Retirement/Remodeling Project–You Can Do This!
When I purchased my home in 2013 I did so knowing I would have some remodeling projects to do. My first major retirement/remodeling project was changing the 1977 fireplace surround and popcorn ceiling in my family room. Below is the before picture taken by the seller’s realtor…
My son-in-law who lives about 25 miles away and I removed the painted tile fireplace surround and the painted cedar wood slats above it right after I moved in. We, or should I say he, removed the side box for wood storage and the drywall above it (with my permission). Then it stayed that way, open studs and all, for about two years.
I began the project by stripping the paint off the wooden beams on the ceiling. This took a bit of time and elbow grease. A lot of the white paint was embedded in the grain of the wood. After several coats of Citristrip stripping gel, a scraper and a nail, it was ready to be stained the original dark walnut color. I filled the beam joints next to the walls with sealant (I used brown DAP window, door and trim sealant).
Next, my son-in-law hung drywall and cement board for me. We had to add a bit of framing as we kept the original fireplace framing. Then I taped, mudded and textured the new drywall with all-purpose joint compound and a spray can of knockdown. I used knockdown in the past when I helped a friend patch some walls. Easy enough. Painting was next…I have a lot of experience with painting and I enjoy it. It makes such a difference right away.
Tiling the fireplace surround was next. I had a little experience with tiling as I had tiled a bathtub surround at a previous home I owned. I used a Lowe’s natural stone product, Picasso by Allen & Roth. It was a beige mosaic wall tile which came in 12″x12″ sheets. I purchased a wet tile saw cutter so this was my first experience using one. I am pretty much afraid of saws but I became pretty comfortable after several tile cuts, and I didn’t lose any fingers!
The grouting I have to admit was really difficult. Because the tile is natural with lots of pits and crevices, I knew I couldn’t grout it the normal way. Normally you put it on in big globs and smooth it across the tiles. If I applied it that way the grout would fill the natural holes. So instead I thought I would be clever and pipe in the grout with a grout piping bag which you can get at Lowe’s or Home Depot. They look a lot like a cake decorating bag. However, the grout was too stiff and I was too weak to push the grout out of the bag. Plan B: cover the major holes with blue painter’s tape and then carefully fill the gaps between the tiles with grout using a trowel and then the float. This took an amazing amount of time and patience, but it worked. When I was done I took off the blue tape and wiped off the grout residue from the tiles with clean water. I finished off the edges with a rounded stone “pencil liner.”
I purchased a knotty alder wood plank and stained it the same dark walnut color as the beams. My wonderful son-in-law came back over to help me make a floating mantel. After a bit of measuring so Christmas stockings could hang above the fire and nailing it in place, it looked great.
The ceilings in this family room were originally popcorn. The previous owner had patched some sections when he took down a wall so it really needed to be covered in my opinion. I love the look of wood ceilings so I bought some 3/4″ tongue and groove knotty pine from Home Depot and went to town staining it with Watco Natural Danish Oil. I also called in an electrician to redo some of the wiring to add some light over the fireplace and to add a ceiling fan.
Then, I called in my son-in-law again (nice to have one willing to help) and we nailed the tongue and groove planks to the popcorn ceilings. We finished the edges with 1″x2″ pine which I stained the same color as the tongue and groove pine. The beams I stained a dark walnut color so the natural stain on the pine was a nice contrast. My son-in-law installed the lights and the fan.
<<<<This is the finished look. A warmer feel and a great place to open gifts and roast marshmallows with the grandkids this past Christmas! My son-in-law was assisting!
Now I just need a 55″ television!
