Okay, I just did one of the bathrooms this weekend. Some notes: -I did not use the grout removal saw, the seams/gaps were too small and I did not want to damage the tiles. I did this by hand with a small flat blade screwdriver (lots of scrapping!) -Filling up the tub with water makes a difference! Some of the cracked grout was pushed inside and i could not get it out. I put water in the tub and vacuumed one more time and viola, more stuff made it out! -Considering it's silicon, the fumes were basically non-existent from the caulk (100% silicon caulk) -3 corners are a pain in the butt to smooth out! You smooth out two corners and the 3rd gets messed up! Rinse and repeat! OCD doesn't help here either. -My legs/arms hurt due to the funky positions I had to get into to remove grout and caulk! (ugh) -I'm surprised I did not fall into the tub when it had water in it! I have a question in regards to applying caulking around fixtures (what I'll need to do with the other bathroom and kitchen). What's the best (maybe easiest) way to caulk around fixtures that are in your way? Obviously when they first grouted the fixtures weren't there so it easy. I don't want to remove the fixtures, any suggestions? Put caulk on my fingers and goop it in? Thanks!

Found this on John Leeke's website.... Attic Insulation: Heat rising through the attic and roof is a major source of heat loss, and reducing this heat loss should be one of the highest priorities in preservation retrofitting. Adding insulation in accessible attic spaces is very effective in saving energy and is generally accomplished at a reasonable cost, requiring little skill to install. The most common attic insulations include blankets of fiberglass and mineral wool, blownin cellulose (treated with boric acid only), blowing wool, vermiculite, and blown fiberglass. If the attic is unheated (not used for habitation), then the insulation is placed between the floor joists with the vapor barrier facing down. If flooring is present, or if the attic is heated, the insulation is generally placed between the roof rafters with the vapor barrier facing in. All should be installed according to the manufacturer's recommendations. A weatherization manual entitled, "In the Bank . . . or Up the Chimney" (see the bibliography) provides detailed descriptions about a variety of installation methods used for attic insulation. The manual also recommends the amount of attic insulation used in various parts of the country. If the attic has some insulation, add more (but without a vapor barrier) to reach the total depth recommended. Problems occur if the attic space is not properly ventilated. This lack of ventilation will cause the insulation to become saturated and lose its thermal effectiveness. The attic is adequately ventilated when the net area of ventilation (free area of a louver or vent) equals approximately 1/300 of the attic floor area. With adequate attic ventilation, the addition of attic insulation should be one of the highest priorities of a preservation retrofitting plan. If the attic floor is inaccessible, or if it is impossible to add insulation along the roof rafters, consider attaching insulation to the ceilings of the rooms immediately below the attic. Some insulations are manufactured specifically for these cases and include a durable surface which becomes the new ceiling. This option should not be considered if it causes irreparable damage to historic or architectural spaces or features; however, in other cases, it could be a recommended measure of a preservation retrofitting plan. Here is a link that might be useful: john leeke's attic insulation

The paint color on the lower half of the wall is just a very light lavender. The upper half is more purple. I actually mixed the lavender myself, by adding a little of the purple paint to some white paint. The fake tile (sheet vinyl) floor came from Linoleum City in Los Angeles. I looked and looked and looked for that vinyl and Linoleum City is the only place that sells it. I called a salesman there and asked about it. He said they had a unique contract with Tarkett (I think) to produce this product and he didn't think it was sold anywhere else in the country. Their number one client is Hollywood. Set-building people buy it by the roll to use on the sets. The sheet vinyl creates the look of early 20 Century hex tile floor in a jiffy. :) The light fixtures and medicine chest are reproductions. The light fixtures came from Rejunvenation Hardware and the medicine chest came from Van Dykes Restoration hardware. All these years of writing about old houses and I finally got to use some of the resources I've been writing about. Thanks for all the nice comments. Rose Here is a link that might be useful: linoleum city link

"So I had a bathroom remodeled last year and the shower was finished about 8 months ago." " The grout line in the second pic was done only a couple months ago " Perhaps theres more to the saga and Ed is just warming up? The shower tile was done about 8 months ago. The contractor moved very slowly to finish. The vertical grout line on the other side of the shower showed a small crack going all the way down. He came back and did a thicker grout line on that side and I asked him to do the other side thicker to make it look even. The crack on the other side is beginning to reappear.