Sealing ANTIQUE TERRACOTTA floor / Renovation on lake Como

[@mariannekuijpers9298]

To lighten up the room you could install white planks between the ceiling beams, this gives you a chance to inslute the room and to lighten it up. You could give the beams a light whitewash.

[@trinitystarclararose7118]

I agree with you I did suggest a white wash to her as well, many vlogs ago it would make the room look not so top heavy. The beams being dark, like that, is drawing the eyes to the ceiling and missing the beauty of the whole room, taking away from the beauty she has created. The dark ceiling is overpowering the whole kitchen and accentuating the low ceiling. I would say it’s stealing the whole show not in a good way. I’m surprised that she hasn’t decided on it yet. Maybe she will paint the beams a lighter colour eventually.😊

[@neutonrenda2303]

Glad that it doesn't make it darker, looks amazing light like it is.👍❤

[@sandraberry612]

Hi Alla & Sergei, There’s no way that small tin of sealer would do the whole floor ,you should have gone with your instinct Alla! It’s better to two coats as the tiles are porous! It’s always better to seal the grout at the same time then it won’t get so dirty ! The fire stove looks so cosy ! 🥰

[@natasha1369]

You should get some of those little fans that go on the top of the wood fireplaces to push the heat into the room. It will help warm your house.

[@karenbrindley7170]

Alla, I second this thought. It moves the heat throughout the room. If you don't have them in Italy, let me know, and I will send you one.

[@anitaturvey3742]

Every video is a joy. You share so much and the amount of work that you do is amazing. Good to see you relaxing and enjoying non work activities too. You both accomplish so much via trial and error. Your positive attitudes are to be admired. Your family trio is a real treat to watch

[@hollykeller1545]

It’s so worth the cost of sealant for your kitchen floor ! The last house I bought before moving to this state had a large tiled kitchen floor & I didn’t know it wasn’t sealed & so the grout turned black from dirt, etc. I had to hire a guy to dig out the old grout & put in new grout to sell that house & that made a horrible amount of dust & took days to do! So you are saving yourself future work & expense ❣️👏🏻👏🏻🎃🎃🎃

[@Hope-fv3kf]

Cherie! She always makes me smile...

[@leighlaaltilio6672]

The garden and floor look great! Well done Alla!!!❣

[@doreenzahra1719]

Alla and Sergei the garden fire plce and and the floors are all beautifull you both are lucky to have a beautifull home that you have made for your selves and your beautifull dog

[@stevengilleyOU812]

That floor turned out fantastic! Almost as good as those walls. They’re priceless!

[@tonivalenzuela8274]

It has been a joy to watch the garden grow and change. I remember, oh so well, what you started with. You jumped in and built the wall and it exploded from there. You had a vision and look how pretty it turned out. One of my favorite things was when you finally tackled the bottom of the garden. I so love the tiles and hope the product doesn't change the color, so far so good. Thank you for sharing.

[@susanamann1124]

Open window to vent. Roller with long handle would have saved your hack. Looks pretty.

[@elianadedeusvieira331]

Love the terracotta floor. 😍😍😍

[@fishermann1102]

please do not forget to clean your chimney flue at least twice a year so to avoid burning down your house.

[@sue7190]

Seal the grout as well as the tiles. Check they are fully sealed by pouring a little water on, if it puddles you are OK. You will need to reseal from time to time, maybe once a year. I was given a tip that helps keep the grout clean. Use a spray bottle filled with your preferred diluted cleaning product, spray the floor a section at a time and mop with a washable microfibre mop. Quick, efficient, dries faster and you don't move dirty water across the floor. ❤❤

[@brianeber3162]

We are so proud of the work to the floor and we want to thank you for sharing. My wife and I watch every video you make and while we do not respond often your determination helps a lot of people throughout the world. From South Carolina US.

