An Assortment of Greenery

 

A few weeks ago we headed out to Fontana to check out a nursery we had heard was going out of business. We figured we could get some great deals there! We did get some awesome deals and were excited to learn that they were not going out of business. Check out Mercado’s Nursery in Fontana if you live in So. Cal! Each plant cost between $5 and $25. We were told that we scored an awesome deal on our bushes and trees (about 1/2 the cost compared to other nurseries!)

Below are Japanese Privets, a purple potato tree, crepe myrtle, lily of the nile, some sort of ‘garlic’ plant which has pretty purple flowers, bougainvillea, hibiscus, oleander, and some yellow bushes. We were pumped and began to plan out where the plants would go. For about a week or so the plants did have a hiatus on our patio. 

It makes SUCH a difference to have even a bit of color in our backyard!

 

Desert to a Work in Progress!

 

Our backyard has basically been a desert since May. Everything was dead except for the weeds. Some of the weeds reached 5 feet tall! I wish I had some pictures of those weeds. It was overwhelming and depressing to look at dead, brown, everything. This fall we decided that it was time to get working.

First we enlisted the help of a landscaper friend who happens to own a bobcat! We knew we needed to get rid of the dead grass and weeds and turn the ground but the work was daunting. This friend, Mark, got to work with his bobcat and brought in a few loads of good topsoil to mix in.

Second, we needed to decide where we wanted grass so that we could install the proper sprinkler system. Our yard is huge for a CA yard and Mike didn’t want to mow all day. We decided to mulch about half and plant grass in about half. The back half of the yard, which you can’t really see unless you walk around the house is mulch and the part you can see from the patio will be grass.

Once we figured out where we wanted the grass Mike and Mark planned out a sprinkler system. Another wonderful feature of the bobcat is that it trenches saving hours of back breaking work. Once we had trenches Mike laid out the pvc pipe and connected it to the water. I really have no idea how that all worked. I just know one day we didn’t have water to the backyard and the next day we did!

   

Kitchen Paint

I figured that this week would be a great time for some updates. I am off work and am motivated!

As we were deciding to paint our kitchen I kept coming back to the color green. To me, green can feel warm and comforting or springy and cheerful. Now, I didn’t want to go bright green because that’s just too much. In our garage we had a left over can of paint from re-doing the bathroom in our previous house. We decided to give it a shot and we loved it!

I love my kitchen!

  

Granite Tile

 

When you lay tile your first need to plan out your design first. We figured out where we wanted each tile and then began to do the cutting. You do need to have a wet tile saw. We started cutting and laid out all the tile for the kitchen. After we were please with the layout we took the tile off so that we could start spreading the mortar around. After each placement we needed to use the level to check for accuracy.

           

After the tile had set for at least 24 hours we could begin grouting. The grout has a similar consistency to peanut butter. We spread it all over and wiped it off. It then, needed to set for 24 hours before we could seal it.

Mike and I had struggled finding a backsplash we liked and wasn’t too expensive. We had no luck at tile stores. We were a bit discouraged but then realized we had enough tile left to create a 6 inch tall backsplash design. Mike cut the leftover pieces into 1, 2, or 3 inch tall pieces. The length varied… and it looks great!

To finish off the counters we did a trim border around everything. This was cheaper than purchasing bullnose granite pieces and easier.

We also purchased a new sink! it is awesome and deep! I can actually fit my pots and pans in the sink with room to spare!

Counters

We did not by any stretch of the imagination love these counters:

They were white, nasty, old, tile counters. The grout was disgusting! When we moved in I bleached it several times. As we were debating what to do to replace the counters we obviously looked at our budget at the price of a granite slab. We quickly came to the conclusion they were out of our price range.

We went back to the idea of tile but this time the tile would be granite tile, and 18 x 18 inch rather than 4x4 inches. A granite slab can be anywhere from $40 per square foot and higher. Our granite tile was $8 per square foot!

We began by taking out the old counters and plywood. We replaced the plywood and screwed hardi backer onto it. After that we could lay the tile.

Good-bye white tile counter!

See ya later sink I don’t like!

     

New plywood base for the counters:

  

My new sink hole. And of course one must ALWAYS be making sure to use a level.

The Hardi backer – this ensures strength of the base (I think).

 

Kitchen # 3

The kitchen continued to make progress paint stroke by paint stroke and weekend by weekend.

   

 

Next up… installing new counters!

Kitchen Update 2

Moving on from yesterday’s update, which I realized I had done a similar post in June. Oh well, its been awhile!

 

The upper cabinets required primer, paint, paint, and more paint. It felt like I did coat upon coat of paint. Really, I only did 2 or 3 coats. It just felt unending. It was my summer project and each morning before it became to hot I would paint for a couple hours. I listened to many a book on tape or is it book on mp3 player?

 

     

Trim time! Amazing how a simple piece of trim can add such a finished look!

The new arrangement works so much better! Love having the fridge in the middle!

            The base cabinets are getting there!