How To Freshen Old Grout Between Tiles in 3 Easy Steps

If you didn’t already know, it should really come as no surprise to anyone that I am slightly OCD.

Yup, I’m the one who needs all the pictures perfectly straight, the furniture dusted, and my floors ARE clean enough to eat off of…for reals.

Our house is kinda old, built in the late sixties or very early seventies, and we haven’t done a major overhaul on the kitchen, so I still have the old porcelain tile with white grout, which poses difficulties keeping spotless and sanitary even for someone like me whose middle name is “Bleach”.

Every so often, I step out of my Louboutins, throw down my Chanel, and get my hands dirty for a purpose — to freshen and reseal the grout.

Until we remodel and tear out the countertops, this is an excellent method of keeping everything looking clean and fresh.

And it’s SO easy!

This is what I use; it’s bright white ‘cos that’s my grout color. I purchased it at Home Depot — it’s pre-mixed and EASY to use.
grouttutorial1STEP ONE:

I use my finger because I’ve tried a lot of other tools and nothing works better. I don’t even wear gloves, but you really should.

Just scoop up a mess of grout and push it into the space between the tiles, dragging your finger down along each square ’til it’s filled and even.

Make sure you really wash that stuff off your hands; it’s very drying and probably toxic!
grouttutorial3 STEP TWO:

Take a rag or a sponge (or both) and carefully wipe away the excess grout. Let it dry overnight and then wipe off the tiles again.

grouttutorial4 grouttutorialsealer

 

 

STEP THREE:
See the little brush? Turn the grout sealer upside down and squeeze just until enough sealer coats the brush; continue to squeeze, and paint all the grout with the sealer, let dry for about an hour and add a second coat.

When it’s dry, wipe the tile with a clean, damp cloth to remove any excess grout.

 

 

 

 

Voilà!

Beautiful grout again…sparkly clean and shiny, easy as 1-2-3!
grouttutorial2

Recycled, Repurposed, Reborn, and Reformed

It’s not always about Chanel.

Yes it is — well,  I say yes, our bank account says no.

Whatev.

Moving on.

As much as I loves me some designer fashion — especially Chanel —  I really don’t like to throw anything away ‘cos I think I’ll always find a use for everything if I save it long enough.

No need to toss out those nasty old cracked and faded Crocs,
merely fill with a little soil and some succulents!
Voila!

crocs

Crack a wineglass when you partied too much???
Fill with a little soil and more succulents.
Just don’t try and drink out of it again…

wineglassplanter

Chipped a dish?
Once again, fill with rocks and soil — and more succulents!
These need a little water; looking kinda sad…

dishgarden

Yeah, I break a lot of things.
More broken coffee cups, more succulents.
This is the desert, after all.
And yes, that’s a broken tile, too!

coffeecups

Repurposed fruit basket stand.
I painted it black ‘cos it was all rusty, lined the baskets with black plastic, filled with soil and planted begonias on the bottom and fuchsias on top.
Did you notice that the basin beneath it is not very 
photogenic?
It will have to go.
I found the Trix rabbit whilst digging. No one knows where it came from!
No, I’m not from the UK, but sometimes “whilst” is a great word.

fruitplant

Tell me about anything you’ve recycled, repurposed, reborn, or reformed.