A few 'before' pictures.

This is the disgusting paneling and "retro" style carpet.
Our house is a very very very fine house =)

Entry Tiling Project Introduction

So the first project is one we have had in mind for almost as long as we have owned the house. The current entry area of our home consists of an area approximately 3' x 5' of bad peal-and-stick vinyl (pictures will be posted eventually). We wanted to tile the area, figuring it would be an easy, relatively cheap way to improve the looks of the living room. At first I wanted granite or marble tile, but after looking at the available selection and considering the size of the area, that did not seem the best choice. Carolyn wanted slate, but after reviewing our options we decided the natural stone was simply too expensive.

We found some nice slate-look ceramic tile and matching mosaic-style tiles at The Home Depot, and decided to go with that. Our plan is to have the entire project done by the end of Memorial Day. We have already begun, cutting the carpet to a uniform edge and cutting a few tiles for the center of the design. More updates will follow, with pictures of the layout and the current vinyl.

Purpose of this Blog

Welcome to our blog. Carolyn and I purchased our house last year, taking advantage of low home prices, low interest and the tax credit for first-time home buyers. We finished a number of projects before moving in, even though the home was in excellent condition. We painted the bedrooms and living room, removing the horrible plastic-coated fake-wood paneling and 1970's era carpet in one bedroom. We also installed a mailbox, a new sink faucet, a new bathtub faucet and had a new furnace and air conditioner installed (thanks to my parents for the loan for that).

Over the winter little was done, but now that it is warming up we have a number of projects we would like to work on this year, despite our upcoming wedding in July, and many more ideas for the years to come. Neither Carolyn nor myself are overly experienced with major remodeling or other do-it-yourself projects, but we believe everything we want to tackle is completely doable for two intellegent adults.

This blog is intended to record our successes, challenges and maybe even provide ideas and/or a little insight to others planning similar projects for their own homes. Though I cannot promise regular updates to the blog, I will try to detail our progress and plan to post pictures of our projects, before, during and after completion. Thank you for stopping by.