#10 - I hate granite!

Another HUGE expense in the making...............COUNTERTOPS!


Where do you even start?  All I know is that I'm not a big fan of granite.  There is really no reason behind my hatred for granite.  I just never liked the look of it.  But then again, have I seen all the different kinds of granite in the world?...............no.  Still, I've never come across a piece I liked.  Plus, I cringe (involuntarily) every time I see people ogle over granite countertops on House Hunters.  I take this as a sign, no no on granite.

What are my choices then?

• Marble
• Engineered Stone
• Tile
• Laminite
• Corian
• Concrete
• Stainless Steal
• Butcher Block
• Granite

If I had my way, I would choose marble.  I love love love the look of it.  It's just so pretty!!  

BUT...........................

A. I don't have a gazillion dollars

B. Not as durable and maintenance free as I would like

C. People keep steering me away from it  

Here we go, decision making time.  Luckily, my brother's friend works at a place that sells and fabricates countertops, Aegean Stoneworks in Anaheim.  After perusing the various options, I'm going with engineered stone.

Fun facts about engineered stone:

• 93% quartz
• super durable
• easy maintenance
• consistent in pattern and color
• food safe
• stain resistant
• a ton of design choices

In my research, I found 3 brands of engineered stone that kept popping up.  I'm assuming these are the biggest most popular brands out there.

 

 

Since there are so many choices, I have to narrow it down fast or this is just gonna get old and I'm going to end up picking.....whatever.

I know I want something white, and I love the look of Carrera Marble.  Lucky me, I was smart enough to take a paint sample of my kitchen cabinets to see what will work best for my kitchen.

And this is what I found:

Cambria - Torquay

The veins in the stone match the color of my kitchen cabinets perfectly.  The Torquay will go in the kitchen and the guest bathroom.  I found a remnant at Aegean Stoneworks that will work for the master bathroom.



DONE, moving on :).

#9 - Paint the town.................I dunno

Choosing paint colors.........not so fun.  I have a hard time picturing what colors will actually look like once they're up on the wall.  Who knows how many times I went to Home Depot for paint chips.  So, keeping with the theme of my house, I went straight to Martha Stewart AGAIN.  The cool thing about the Martha line is that she labels each color with a symbol:

If coordinating colors is not your forte, this color key system will help you out A LOT.  It makes creating color combinations super easy.  Just match 'moon' with 'moon' or 'apple' with 'apple'. 

My starting off point is the color of my kitchen cabinets (already selected).

Sharkey Gray

So the color key I will be using is this: 

I've already decided that my kitchen and living room area will be the same color so that I can create the look a one large flowing space.

Kitchen/Living Room choices:

Rainwater

River Mist

Stairway/Hall/Master Bedroom choices:

Bedford Gray

Driftwood Gray

Nimbus Cloud

Cement Gray

Winter's Day

Front Bedroom choices:

Araucana Teal

Geyser

Lagoon

 Back Bedroom choices:

Butterscotch

Punch

I purchased about one thousand paint samples and just slapped them on the walls.

          

 

 

  

   

   

It's like a crazy person lives here!!!

#8 - Tile Time

Picking out was definitely one of my favorite things to do so far.  There is so much to choose from and everything is so pretty.  My go to tile place is Stone & Ceramic Surfaces in Huntington Beach.  The reason why I like this place was that the showroom was HUGE.  Most other tile places can pretty much get you the same stuff, but it's always nice to be able to physically see the tile and create patterns and designs on your own right there.  Just make sure you do a lot of research though.  Every tile place I went to was willing to match competitor prices.  Also, do the math ON YOUR OWN!!  With tile, I rounded up on the measurements and added 10%.  If you leave it up to the salesperson, you will end up with boxes and boxes of extra tile.

It took 5 tile stores, 4 appointments, and countless hours to decide which tile to put where.  The last thing I want is for my house to look like it's being flipped.  I don't want to use the same in more than one room.  Each area needs to have its own distinct style.

So here we go..................

KITCHEN:

1. Nominees for Backsplash are...

      

Master Bathroom:

1.  Nominees for shower are...

     

   

2.  Shower  floor:

  

 

3.  Bathtub backsplash:

4.  Bathroom floor:

 

5.  Nominees for vanity backsplash:

   

   
Guest Bathroom:

1.  Guest shower/tub:

     

2.  Guest bathroom floor:

 

3.  Vanity backsplash:

 

And the winner is................

Master Bathroom inspiration:

Design:

Guest Bathroom Design:

 

Master and Guest Bath Floor Design:

I hope everything turns out the way I want because that was a LOT of hours I spent just on tile......