Curb Appeal: Our Saltillo Tile Porch

It is officially curb appeal month at the Spenlas. Make that season. I’m sure all of these projects will take us at least the rest of the beautiful summer season :).

Kevin is traveling for a crazy project that he is undertaking (more details soon… crazy is the only word I have for it right now) but before he left we worked a bit more on the front of the house. This particular project is one that he finished up a while ago but that I haven’t had a chance to mention here on the blog just yet, and being Curb Appeal month it fits right in!

Our front yard has always been high on our priority list. When we first moved in the very first task we took on was transforming the entrance and street level view of our home into something warm, inviting and well-loved. It’s a great way to meet new neighbors (nothing like working outdoors to meet dog walkers, bikers and stroller mommas), too!

The most recent updated may not appear to be all that exciting… but it has made a world of a difference when you’re walking up and down those front steps everyday. Kev’s new weekend project was to grout and seal the saltillo tile on our front porch.

I know, I know, exciting stuff. But finishing a project is always a plus (especially when it was started four years ago) and a grouted front porch landing has made all of the difference! Sometimes it really is that last 10%.

This project involved renting a power washer to really clean the tile and clear out any debris from the cracks. Next a wet gloss sealer was applied directly to the tile, a roller brush is helpful for application. Grout is prepped and smoothed over all adjoining tile spaces and any excess is wiped away with a wet rag. Last but not least, another coat of wet gloss sealer after the grout has cured.

I was not on top of it and completely forgot to take pictures of the naked cement porch and the porch with just tiles. But here’s another shot of the house a couple of months before we bought it and you can kind of see the bare brown slab that originally occupied this space.

The beauty about saltillo tile (which is very traditional Spanish and will look great with the new paint color! on our little Spanish bungalow) is that it looks better and better with age. It’s supposed to be weathered, a bit messy, not-so-perfect.

All great features for a front porch that will see plenty of wear and tear.

While grouting the front, Kevin went ahead and tackled the back patio as well. Here’s a shot post-grout, pre-wiping down the tiles of excess wet grout shot.

Keeping up with the theme of front porch, Kev also pulled our wood slatted bench out of the entrance and applied a honey shade of stain followed by a coat sealer.

(That’s the power washer in the foreground.)

The bench was a housewarming gift from my parents and I love how it looks on the porch, especially with its fresh coat of glaze.

One more curb appeal project down! Plenty to go through summer, but you can read all about that here.

Have a great weekend.

PS More Curb Appeal projects right here.