[@annettesharrock1236]

No way would that tin of sealer do all the floor. He lies🤣 Cheri has nestled into your new home well. The dahlias are looking great mine still blooming also. Loved watching😘

[@marykelly9698]

A beautiful big natural rug for under your table to soften the brick would be nice ❤

[@mariannekuijpers9298]

a light coloured rug

[@marykelly9698]

Yes natural would be bright

[@barblallier9413]

I would put on with cloth, use it like polishing furniture, rub it on, and in grout. It's looking beautiful! Be sure to label dahlias, tall, short, color,,,so in spring you get the right ones. Mine are still blooming in nw Pennsylvania, but I had forgotten to label so tall are in front hiding everything. Good job you are all doing!❤

[@NatiHerron]

Love the plan with the garden. The floor looks amazing so far! Nice cosy fire 🙂

[@nancyhauge9500]

May I suggest when it get really cold that you hang a sheet or curtain in front of the stairs up to the second floor so you are not heating unused space..I do this every year, even in California, and save sooo much loss of heat inmthe spaces we actually live in. I cordinate the covers with the decor of the room too!

[@susananderson5435]

I agree.

[@lindamounts2193]

In the patron video she hung lovely curtains at each door so she's taken care of it.

[@Susan.I]

Your garden will get more beautiful as you observe it year after year!!

[@kimjeffries991]

The kitchen is looking so cosy x

[@charmees6637]

Great work on the tiles. Nice to see Cherie enjoying the fire ❤

[@bonniehollingsworth1996]

Your terra cotta tiles will look wonderful. Too bad that sealer isn’t going far on the porous tiles. Maybe the man at the store thought you had sealed the floor previously and we’re just retouching it…. Sure,😉. I can’t wait to see the rosettes you carve into the fireplace surround. I’ve been imagining this since you first sanded the paint off the concrete. Ryobi or Dremel - they both go round and round 😜

[@natasha1369]

when applying the sealer to the floor, you should put it into a paint tray and take a roller with a broomstick attached to it for length and roll it onto the floor, so that you have an even coat and roll it out through the whole room at the same time. So that would be moving everything out of the way to one side of the room. I feel you have too much in the room and it’s in the way of you doing a good job of ensuring an even coat. Best results is to do two coats and put enough on to let the floor absorb it. now I was right about using the icing bag for doing the grout. I hope you listen to me for this one too. But everything is coming along great your walls look wonderful and it is so much fun to see things come along.

[@marthaizaguirre6363]

Love your cozy fireplace! I'm wondering if the brick sealer is a concentrate that is meant to be diluted in water? This would explain the coverage capacity. Hope you are opening the windows so you & Cherie aren't inhaling too many fumes. Take care. 🥰

[@johanrahan3189]

my thoughts exactly

[@CynthiaEvans-i2f]

The floor is coming along nicely!

[@jonimarchese7655]

Ciao Alla, the room is looking beautiful, the floor is a very daunting project, but it will be beautiful when you're finished. As some others have suggested, work on the ceiling to brighten up and give the appearance of more height. "ben fatto" Love from N.Y.

[@patriceogrady9763]

Are you going to put plaster board in between the beams on the ceiling? That,when painted white , will help lighten and brighten the room.

[@rtfirefly3657]

Well done Alla! 🫶🏼

[@LindaWaring-cb5uq]

Enjoyed watching, as usual. Thank you ❤

[@belindagordon8042]

Oh the beautiful fire 🔥 ❤

[@staceydunne964]

Beautiful and so cozy.

[@PeterDeWare]

Looks great

[@lindadaum9408]

I noticed that your door to the garden and summer kitchen, I can see light. You are loosing a lot of heat. Several different products are available to help with that. Or maybe I thought I saw light. The floor looks beautiful.

[@erikaperry4817]

SO magical ✨️... loved the sunset gorgeous ❤...

