Communication breakdown

And no, I'm not talking about the Led Zepplin song, although I wish I was.

I like to think that I'm a hip, in-the-know, up-to-date, kind of gal, but the more I try to accomplish online the more I realize that I'm slowly turning into one of those crotchety old folks who can't handle change. That's a sad thing to realize at 28.

For the second time in the last two months I've had issues ordering tile from home improvement websites. I don't know if it's me, if it's just ordering tile in general, or some other cosmic issue, but for some reason I just can't order tile online.

The listing said X brand name travertine 3x6 tile (1 sq. ft.) $4.47 EA.

Now wouldn't you think that mean it was $4.47 per sq. ft? Well, I did. So I looked down in the description and it said there was only 1 tile per case that was 3x6.

So what the heck is the (1 sq. ft.) for?!?!?!

Picture me at this time pulling my hair out and possibly banging my head against the desk.


I decided at this point that I'd call the store just to double check, so I didn't accidentally buy the wrong thing (again). 'Lo and behold! The listing was for 1 (singular) piece of 3x6 tile. Now I purchased a whole square foot of this same exact tile at the physical store for that same price. I asked the woman why it was $4.47 for 1 piece of tile online when I can get a whole square foot at the physical store for the same price - and why on earth does it have (1 sq. ft.) on the listing if you're only getting 1 piece of tile? Why include that? If it was left off it would be much clearer that you're only getting the one piece.

When the poor woman on the phone had no good "answer" to any of my questions, I politely told her I'd just go ahead and purchase what I needed at the physical store, that it would just be easier for an old lady like myself.

However,  I did manage to purchase the pebble tile that I needed along with the pencil molding. That stuff isn't cheap! Augh. Every option that made "sense" was relatively expensive. Awesome. Why must I always make things more difficult than they need to be?

With any luck, we should get the materials by the end of next week - so we'll be putting off the back splash until then.

Here's (yet) another board of all the different components:

Tile images courtesy of Home Depot, Labrador Coffee print courtesy of pinterest.com

Still working on the paint color. I may go a different direction than a taupey-green, but I'm not sure yet. We'll see what everything looks like when we get the back splash done.

I also want to add some rough-textured fabric for curtains in either an off-white or a beige color (to match the travertine) and maybe an embellished runner that goes. Add some rattan chargers and a cool (but small, since our table is tiny) centerpiece and we're all set to go.

Also, we will need to add our shelving. Anyone find any cheap, antique-looking shelf brackets? Preferably black iron and a little worn?

I'd also like to make a chalkboard. I have a really cool antique frame that's an odd size that would be perfect for a project like this.

Still yet on the list is to fix the weird hole in the cabinetry next to the dishwasher, get (and install) track lighting and a wrought-iron chandelier, plus organize the pantry! Lots to do on our kitchen list still, but we're working through it.