DIY: Fireplace Re-Design - Phase II

On Tuesday, I gave you a little insight into the start of our fireplace re-design project. The post reviewed the tile-demolition-phase of this project and left you hanging there.

Well, today I want to give you a brief update of some on the work that has taken place since then.

But first, here is a picture of where we left off...



The original tile had been broken up and removed, and Joey installed durock into the floor as the foundation for the new tile.

Enter Phase II: Installing the new tile.

The tile we selected to lay down is from Menards. It is a natural stone (tumbled marble to be exact). I wanted a tile that would be new but have an aged appearance so that it fit in with the character of the old house. The tile size we chose is square - 6 in. X 6 in. We didn't want anything too large because we thought it might look funny to have just a few large tiles in the small floor space. I chose a light beige/ivory color that would blend in well with the wood floor and other surroundings.

It came in boxes like this...

We had to buy 2 boxes (1 box was not enough tile) even though 2 boxes gives us quite a bit more than we need. Maybe we can use the leftover tile somewhere else in the house. Hmmm...

Joey began the process of laying the new tile on Monday. He started by taking the tile out of the box and arranging it on the floor to get the pattern we wanted to use...



We decided placing 2 rows of tile down the center would be best (I'm definitely a symmetrical girl). Then we could work our way out from there. We wouldn't be able to fit whole tiles perfectly in the space. So, the tiles would have to be cut to fit around the edges (kind of like a border).



So, Joey used a trowel to scrape the thinset (white stuff) down on the floor and then placed the tiles in rows. He had to use a tile cutter to cut a little bit off the very bottom and very top rows. And then cut really small tile pieces for the sides.



And here is the tile all laid out (but not grouted)...




It's starting to come together!

What's next? We had to wait a few days for everything to dry before the tile could be grouted. Hopefully, that will happen this weekend. Then we move on to the brick transformation! I can't wait to begin that phase!


Note: If you missed the demolition phase of our fireplace re-design, click HERE!