Kitchen Face Lift

Recently we worked on a project in a home we were very familiar with. A home that we had worked on a lot for the previous owner was sold. The new owners bought the home as an investment. They wanted to make the kitchen more neutral, and update the look of the cabinets to increase the value and appeal of the home.

The existing kitchen with blue floor tile, blue back splash tile, and laminate front cabinet doors.


The existing floor tile was solid and installed on a concrete underlayment so we were able to install 12"x12" almond floor tile over it and the 1"x1" back splash tile over the existing back splash tile.

The cabinets were in good shape so we only replaced the doors and drawer fronts.

Lake Front Bathroom Remodel Slideshow

Floor Tile in Lakefront Bathroom

The drywall on our lakefront remodel is finished, sanded, and primed. Today we installed the tile floor. The owners chose a 1" hexagon tile that we applied over 1/4 " concrete backer board.

Bathroom Remodel on Tillamook

After the kitchen and living room were completed on Tillamook the customers decided to revamp the bath as well.



We chose a 12"x 12" ceramic tile for the floor.

6"x6" ceramic tile was used on the vanity top with a 3"x12" back splash and a 6" rounded trim edge. We reused the existing sink but dressed it up with a new faucet.

To tie the room together we continued the same 6"x6" tile around the existing tub-shower.

To find out what projects we can do to revitalise your home contact me for a free design estimate.

Interior Remodel on Tillamook

One of our recent projects has been an Interior Remodel on Tilamook in Hide-A-Way Hills. The "face lift" we gave the home included, a new hard wood floor in the living room, a new ceramic tile floor in the kitchen, new granite tile kitchen counter tops, and a solid maple butcher-block island counter top.

The kitchen before vinyl and carpet floors with laminate counter tops.

The the floors have been prepared for the tile by installing concrete backer board.

The tile has started to be installed with an accent border around the perimeter of the floor.

We chose granite tile for the counter tops over solid granite with about a 75% cost savings.

The Butcher Block Island Top was custom made from solid maple then installed on a repositioned existing cabinet.

The completed kitchen with new tile floor, granite counter, and butcher block island.

The hardwood floor we chose to use is 2 1/4 oak with a natural finish. To cary the border in to the living room from the kitchen an inlay finished in gunstock is installed around the perimeter of the room.

Bathroom Coming Together on Nez Perce

Tile Grouted on Nez Perce

Tile grouted

Ceramic Tile in on Nez Perce

Tile in

Hard Wood Floor Progress

The progress continues on our Taos Lane Hard Wood Floor.

Hard Wood Floor

Our current project at Scott Martin Construction is a Hard Wood Floor installation in a home on Taos Lane in Hide-A-Way Hills. The scope of this project will entail removing all the kitchen cabinets, taking out existing ceramic tile, removing a pantry to allow a new pantry to be constructed in a more convenient location, installing a patio door where a window once was located and re-installing the original kitchen cabinetry.

Heated Tile Floor

Today, we started a bathroom tile floor project on Taos Lane in Hide-A-Way Hills. The interesting aspect of this project is the under-tile heating system we installed. The system utilizes a heating grid which is placed in the mortar, along with a thermostat mounted on the wall to heat the floor to the customers comfort level. Please feel free to contact me for an estimate for a tile floor or any other project.

Bath Room Tille

April 15 Tax Time! Lately I've been buried in a mountain of receipts trying to get through my taxes. Now I've got them done and have some time to get back to my blog.


We installed the ceramic tile in the first floor bath of our Nelsonville new build. The tub surround was finished in a 12"x12" Terracotta tile with a multi colored mosaic accent. On the floor, we laid 12"x12" antique white tile and grouted them with the same linen as the walls.

Club House Tile

The Hide-A-Way Hills Club House Face lift continues with the tile being grouted, the ceiling and walls getting a fresh coat of paint, and new bar stools ordered.

Club House Floor

This weekend I started a project that I have wanted to do for quite some time. The carpeting in the Hide-A-Way Hills Golf Club House was worn and needed replaced. Last Fall during the Buckeye Football Games held at the Club House, the funds were raised to purchase ceramic tile as an alternative to new carpet, which would quickly wear out again. With a host of fellow member volunteers we removed the old carpet, bar stools , and a stationary step which held the stools. The Hardi Backer underlayment and ceramic tile were installed next. We should finish the project in a few days, which will allow plenty of time to be ready for the Club House's season opening on April 14.

Floors

I thought I would take a look at a floor project we installed last year. It was really four projects, three tile floors and one hardwood.



We started with the tile in the kitchen. The owners wanted a custom design and they opted for a clipped 12"x12" blue floor tile with a 4"x4" cobalt wall tile laid at 45 degrees. In the bath we repeated the same pattern with white instead of blue.



Three inch wide oak hardwood was the choice for the dining / living room. To define the living room space, and to keep the project in the budget we were working with, we made an island of carpet surrounded by the hardwood.

Basement Osage Lane

Soon after we completed the home on Osage Lane, the owner asked us to come back and start a new project in his basement. We had about 1,500 square feet to work with so we had ample area to create the living space he desired. The library panel wainscoting, stair wall, and bar were all hand crafted on site using solid Poplar. The fireplace uses propane gas logs and is direct vented through the wall. The same 12"x12" ceramic floor tile in the bar area was repeated in the curved hearth at the fireplace.

First Project

Back in the summer of 2002, I resigned from Apco Sidings, a company I had worked at for 18 years. I started Scott Martin Construction and began work on our first project a new home on Osage Lane, here in Hide-A-Way Hills, Ohio.

Hand framing, custom cabinetry, tongue & groove pine ceilings, and tiled and hardwood floors are some of the architectural features that have become a standard in our work.

Tile Shower

A few days ago I posted an article about the shower pan installed in the basement finish on Otto court. The photos above show both the shower pan before the tile as well as the finished tiled and grouted project.

Six inch tile was installed on the shower floor in a 45 degree checker board pattern of tan and brown. The walls were finished with 12" tile, brown on the bottom and tan on the top, separated by a 2" accent strip. Available inventory of stock tiles at home centers allows virtually unlimited patterns and designs for homeowners at a relatively inexpensive costs.

Bar

I

t's that time of year again. As has been tradition for the past 20 years, I'm having a Super Bowl Party! With Super Bowl Sunday right around the corner it's time to finish The Bar, which was started in the summer.

The Bar was constructed out of a 100 year old barn door. A friend of mine found it leaning against the back of his garage when he bought his house. When I saw it, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it.

The top was tiled with random multi- colored slate that has been sitting in a box for years and years out at my dad's. He found it in an old barn at his dad's, and I thought I should use it before my sons inherited it.

The custom pool table light was constructed using 30 empty Jagermeister bottles. The design was inspired by some Corona lights I saw in a seedy bar when on a cruise in Aruba. While I didn't drink all the Jagermeister myself, I did do my fair share.

Shower Pan

In the design process of the Basement Finish on Otto Court, the customers wanted a relatively large shower in the master bath. The 9' x 14' area which was available for a bathroom, enabled us to fit a 5' x 6' shower in the room with relative ease. The shower was designed to have 2 shower heads, a full glass door, and would be finished with ceramic tile.

The main concern when building a ceramic tile shower is water leakage. In the diagram you can see the method we used to build a shower pan, with a thick mortar bed over a vinyl membrane. This step can not be seen when the tile is finished but is the most important step in the process, assuming you want the water to go down the drain and not out in the house.