Monday, January 31, 2011

Mortar and Tile and Grout--OH MY!

Wowza.  This might be my favorite post yet because I'm starting to feel professional...

We have been working hard to transform this cart into a cool little kitchen, and it's all coming together!  I went to the Rebuilding Center (they know me by name now...) and picked up a hodgepodge of tile.  There was really no rhyme or reason to my selection other than I wanted them to be funky and different and random.

Mission Accomplished

As you can see, the wall is just a piece of plywood that was completely bare.  We applied a layer of mortar and then started laying ceramic tiles one by one.  I did a little pattern through the middle to kind of break it up and give the wall some texture.
Obviously, tiles had to be cut to fit on the wall and the angled ceiling.  Travis got pretty good at this!



After the tiles were all cut to fit, we were able to cover the entire wall and make our backsplash.  We then had to let it dry overnight and let the tiles set.

Grouted.

After the mortar dried, we applied grout which was also super fun.  The wall had a "finished look" almost instantly.  Grout is kind of tricky because it dries fast, so you have to apply it and then wipe it down right away.  And as you're wiping, it seems like it's just making it messier, but really, it's filling all the cracks and settling.  

And of course, with the beautiful new tile, I couldn't possibly leave the countertops ORANGE...  After sanding them down, I painted them with a grey acrylic paint that cleaned up the whole look.  Check it out...


Not bad, eh?

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