I Tiled! I'm a Tiler! I Tile Now!

One of the DIY merit badges I've been excited to earn was as a tiler. Every show and contractor/construction guy I've talked to has been insistent it's an "EASY" DIY. "You can totally do it," they say. But I never had the opportunity to give it a go. A nice easy low-risk project.

Until the powder room!

I gathered up my courage, watched all the how-to videos, picked up all the supplies needed (about $250 with the tile) and took a deep breath ... and just GOT WENT FOR IT.

Everything is figuroutable, right!?

It was easy, though there were definitely lessons learned. And quick solutions I had to come up with. But I would very confidently tile another small wall.

First, here's a photo of the IN REAL LIFE mess of a room mid-project. It's important to be OK with creating a mess. Tiling is messy.

Here's the room after the tile is up (took about four hours) and the clean up. Hauling clean water in and out of the room was the worst part. I'll get a partner to be my water-helper next time. Because you're up against a time crunch with the grout quickly drying. Yikes!

And here's a look at the grout, mirror and 14-year-old checking herself out before heading out the door for school. We love it! And what a self-boost kick I get every time I'm using this bathroom knowing I TILED THAT WALL ALL BY MYSELF!!! Badass.

Just a few things left to do: hang the rest of the art, the towel hooks and curtains. I ordered a rug -- to cover the beautiful but probably slippery floor when we run in from the pool this summer.

Final "completed" photo coming soon!

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