blog.

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Saturday, January 23, 2016

Pull Off 2016 Design Trends with Antiques

A-list interior designers share their tips on staying current with period charm

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8 Creative Design Ideas From Outrageous Kids' Playrooms

Doable ideas for play areas that put your blanket fort to shame

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Friday, January 22, 2016

How to Retile a Bathroom for a Bright New Look

Oh-So-Beautiful-Paper-Grout-1

New floor and shower tile will give your bathroom a totally new look. Don’t worry if you don’t know how to retile your bathroom, Nole Garey of Oh So Beautiful Paper will take you through the process, step by step.

Nole also knows how to combine design styles like a pro. You’ll see that in her complete bathroom transformation. Nole honors the historic charm of her 1920s row home, while staying true to her modern taste.

With the help of new grout and tile, Nole’s bathroom is brighter, more modern, and timeless.

How to Retile a Bathroom

We’ve been wanting to retile the only full bathroom in our 1920s row house pretty much since we first set foot in our home. Our neighborhood is filled with historic homes and lots of period details, so we wanted tile and finishings that honored the time period of our home while also incorporating details that reflected our own modern taste. Our previous bathroom featured dark slate tile around the tub and shower and turquoise walls, which made the entire bathroom feel dark and cramped despite the bright color.

For our bathroom renovation, we chose a gorgeous Grecian white octagon marble mesh-mounted mosaic tile for the floors and a classic white subway tile to go around around our shower and bathtub, with bright white grout throughout. The result is a gorgeous and timeless new bathroom that we love – and that suits the character of our home.

Here’s how we retiled the bathroom.

Tools and Materials

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Step 1

Lay out your subway tile pattern before you actually start tiling. This may sound like a given, but we ended up going with a slightly different pattern than we had originally intended after laying a few tiles out. In the end we chose an offset ⅓ pattern for our subway tile. So instead of centering the tile joint in the center of the tile below, our tile joints were offset at 2” from the tile below, with the offset pattern repeating on every other level of tile. Take your time on this part; measure and mark all your tile with a china marker before you start and you’ll save yourself a lot of headache down the road.

Step 2

Use your level (preferably a laser level) to draw a 3” line on the wall above the tub to give yourself a level starting line. Don’t assume that your tub or floor is level!

Our contractor gave us the tip of laying a ½” plywood board down to protect the tub, which has the added bonus of serving as a step stool when you need to tile the upper sections of the wall. We also recommend using painter’s tape to protect the top of your tub from thinset and grout, especially along the edges.

The edge of your tub probably has slight slope to it, to help drain water away from the walls. Make sure you align the tiles to your straight line and not to the curve of the tub.

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Step 3

Apply a thin amount of thinset to the back of each tile and apply to the wall, starting in the middle of the longest wall and working your way out in each direction. The most important thing is to make sure that you have a level first row, so take your time and measure frequently!

Continue tiling all the way up the wall, using a wet saw to cut the tile when necessary and a hole saw to cut circular holes for the plumbing. Use ⅛” tile spacers to create an even grout line, and tile shims when needed to maintain the levelness of the tile line.

Use damp sponges to wipe away any excess thinset before it dries. And change your water frequently! Simple wooden shims are great for scraping out any extra thinset from between the tiles. You want those spaces to be as clean as possible so you can seal them up with grout later.

Step 4

We used bullnose tile to cover the corners around the tub walls, then tiled the outer edge of the tub and shower alcove using a straight set tile pattern. Those little wall sections are only about 6” wide, so it didn’t make sense to try an offset pattern there. I was worried about losing the offset pattern there, but the straight set pattern actually makes the tiny wall feel wider.

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Step 5

When you retile a bathroom, you’ll want to lay the marble mosaic tile out ahead of time to figure out how all of the sections would fit together. Our house was built in the 1920s and doesn’t have a single 90 degree angle anywhere in sight, which means that our bathroom door and tub are angled slightly towards each other. We chose to align the floor tile with the door – as the visual and physical point of entry – rather than the tub, which meant that we started the floor tile right at the threshold and worked our way out towards the rear wall.

Step 6

We began with a strip of brass tile edging to mark the transition between the marble mosaic tile and the marble threshold. This brass edging is so slim and delicate, but it’s probably my favorite detail from the entire bathroom and it creates a beautiful and clean line between the threshold and floor tile.

