Cutting Linoleum

[Lily left the valley]

I decided to go with the more subdued combination, as Bonnie suggested:

VCT Trio Golden LGA and Acrobat by James McInnis, on Flickr

You know, it struck me as I stumbled back upon this thread trying to find another one how "right" this color choice feels for you now. I don't know if it's because my brain filed it away under "Manalto, decisions made", or the more I've gotten to know you, the gentle blend of them just feels just right when I think of you from what I've learned of you from our exchanges and your posts. The internet is a fascinating communication method sometimes.

I'm really looking forward to when you get your floor repairs done now so we can see how it all works out.

[Manalto]

Thanks, Lily. I'm eager to get going on the kitchen floor. I bought the tiles six months ago, thinking my friend in New Jersey could help me get super-clean cuts (from 12" to 6") with the saw he had in his shop. I had been told the VCT cutter didn't produce an edge that was equal to the factory edge, and that I could run into trouble because of it. As it turned out, cutting with a saw would lose 1/16" with every cut and throw off the seam match with the full-size (12") perimeter tiles. I decided to just use the VCT cutter (found one on Craigslist for $60!) and run a block of sandpaper up the edge before laying it. I just ran out to the shed to see if Golden, Little Green Apple and Acrobat were my final choices (I'm pretty sure they are) but the light's burned out. I'll check tomorrow. In any case, the color scheme still stands, even if the colors have been tweaked a bit. The top two colors are the center field of 6" 'checkerboard' squares, and the darker green is the 12" perimeter border.

I've run into a string of "before you do that you have to do this" tasks, including repairing termite-damaged joists, lifting the tongue-in-groove pine floor (I could never bring myself to tile over it.) and other preparations. I'm still hoping to get the floor down on this trip to Alabama. I think it's entirely possible.

Today I was musing along the lines of "what do I want to accomplish with this house? what do I want as a result?" and it occurred to me that I might benefit by thinking in terms of a 'mission statement'. As a business plan does, it can compel us to ask ourselves some questions about purpose and aesthetics that go beyond the kneejerk "I want what I just saw on HGTV" response. I realize that much of renovation is peeling away the layers of previous owners' choices, but then it comes down to our own choices, a mission statement would be a good filter to pass through so we can consciously make decisions that remain true to the mission. A friend of mine renovated an 1850s farmhouse with an interior that's as slick as can be. There is no acknowledgement of the house's history or retention (or recreation) of period details. To me, it's like giving someone the latest I-phone in an antique cigar box. I understand that some people don't want to be at the mercy of a 150 year-old aesthetic, but I happen to think that honoring the period quality of a house gives it a warmth and character that makes the pursuit of that goal worthwhile.

[phil]

You and I and most here see things from a preservationist's perspective. That might be entirely different from the "average joe" who is house shopping and so the profitability of these decisions often favors products that are new and in stock and that contractors are familiar with.
Some of the things we take on are such big projects that you just have to do the best you can and to try to make balanced decisions and each of us has a different set of factors. How much we preserve is important, but in some cases good financial decisions fly in the face of restoration VS new.

Im doing my roof for example. Id so much rather do shakes than new asphalt shingles. I'd like to rip out the metal gutters and put wood ones. Finances don't support that so more asphalt shingles and tin gutters it is... If I win the lottery I'll have that wood roof because I'd much prefer it. In picking the flashings. Plastic ones are cheaper, but Ill go for metal even if the plastic will last, it would feel like an old house sin. Every time we turn around we face little decisions like this.
Copper or pex? painted rim or months of scraping. There is no end so part of it has to make you happy. One thing we can often afford to invest is a bit more of our own time to make it right. I don't think I'd go to the extent of re-wiring with knob and tube, although it could be done safely. Plaster or drywall? The right decisions depends on more than which is more original and for some it could easily vary depending on the conditions.


Phil

[phil]

my suggestion is to get some samples, then with samples in hand look up printers in your area. look for a little shop that will deal with you one on one and show him the samples. Let him know you will pay for his time plus to have the blade resharpened.

the kind of paper cutters used in the printing industry can cut stacks of material very accurately which is what you want. any attempt to use blades or hand cutters will have some deviation.

You could make a little frame and come close by using a blade by hand. then you might have to accept a little deviation , like the thickness of a pencil line You could do it that way but it would be laborious and youd probably have to do a little gap filling with a glue like liquid or something.

a paper cutter made for printing would happily cut through enough to do your floor in the matter of a few minutes. I'd cut it in lifts of about 2 inches.. You might have to wave a hundred bucks when they say it's only made for paper. Ive cut aluminum sheets and all sorts of things with them. they will zing through this no problem you just need permission to do something that is a bit off from their norm. If they say no then pick a different shop and don't bother with the big commercial printers , they will refuse for sure.

some of the commercial paper cutters are old and the blade is hand operated and most newer ones are hydraulic. either type of machine wil be ok but the blade should come straight down. dont' use one where the blade hinges at a pivot like the ones you find in schools for cutting paper by hand.

they cut stacks not individual pieces. to get uniformity , to cut a stack of 1foot squares into 4 6x6 pieces you'd make the first cut at 5.9 inches or so, then the second cut is a trim cut and it would basically take a very thin slice off the edge of the second stack. If you are combining 1 foot squares I would also trim those to 11.8 inches in both directions so they play well together. with the 5.9 inch pieces.
they will be able to complete this in an hour very easily and it will be accurate so long as they care about what they are doing.