It's starting to come together!

I've been fairly discouraged lately because it has seemed like I have been doing a lot of work, but when I looked in the house I couldn't see it. I saw the individual projects that were complete, but nothing was really "coming together". The kitchen, however, has hit that phase where I can actually see the difference now that I have the back splash complete.

This project had me rather nervous because I usually have my parents take the wheel on tiling projects. They are super lucky and are vacationing in Michigan, so I HAD to do this one without them. I was terrified. Luckily, Jack and Ang came to my aid. He picked up some Bondera and they spent two evenings helping me. It was a frustrating project at times, but I learned a lot. Here are some shots:



Me on the tile saw. (Thanks coworker Brandon for letting me borrow that!) There were some awkward cuts due to the outlets. I only messed up on one piece. So I bought one more box of tile for the job, and used every single piece. I later went back and bought a few extra tiles in case any need to get replace in the future.



You can do it put your back into it! Basically with Bondera you stick it to the wall, then stick the tile right on it, grout immediately. Some of the pieces were good and didn't move. This was a more difficult piece and Jack really had to put some pressure on it to keep it from slipping.



Talk about teamwork! This was another difficult piece and yes I am in the sink area.



Tiles up and ungrouted



Tiles grouted



This is the finished product! Everything is up and grouted! When I took this picture I really thought, "Wow, I'm starting to see it!" Once I get the counters stained, the walls painted, and the appliances in... it'll look good! The end is in sight, well... at least for the kitchen.

The project wasn't terribly difficult and took about ten hours. You can do it with two people, but it was way more convenient to have a third. Once person to hold the tile up, one person to do the spacers and level, then a third person to do the flashlight and help peel the Bondura back. It can be done with two people, Britney helped me yesterday to finish. I'm very satisfied with the project and it's definitely made me MORE motivated to dig in and get things done!

To great friends and all of their help!

Boomba