Luckily, the brass tile edging couldn’t be easier to install. Just trim the brass tile edging to your desired length using a table saw. The brass tile edging comes in different heights, so just make sure you purchase a height that matches the thickness of your floor tile.

Apply a thick layer of thinset to your waterproof floor board (we used Wedi board), and firmly press the marble mosaic tile and brass tile edging into the thinset at the same time. Continue tiling around the room. You’ll want to let all the thinset dry for 24 hours before you start grouting.

Step 7

We used Fusion Pro grout, which doesn’t require sealing, but if you’re planning to use natural stone tile you’ll definitely want to seal the tile before grouting. We sealed both the marble tile that we used in our shower niches and the marble octagon mosaic floor tile prior to grouting.

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Step 8

Apply grout according to the manufacturer’s instructions. We chose Fusion Pro grout in Bright White for our entire bathroom. Apply the grout in small sections, approximately 20 square feet at a time. Spread the grout with a rubber grout float to fill in all the spaces, then hold the float at a 45-degree angle to scrape up any excess.

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You’ll want to work in small sections, stopping every 3-4 minutes to wipe away excess grout and shape the grout joints with a damp sponge, again changing your water frequently.

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Then finish by using a microfiber cloth to wipe away excess residue. Allow 24 hours for the grout to dry completely, then caulk around the tub, the corners of the tub alcove, and any places where tile meets the wall or ceiling.

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Using Colored Grout

I had originally planned to use a gray grout for the shower alcove, but once we got all the tile up on the wall I realized that a gray grout would make our already small bathroom feel even smaller. The Bright White grout helped brighten the entire space and make it feel nice and open!

We ended up using two one-gallon buckets of grout for the entire bathroom, and I was so happy to find that there wasn’t any color variation between the two grout buckets. And the best part is that Fusion Pro grout is a proprietary formula that is stain resistant, easy to clean, and never requires sealing. Look how great the tile looks with what bright white grout!

The bathroom layout didn’t change at all; the tub, toilet, and sink are all in the exact same spot as they were before. Even though it’s our master bathroom (and the only full bathroom in the house), it’s a fairly small room and we decided that the existing layout made the most sense for the space. But it’s amazing how a simple change in materials can make a huge difference even with the same layout!

The lighter tile and bright white grout make the entire space feel brighter and bigger, which is huge for a room that receives zero natural light. Bathroom renovations are a lot of work, but the result is a timeless and elegant bathroom that we’ll enjoy for years to come!

Nole Garey is the editor of Oh So Beautiful Paper. She lives with her husband and two young daughters in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Washington, DC.

Check out more DIY projects and ideas here on The Home Depot Blog, and follow our Inspiring Tile pinboard on Pinterest.

The post How to Retile a Bathroom for a Bright New Look appeared first on The Home Depot Blog.

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Show Us Your Remodel!

Enter your whole house redo for a chance to land on the cover of the October issue and to win $10,000

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Save This Old House: North Carolina Queen Anne Filled with Treasures

A desirable location and charming details make a heavy reno worth the trouble

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How to Hang a Kitchen Wall Cabinet

This Old House general contractor Tom Silva helps a homeowner purchase and install a kitchen wall cabinet

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10 Treehouses That Are Nicer Than Your House

A loftier approach to real-estate envy

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Read This Before You Organize Your Garage

Our clutter-busting guide to help get yours shipshape for National Clean Out Garage Day

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Thursday, January 21, 2016

Walk-ins Welcome for His-and-Hers Closets

Flat-pack shelving and storage pieces fast-track the DIY design-build of a couple's closets

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How to Maintain Your Snow Blower

Ask This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook gives tips on how to keep a snow blower running through every storm

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Fix Household Problems Without Spending a Dime

Save yourself a trip to the store and some money, too, by trying these smart work-arounds for common home-related gripes

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Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Build a Storage Shelf for an Over-the-Door Display

A clever solution inspired by Colonial-era homes

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How to Perform a Whole-House Energy Audit

This Old House host Kevin O'Connor and a specialist perform a whole-house energy audit

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7 Surprising Built-In Bookcase Designs

Embrace the not-your-basic bookcase with these inspirational photos and how-tos

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An Outmoded Fireplace Gets an Upgrade for Under $60

A TOH editor's unlovely brick acquires a polished white finish at a fraction of plaster's cost

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Steal Ideas from Our Best Yard and Garden Transformations Ever

Use our most stunning back- and front-yard makeovers to help inspire your outdoor rooms

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Tuesday, January 19, 2016

DIY Wall-Mounted Book Sling

A book sling is an attractive way to organize and store books, especially in a child’s room. This DIY book sling is easy to make; all you need is a double towel bar in your favorite finish and any fabric of your choice.

