I think the link below is the best side. Although the information is given in the Dutch language, "normal" people are able to read it too. Here is a link that might be useful: Alliums

I don't know of any other site, but your bathroom sounds a lot like mine, and we achieved a total transformation. We too had a cave shower (the Germ Cave) and a bay window and a walled off toilet closet with a bump out that we got rid of. Here is one thread with some photos and I am happy to share more if you think it would help you. I don't know of any other sites but I did find it useful to sit in Barnes & Noble and look through magazines since I am visual and needed to SEE it to know what I was looking for. Check out the gallery here on this site also. Good luck! Here is a link that might be useful: Master bath remodel

Lordy lordy. Sad to hear that. Especially over Kerdi, as the fleece surface that the tile adheres to or the polyethylene core that makes up the membrane of the Kerdi can easily be damaged in a demo. Some basics, and I'm not saying you isntaller did anything wrong. Just some basics knowledge here: The thinset should have been "thinset" and not mastic. Mastic is water-soluble and should never be used in a wet area to adhere tile to a substrate. When exposed to air it will dry and harden, when exposed to water it'll absorb water and turn soft again. Thinset would have come in dry powder form and it would be mixed on site, mastic comes in a tub and is premixed. Unmodified thinset cures via hydration. It's a chemical reaction that consumes water. It does not need air to harden. Modified thinsets also need air to fully cure, as the "modified" part of the mix needs to "dry" in addition to the chemical hydration cure that doesn't require air. I'm going to get a bit persnickety here, but I'm also offering generalities and taking a few liberties with my words: Glass tile is usually installed with a modified thinset. Air can't pass through glass. But glass is usually installed over porous cement backer board, and with the combination of cement backer board, small mosaic glass tile sizes, plenty of grout lines, and the "porous" cement board, air can get to the additives in the modified thinset to allow it to dry. For warranty reasons, Schluter specifies what types of thinsets can be used with their products. They usually want an unmodified thinset due to the non-permeable nature of the Kerdi. When I talk to their tech guys, they do allow lightly modified thinsets, but when used judiciously. If you sandwich modified thinset between glass tile and Kerdi, you take away some of the exposure to air. Still, it's not usually a problem. If using modified, most installers will use a lightly modified thinset instead of a heavily modified thinset. What all that means is that it just may take a bit longer for a modified thinset to fully cure and harden in a mosaic glass tile over Kerdi installation. An installer would not want to use a heavily modified thinset to adhere a non-porous large format tile over non-porous Kerdi or Ditra. The pan had a proper preslope, right? I was curious but didn't ask earlier...do you know what the black stuff is that is on the Kerdi on the inside corners of the floor pan and the ceiling? Is that a topical membrane of some sort? I hope the reason for the demo isn't catastrophic and simply turns out to be a hiccup. Probably information that doesn't apply to your specific situation, but what the heck. I typed it anyway... Good luck with this, Mongo

I agree with Greendesigns on the color--the darker they are the more maintenance they will require with dust mopping or swiffering. I am guessing with all you have going on, you don't have the time to be swiffering every square inch of flooring twice a day. Going with a medium stain or even clear poly is a more practical option. Handscraped floors are beautiful without a doubt, but as you're finding are very $$$. Going with a #1 common grade vs. a select grade or clear grade hardwoodis a less expensive alternative to handscraped that still gives you plenty of character. On-site finish vs. engineered finish is really a personal preference IMO. With engineered, once it's installed you're ready to go, but if your floors are ever damaged (think dishwasher floods kitchen), you run the risk of not being able to match it to the rest of the hardwoods in the house at a later date, and you are limited on how many times you can refinish the floor. Going with site finished gives you the advantage of unlimited refinishing, ability to match at a later date if need be, but it does require drying time. I think the engineered prefinished floor have come into favor with builders who want it done quick + current homeowners who are upgrading their existing flooring and don't want to deal with the sanding & drying time required with unfinished. When building new, as you are, the sanding & drying time really don't play in as much--the builder has a cleaning crew come in to take care of any sanding dust + most hardwood guys use the dustless sanders now anyway & typically the floor finishing is done last--so while you're working on closing on the house, the floors are being completed & drying). Hope this helps!