Aaahhh, finally a few minutes to get the world caught up with what's going on with us. A lot has happened in the few weeks since I last posted. We've been living in the new house for about two weeks now. Living with the mess, the construction and disorganization. Living without knowing where anything is when we need it. Making plan changes and rolling with the punches. As is customary in my life, nothing is constant and nothing ever goes as planned. It ended up taking much longer to complete the tile in the kitchen but it's done and it's stunning. We have had a number of service people in and out of the house and I've shared pictures of my work with people I am doing business with. All seem amazed at how beautiful it turned out. I myself am amazed. The first question I get from every single person is "You did this yourself?" Really people? Are you asking that because I am female or because I somehow appear incapable of such a project? Women have been taking on tasks much larger than my little home redo for decades (and longer). Why are men still so surprise when one woman accomplishes something they see as a manly project? I am no feminist and if I could have gotten someone capable and willing to work with me, I would have been more than happy to let someone else do the work. All I asked was that the person be able to listen and stand by their word. Apparently, that is a rare, rare thing.
So I have pictures to share of the before and after and I have actually figured out how to add a "Pin it" button. I think.

 

The tile is from +Home Depot and my inspiration was this pin

 I started out planning to use real hardwood but I would have needed to buy a planer and that seemed like an awful lot of work. I found this wood look tile at +The Home Depot and it matched my choice of laminate perfectly. That being said, here are a few things I learned from this project. Porcelain tile will dull your tile blade faster than any other kind of tile. There are many, many cuts to create a design like this, even using 18" field tiles. Having now completed this floor, I realize that real wood would have been infinitely more forgiving and fun to work with. If you have any type of physical limitations such as nerve damage, carpel tunnel etc., go for the material that's easier on your hands. I am very pleased with the finished floor but I will never take this route again. 

I knew I wanted a special and unique threshold transition from the living room into the kitchen, searching far and wide for just the right mosaic. I finally found what I was looking for at Lowe's. I had been to several different Lowe's stores and, it would appear that, they all carry stock unique to what sells in their area. I found this glass and stone mosaic...

And this is how it came out...

I will have a new picture of the entire transition from living room to kitchen as soon as I get the base trim back up. The effect is quite nice and I ended up using it again from the laundry room to the hallway. That occurred for two reasons: I forgot to cut the laminate deep enough to meet the existing tile in the laundry room and I had a full sheet of mosaic left that I couldn't return because I had taken the packaging off and thrown it away. It worked out for the best though. 

I've also taken another Pinspiration to solve an issue in another part of the house. That project isn't quite finished yet but I'll be sure to share when it is. We wanted just a little diffused light in the bedroom without having to have the whole room lit and the vanity light in the master bathroom cast a serious glare while we were watching tv in bed. I have modified the painted canvas screen with Christmas lights behind it into a sliding shoji screen that we can use when we need but doesn't take up visual space the rest of the time. 

That's all I have time for today but I'll be posting more regularly now that I have the big projects done.