As in: when your project drives you to drink.
The walls have been sheetrocked.
The wedi board is in the shower.
The tub is in.
The heated floor has been installed.
Floor leveler has been poured.
We are ready for tile. This should be a good thing. But instead, we don’t have any, and all progress has ground to a halt. Nothing else can happen. Until there is a floor. It’s my sole mission in life and I no longer even care about it. Now, when the tile clerks ask if I have a price range? I say no—show me the most hideously expensive tile you have. Shock me.
I have lost all will to continue looking for tile. Seriously. It has made me crazy. And the bad thing about being made crazy over tile is this: you cannot explain to anyone what a problem it is, without sounding utterly pretentious. You cannot explain the exhaustion, the frustration, the draining fatigue, the futility of shopping for flooring… without revealing that you have no personal depth, and are a sad, hollow, characterless being.
Even Paul has abandoned me. I can tell that he is gritting his teeth and counseling himself that there is no good to come of being aggravated at my indecision. And? Just to irritate him, I continue to photograph small tiles. And show them to him, and explain all over again why I cannot have small tile.
I’ve definitely been this way over rugs – I’m amazed my now-husband agreed to marry me after I showed him thousands of rugs and still couldn’t make up my mind.
Nice of you to give your husband fair warning… I waited until after we were married to reveal myself as utterly indecisive. (Although, actually the endless wedding-planning should have clued him in.)
I have to thank you for the first really good laugh I’ve had in a few weeks. I am living in the decision hell you’ve described so aptly and related to all of it, especially the part about being unable to complain about the stress to your friends without sounding pretentious and shallow. Since I am now holding up the works and have decided, like you, that marble is too much work and would drive me crazy, I am ready to give up. Can you tell me what tile you ended up choosing? I’m hoping against hope that I can just copy you and be done with it!
Ah, tile hell… you have my condolences.
I ended up with Peronda Museum, 18×18, polished, in Bianca Carrara. That link is to the post I wrote when we were choosing it. And then here it is grouted. If you read down into the comments on both posts, there was a woman who sought out my tile and ended up using it, and you might find our exchange helpful.
At the time, I was so drawn to marble… and was worried that I would end up wishing I had used it. Now? That I have some distance from the emotional craziness that makes you think such choices are as important as mapping the genome? Now I love this tile. And am so glad I did not choose marble.
*Be aware that it is polished. Which is something I really wanted, and had a hard time finding, but is not everyone’s choice for a floor tile.
Good luck in your quest. May the force be with you.
I know the feeling. I do the same thing with paint colors (I know what color, but it has to be the perfect shade) and I’m currently doing it with what type of flooring to put in our kitchen.
My son, who is 8, has informed me that we need American Olean Sausalito tile, white with black accents, in our bathroom. Not that he asked for it by name, but he saw it in a picture I was looking at and said “we need that floor in our bathroom.” I said “works for me, as long as the grout’s not white.” Makes picking finishes a lot easier. He is available for consultation work.
LOL… getting someone to give you a definitive opinion can be like pulling teeth! But I never thought to ask an eight-year-old… they’re thrilled to tell you what they honestly think!
p.s.- I googled the American Olean Sausalito… and yes, I’ve seen that and it’s lovely!
HI there… What brand of radiant heat did you guys go with? Any issues installing it? any issues after the install? Do you love it? Thanks
We got it at Lowe’s… I don’t remember the brand name.
Husband says he thought it was better to install than one we used in a previous bath (which was way more expensive, since Home Depot, and Lowe’s didn’t carry the mats a few years ago.)
Husband programmed the thermostat so it comes on automatically… I don’t know how easy it was to program. I hate those kinds of instructions.
It’s been great… no issues. And it IS nice on a cold morning to not walk on freezing cold tile!
Did you find it hard to work with the floor leveler? Was there anything special you needed to do to prep for it? Thinking of using it for our bathroom but I have visions of self leveling compound dripping down through the walls to our downstairs :O
Lol… yes, definitely be sure that all holes and cracks are sealed up prior to pouring it!! Other than that, just follow the instructions. Getting the right ratio of water to mix is important. You want it to flow out and not be too thick, but also not too watery.
Husband says that if it’s mixed properly, it will work just the way it should. And? If you’re buying from a supplier, rather than a big box store, those guys are usually a great source for instruction and tips.
p.s.- We used the floor leveler because of the heated mat… if we weren’t installing that, I’m not sure if my husband would have used the leveler. Not sure if that was clear or not, so thought I should mention it.
Is you in floor heating electric or water based? Is it your only source of heat in the bathroom?
Electric… and no, we have a traditional vent, as well.