House on Hillsboro

Porch Floor

One of the things I have been most anticipating is the installation of the porch floors and they are finally here!

 

They are white because they have been primed.  We will paint them. 

 

They are tongue and groove so nothing can collect between the slats nor can bugs or flies come up between them on the screened porch.

 

I walked over yesterday evening and was thrilled to see that they had nearly finished the front porch but later that night Ray called and asked ifI noticed that he had messed up.  He had made traditional perpendicular slats but if you look up to my banner up top you'll see that the plans called for horizontal rails.  I told him I had not noticed and that I didn't think that it made any difference to me.  He also said that this way can be best because with the horizontal rails the boards tend to bow and it is very obvious.

BUT after we hung up I pulled out my set of plans and I really like the horizontal rails more.  I think.  Do you?  I do know that I don't really care for the faux support pieces at the top of the center post.  I will have him remove them. 

 

But the floors sure are nice.

Tile, Part 1

Ava's Bathroom:  White Oct/Dot,  Home Depot

 

Jack's Bathroom:  Home Depot

 

Master Bath:  2" Creamy Hex, Home Depot

 

Home Depot came through!

More, later.  Soon, I hope! 

Engineered Hardwood

My friend and fellow blogger, Shannon, who will soon be building an amazing house herself, sent me a few flooring links and by some stroke of luck I really like one.   It's an engineered hardwood from Build Direct  manufactured by Vanier.    

 

It is $3.79/square foot, .46 cents over my budget.  

I have consigned myself to staying within my budget.  It is so easy to splurge just a bit with each purchase, then 937 purchases later your all... what the?  But here the difference is so little that it could easily be paid out of pocket.

I don't really worry about the softness of wood, dings are inevitable, but salesmen will scare you to death about the moisture issue.  CLEAN SPILLS UP IMMEDIATLY!  NO WET TOWELS!  and the very worst, DRY OR LIGHTLY DAMP MOP ONLY!  Freshly mopped (with Lysol!) floors is one of the greatest things in life.  Can I adjust?

I found a really helpful Frequently Asked Questions for engineered hardwood flooring and learned that the Vanier's 4mm thick hardwood layer can be refinished 2-4 times.   

Thanks again, Shannon, for the info.  Be sure to head over and enter her contest.  There are only a few hours left! 

Flooring

That part is not comeing along so great.

I really thought that this decision would be one of the most fun/easiest of them all.  I was a floor snob so it was simple - tile floors in rooms with sinks, hardwood floors in rooms without.

But then came the budget - $3.33 per square foot (not including installation) and my realization that it was reasonable and fair and that the cost difference between high dollar and budget flooring is vast but the performance is really similar.  Some would even argue better.

I have several choices to make, the biggest being the "wood" product that will go in the great room, dining room, foyer, stairs, loft, bedrooms, and closets.  Ideally it would be like this--

 

brown hardwood.  Not too black, not too red, not too shiny, not too new.  But real wood is out.  Sniff. 

Engineered wood is a possiblilty.  I have found several within my budget, mostly from Lumber Liquidators in Little Rock but none of the right color.  And I must say, right or wrong, color is a high priority with me.

Laminates? I just can't love them.  Actually, there have been several Wilsonart laminates I have really liked but they are as costly as wood which is sad because they are the only company (that I know of) offering a stair system that provides a seamless step instead of haveing to install a stair nose.

JD's parents just refloored a room in thier house useing a vinyl plank tile that they are very impressed with.  I have not been to see it yet but JD and I did see the product in Home Depot and I must say looks wise it wasn't too shabby!

 

And at $1.79 a foot I could afford the bath tub of my dreams.

Several days ago I was at a stone yard and came across a wood look ceramic tile that was absolutely gorgeous.  I have seen these here and there but not as realistic as this.

 

Is that amazing?  At the quantity I am ordering, I can get this for $3.25/square foot!  And I know it's cold and hard but it is also hardy and beautiful and my feet haven't touched bare floor in years (slippers!).  I left thinking this was a serious option until it occured to me that it is laid useing grout and that isn't included in the price. 

So that is decision number one.  I also need to choose tile for the kitchen, pantry, laundry room, and bathrooms.  I had not made any real progress here either unitl my Tramonto Mix Hex Tile  sample finally arrived yesterday and for the first time I had that feeling that this is it!

 

It's a two inch hexagon mixed slate.  Installed, it will look (to me) like little cobblestone!  It is for sure going in the laundry room but I love it so much I am considering it for the kitchen.  Crazy I know but I would love the continuity.  Is it too small for a kitchen, a small kitchen?  Too light?  Too busy?   Too wacko?  Would it clash with my accent tile?  I ordered a sample of that, too.

 

And I love it!

If anyone has used , seen, or heard of any particularly good or bad flooring product I would love to hear about it.