[@davideborgna4918]

Ottimo... 💪👍👋

[@mettefrimand2825]

It looks beautiful you can be so proud of your work 😊

[@judithierino1377]

I so adore your vlogs, I was watching a show called chateau de montmagner episode preserving the past renovating a medieval banquet hall she shows you how to clean stone walls and restore them it's amazing you were saying you wanted to do it in the laundry, just a thought

[@neutonrenda2303]

I'm not surprised that it didn't finish the floor, how could it have possibly done 50m2? Even if the tiles were not so porous it's a stretch.😕❤

[@rocaz6629]

Definitely you should get rid of the slugs. They are going to eat all your beautiful flowers!

[@waltercorneli7550]

The little fans that go on top of the wood fireplace they don't need electricity they work with the heat of the fireplace they are great .

[@johanrahan3189]

Its all coming together nicely The mammoth tile job is almost at an end and it looks lovely What are your plans for the ceiling ? xxxx

[@PeterDeWare]

When are you planning on doing your stairway and hall.

[@lorrainethuel3408]

It looks so nice 😊

[@cherylreid9165]

Pierre de Ronsard is usually a climbing rose so will need a structure to climb on.

[@susanduff-silsby2695]

I thought I might suggest an idea for the rosettes that go onto the mantle, Alla. A Dahlia flower with yours and Sergei’s initials? Or Acanthus leaves with your initials around or on them? Your garden is so beautiful, I envy your skill in creating beauty. Thank you, Susan at Hobart.

[@juliarichmond5904]

Oh! What a lovely idea! 💕

[@ruthnoronha8206]

You were right to be concerned because the terra cotta tiles are super pours. Maybe the guy did not think that. Remember these are reclaimed tiles that are 100 years old, the guy definitely didn’t have his facts straight, the tiles look amazing.

[@lindamounts2193]

Looks wonderful, Alla. Have you tried the underfloor heating?

[@abigailgerlach5443]

If you take white paint and add water to it, you can "white wash" the beams. It wouldn't be a solid white, but just a hint of white. Is the product for the floor supposed to be diluted?

[@joketendam5806]

Un panno means cloth not brush😂

[@scottenneking]

do you like Hollyhocks they come double and single they are beautifull

[@elizabethmckelvie5418]

I must have missed it but when did you actually move into the house

[@MaryDeSilvaCajunDIYDiva]

Can you cut little triangles of your terra-cotta tiles to fill in the empty spaces of the decorative tiles near the door?

[@ruthnoronha8206]

Alla have you moved out of the rental apartment now? Do you live here now ?

[@lindametten4010]

Uses roller to roll on the sealer.

[@nancywhite1439]

It is a long process to get the tiles, clean them, sand them, refurbish them, grout and seal then wash….but last a lifetime! Another couple in Tuscany has redone their tile floors to quite the same journey (however, not to the point of laying the tiles, but to care for them, clean and seal). You might be interested in seeing their long work changing the building from a stable to living room/dining room and finally putting in good lighting and some rugs over the tiled floor for softness and warmth. Kylie explains their process in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aGquiYOZr6t_mbMsi=zouALi0tQL6gb8DH. Lots of linseed oil (no toxic effects), rags working the oil into the terra cotta on their hands and knees then allowing it to dry for 2 weeks before washing then moping up the water which would not be absorbed by the then sealed terra cotta! Your work is so beautiful Alla how you’re bringing in the soft greens and yellow/brass accents. Lucky you for having such a long growing season🌾

[@nancywhite1439]

Word of caution as linseed oil is flammable when rags just put together as spontaneous combustion heats them up….so good to wash out and store in a metal container. The oil gives such a wonderful coat of protection and sealing without changing the color. There maybe some places in Italy where people use the oil which is readily available…olive oil, however, must be done yearly to keep the tiles in prime condition.

[@nancywhite1439]

And yet another way to apply a seal is using beeswax! Found that Kaylie used it to seal the handmade tiles in the bathroom….about a bit of halfway through this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i6aainmni9p-mq8si=Fuij_fhsjbX9wdP4