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Archive for April, 2008

The Hunt for Tile

Saturday, April 5th, 2008

We have been interviewing contractors for our master bathroom renovation. We know that we have to get busy and make some design decisions – one of the most important is the tile. Today, I found this bathroom on the web and it got my creative juices flowing.

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The green tile is glass which is very pricey, but they have mitigated this by using it with plain white tiles. I love the clean, modern look of this.

We have looked at a couple of tile places, together – Ann Sacks and Pratt and Larson. The latter is a local company that produces tiles that are sold in tile stores across the country. Their show room is a veritable plethora of tile eye candy.

Steve stopped at another store that he really loved and felt would have what we wanted. We went there today. Oops! Not for Gerrie. I could see why he liked the store. It was nicely organized with displays of what went with what. Almost all of the tile was in earth tones and very traditional or arts and craftsy. And, there was not tile everywhere like Pratt and Larson. He was sure they must have something I would like. The salesman, after listening to what I wanted, whispered, “Have you been to Pratt and Larson – that is the store for you.” I just laughed. So off we went – back to Pratt and Larson.

These are the tiles that I am interested in for our mid-century modern home.

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These are glass mosaics. Aren’t they cool? They look like little quilts. They are 8 X 8 inches and very pricey. These two are my favorites:

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tile1.jpg

So I am thinking that I can use these mosaics as accents with plain subway or square tiles. We are meeting with a designer at the store on Tuesday. We also have to come up with something for the floor.

Otherwise, I have had a very quiet week-end. I didn’t even make it downstairs to my studio. I think that tomorrow, after church, I will get back to some work. I have a bunch of things that need quilting.

Thursday This and That

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

I realized, today, that I have not reported on my weight loss/gain in two weeks. Last week, I skipped my meeting. And you know how my week was with family visiting, eating out and cooking. So it should be no surprise that I have not lost weight in a couple of weeks. I was about to give it up, but at the meeting yesterday, I struck up a conversation with a woman, about my age, who has lost 80+ pounds. She told me that she often went weeks without losing, but stuck to it and would then see a big drop. Her story inspired me to hang in and keep working at it. I feel as if I am back on track, now. Besides, I seem to be losing inches even thought I am not losing pounds.

Here is a photo of Kyoto Collage II in it’s new home, in Virginia. The owner loves all things Japanese and saw my collages done with Japanese fabric on my website and asked me to make one for her.

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Here is a close-up:

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Doesn’t it look right at home?

I have finally gotten things back in order on the home front. Maryama came yesterday and the house is neat and tidy. The laundry is done. The bills are paid. Today, I got my studio back in order, ready for my next project.

We have met with two contractors about our bathroom/closet renovation. We have two more to meet with next week. We have no idea how soon the demo and work will start, but we are getting excited. We have the sinks selected. Our next job is to select tile. I am going to try to remember to take my camera when we do the tile search. I am in love with the colors and combinations. It is like being in a candy store.

Tomorrow the rain comes again, after some gloriously sunny days.