Installing glass mosaic tile

Part of our adventure in Monterey living has been fixing up this house, which has turned it more of a project than I think we anticipated. Isn't that always the way?

Finding contractors -- ugh, I hate it. We've had a bunch of them through here. It's not that I've been unhappy with anyone I've used, but they're hard to get hold of and not always available when you need them. Have you had the experience of contacting a contractor and getting no response, then weeks later when they've got no work they call back?  I can procrastinate like crazy on making decisions about a project, but once I have, I want to get going on it NOW.

So I took on the last phase of the kitchen remodel -- installing the glass mosaic tile backsplash--myself. The internet is full of instructions how to do it, but they always install the tile all the way up, from the counter to the bottom of the cabinets. And of course they only demonstrate the easy parts.  Since we just wanted a 4-inch strip along the countertop, I was on my own.

I think it turned out pretty good.

Click the Read more link below to see a few tips and tricks I discovered.

Tiles going up

The backsplash tiles have started going up. I'm learning as I go. The internet is full of instructions on how to install glass mosaic tiles. Of course, it's always some smiling person standing in front of a wall to be tiled -- swoop the trowel across this way, now hold at an angle and notch the mortar, now smooth it out -- their arm sweeping across the wall in easy, practiced movements. They don't show the reality of bending across the counter trying to reach the far corner while also trying not to hit your head on the cabinets above, or tiling the little 5-inch gap between the top of the counter and the bar. With the first strip, I learned how much mortar NOT to put on. I did way too much, and when I pressed the strip of tiles against the wall as you're supposed to, mortar came squirting out between the tiles. I spent the next 40 minutes picking it out of the spaces with a toothpick. So I didn't get much done the first day. Here's what I've got so far.

Next project

Everyone is just so much more laid back here--it's part of what makes living here fun.  I was reminded it of this again because I needed to get some tiles to finish our kitchen remodeling project.  The kitchen was seriously outdated and not in great shape when we bought the house, so fixing it up was one of our first projects, and we finished the bulk of it straightaway. But with all the decisions about cabinet styles, colors, hardware, floor tiles, countertops, paint, etc., we procrastinated on choosing a backsplash. And then with other priorities, and it kept getting pushed back. (We lived for months with masking tape covering the gap between the countertop and wall--sheesh!)

Anyway, I finally got back to it, so we headed over to Monterey Tile and Marble to look at tile samples. (We were turned on to this place when shopping for floor tiles by a fellow customer in the Home Depot tile section. He saw us looking at tiles and suggested looking at MT&M as well. ) It's smallish, family-run place with zillions of samples and friendly, helpful staff. We found a few samples that we liked and asked how to check them out so we could try them in the kitchen. No problem. He wrote down my name and that was it. I kept waiting for me to ask for something else. When we did this years ago in Seattle, we always had to show ID, and sometimes even leave some sort of security like a credit card number or even a small deposit. But here, "just take 'em...bring them back in a week or so".

We picked one we liked, and went back to place the order. They gave me a great price and within a few days I had my tiles. These are the ones we picked....aren't they pretty with the granite?