So upon my entry back into the property this morning I’ve got to say I was more than delighted to see all of my hard work tiling yesterday was still securely fastened to the wall. The adhesive had set really hard and the tiles felt very stable and solid. Whilst laying in bed last night planning my day ahead I decided that coloured grout will be the way to go. Although I’d love to see what it looks like with a white grout, I’m thinking that tiles with white grout situated behind a stove won’t remain white for that long, particularly if a future tenant decides to get a bit Jamie Oliver in the kitchen. I think a matching grout will hide a few more cooking disasters. The colour I’ve chose will be ‘Havana’ which is supposedly a colour…
Before getting carried away with grouting though I had to finish the remaining tiles which were located behind the bathroom vanity as well as the laundry sink. These took a couple of hours by the time I prepared the surface (the vanity needed new base boards) and got all of the tiles in to place. Once again they came up looking really good so I’ll leave them until tomorrow before grouting the whole lot. I’m excitied to see the finished product.
The remainder of the day was taken up finishing painting the bathroom and laundry as well as installing a new exhaust fan above the shower. A recent Ikea purchase was also unwrapped in the form of the bathroom mirror and shelf. Those ingenious Swedes think of all the clever ways to put things together and fasten them to walls and this mirror and shelf combo was no exception. Some careful measurements, 4 screws in to the wall and it was up and looking great in about 10 minutes. I also managed to get some inexpensive bathroom accessories in the form of towel hooks and a cup holder which add to the space.
Before I wrap up today though I want to highlight the benefits of shopping around for items for renovations. One thing the laundry required were conversion taps for an automatic washing machine. Not the most common plumbing accessories but available at most large hardware stores they were looking at costing $150 when I checked them out online. Having a 10% off voucher I went to Masters and got a set for $135, I was pleased with my savings. Not so pleased the following week when I went to Bunnings and saw them out for $99. I picked up a set there and decided to return the more expensive ones. Then 3 days ago I go into another Bunnings store and what do I see marked down but the same taps for $49! I pick up a set and decide to return the other 2 sets. So although I have now spent $273 on 3 sets of the same taps, with the other 2 sets now returned I ended up with a set which is a third of the price I originally thought I’d have to pay. A pain to have to return the others but a lesson in shopping around!
Tomorrow I’m planning on grouting like there’s no tomorrow…and soon there won’t be a tomorrow (for renovating that is!)
Landlordism 