apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

my very first question on AT, so here goes:

we are remodeling the bathroom in our new apartment and have been seriously considering using those little mosaic glass tiles. i mentioned this to several people and most of them seemed to think this would be a bad thing because apparently the space between the tiles tends to get quite dirty.
i love the way mosaic tiles look, but i don’t want to have to spend hours each week scrubbing my bathroom walls. does anyone have an opinion on this one way or the other?

You have to seal them and clean frequently. Are you just doing walls or floors too? I wouldn't do floors.

we were just planning to do the walls. no ideas yet on what to do with the floors, unfortunately...

Hey All,

Are people going to Open House NY this weekend? I can't wait!

juno - if you're just doing walls (not floors or interior of a shower), it doesn't seem like the tiles will get THAT dirty. except for wiping/drying an occasional splash of water, i can't recall ever actually cleaning my own bathroom walls.

I have them on the restroom floor in my retail store. It gets a lot of use. I don't think the grout gets any more dirty than regular tile grout.

I did seal the white grout with a high quality sealer. But aside from that, I just use a good amount of hot water with a tiny amount of disinfecting cleaner and a scrub brush to loosen the dirt (the brush is key). Then a hoover hard floor cleaner to "vaccuum" the dirty water up. Takes 10 minutes every other week. It's been 2-1/2 years and they look fantastic.

Even in the shower, grout is grout. I think the difference is that you have to use a brush to clean them, not a scotchbrite pad. The brush can get into all the tiny grout lines easier. But I've never had them in a shower, so what do I know?

I clean my tiled bathroom walls. I don't know how they get dirty but I think it's a combo of condensation and dust. Anyways, they need to get cleaned once in a while!

Yesterday (or maybe the day before), the biz section of the NYTimes had a short write-up of a device to bring cable TV into a computer. Anyone tempted to try it and get rid of the TV?

The floor in the restroom of your retail store gets a lot of use?! Yee-haw!! ;)

SR--
Are you/were they talking about SlingBox?

Lori2--
Wish I was in town for that, but I am in Providence RI for my (insert large number here) College Reunion.

There are many solutions to integrate TV with your computer. If you have a computer that runs Windows, you can get many types of 'TV tuner' cards (which go into your tower) or usb sticks that plug into a usb port. For a Mac there are tuners from Elgato and Miglia which plug into your Mac via ubs or firewire which will give you a seemless experience as well. Then there are devices such as the Slingbox which you connect to your TV or cable box which also let you watch TV from your computer.

I have been using tv-on-pc tech for some time now, it's really easy to set up & if you monitor has inputs for DVI, VGA, and composite, you have an all-in-one solution.

hi,

desperate for design help.

i need dining table for a small apartment and i was thinking of using a console table = maybe 48x24". my coffee table is this but with an oxide/silver grey base:

http://baker.kohlerinteriors.com/baker/1_1_5_2_prod_lg.jsp?coll_id=323350&prod_id=363150&prod_num=3453-1

my walls are neutral, off white. the couch is called "cadet blue" which is a navy/charcoal grey. pillows are grey and silver.

can i do the room and board parsons?

THANK YOU!

midtownapt--
I think the parsons may be a bit heavy in relation to that light and elegant coffee table.

No alternative comes to mind right now... do yuou have other wood or metal in the room?

But also keep in mind not all console tables are dining table height.

hi patrick,

thanks for the reply.

this is the sofa (in cadet blue with silverish velvet throw pillows):

http://baker.kohlerinteriors.com/baker/1_1_5_0_coll_prod.jsp?brand=Baker&coll_id=323350&category=Sofas+%26+Loveseats&subcategory=&prod_id=70750&prod_num=826-90&index=1&browse_key=Baker%21323350%21Sofas+%26+Loveseats%21

so there's a bit of wood on the base. there is a simple, parsons-like dark cherry wood desk which will probably go. no other furniture to compete with as we still need to get a media unit.

we're leaning towards the more modern side of transitional i think.

since space is a bit tight, what would a drop leaf be a good option for us? it really only needs to seat two people.

thanks so much.

Lori2, just returned from the Open House and will post pics pronto.

Where did you go?

Curtis, if you read this: you would be interested to se the evergreen studios (the mural/decorative finishes restoration place)on 31st street. Right up your valley. Beautiful techniques with Venetian Plaster and glazes, among other things.

Hey Tat,

I went to about 12 places. My goal this year was to get to as many of the private residences as possible. I think my favorites this year were the Duane St live/work loft and the Kushner residence.

How about you?

Lori, tomorrow, OK? I'm dying to sleep.

Posted the first installment, Lori

I am desperate to find a teak/ cherry toned small dining table (36X36) and entertainment stand (should also be small, for a 19inch tv).
I would love to find a table for $200-300 and the stand for that as well. Any ideas? Can't use craigslist. Thanks.