We chose the Delta Silverton 24” Double Towel Bar because of the shiny chrome finish and the cute circular design on the post. We found these great Martha Stewart curtains at The Home Depot and loved their fun, yet timeless pattern.

This quick and easy sewing project will bring a nice organization solution to any room. At the end of this tutorial, we’ll show you how this book sling can also become a shoe sling to keep footwear organized and off the floor.

Just follow the step-by-step instructions.

How to Make a Wall-Mounted Book Sling

Materials for Wall-Mounted Book Sling

Delta Silverton 24” Double Towel Bar
Martha Stewart Living River Mist Moroccan Geo Back Tab Curtain
Matching Thread

Tools:

Iron
Scissors
Ruler or measuring tape
Straight pins
Sewing machine
Drill
Phillips-head screwdriver
Level
Pencil

Step 1: Wash, Dry and Iron the Fabric

Tip: Before any sewing project, always wash and dry fabric to ensure that shrinking doesn’t happen later down the road. Ironing keeps the fabric crisp for easier pinning and sewing.

Step 2: Cut the Fabric

Cut the Fabric

The towel bar is 24 in. long, therefore the fabric length needs to be 24 in. to match. However, based on the size of books needed to be held, cut the depth to properly hold. For example, a 5 in. book would need a 4 in. depth.

Step 3: Stitch the Fabric

Tip: Change your sewing machine setting to zig-zag, and zig-zag the edge of the fabric. This will help prevent fabric from fraying along the edges while assembling and will make hemming a lot easier.

Step 4: Pin the Fabric

Pinning Fabric

Pin the Fabric

Fold the fabric in half (patterned sides together) to create a 24 x 21-in. rectangle, and pin the two sides together in 1 to 1½-in. intervals. Leave a 5-in. opening on one of the short sides (so the fabric can be turned patterned sides out).

Step 5: Sew the Sling

Sew the Sling

Sew the pinned edges together and remember to leave unpinned edges open. Then pull the fabric inside-out, and fold it in raw edges to line up with the sewn edges.

Pin the edges together and iron them.

Hand sew the edges together.

Step 6: Add Pockets

The final sewing step is to make pockets for the towel bars to slip into.

For this, you will need to fold over each long edge by 2 in. Secure with pins, iron and sew a ¼-in. seam.

Step 7: Install the Towel Bar

Determine where you want to install your towel bar.

Most towel bars come with a step-by-step installation template. Use this for easy installation. Usually you will just need a pencil, a drill, a screwdriver and a level. It can be done in minutes.

Before mounting the second post, be sure to slip the book sling onto the bars.

Put the bars into the second post and hang the post on the wall.

Wall-Mounted Shoe Sling

This wall-mounted sling can be used to hold other items, such as shoes.

Shoe Sling

We have more DIY projects here on The Home Depot Blog. Follow our Easy DIY Projects board on Pinterest, too, for more DIY tutorials and ideas.

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Monday, January 18, 2016

Bathroom Vanities in 4 More Unexpected Places

Vanities: they offer the functionality of a sink, the storage of cabinets, and the style of a statement piece. So why when people think of vanities do they only think of bathrooms?

We’re bringing the versatility of the vanity to rooms all over the house. We wrote about this in Bathroom Vanities in 3 Unexpected Places. Read on for more inspiration on how you can use vanities in unexpected ways to make creative and functional additions to your home.

You can explore our wide assortment of bathroom vanities and cabinets online or see them in person at your local Home Depot store.

Bathroom Vanity as a Coffee Station

It’s like having a little corner cafe right in your kitchen, sunroom, or favorite spot to curl up with a cup. With a multi-functional piece like the Home Decorators Collection Teasian Vanity, you can rinse dishes, fill pots, and channel your inner barista anywhere in the house. And, bonus: storing mugs in here frees up some space in your kitchen cabinets.