Of course you can do it yourself, but don't expect it to be as easy as they make it look on TV. It's a lot of work, and if you've never done it yourself, you need to factor in time to figure things out in your mind like how to cut the tiles so you have the cut edge in the corner where it can't be seen.

We just finished tiling our kitchen, dining room, pantry closet, laundry area, coat closet and the hall/entryway that led from the front door to the dining room--those little areas were off to different sides so we treated it all as one big area. Because our kitchen is a G shape, our dining room is L shaped so we had 7 distinct areas to tile that really added a layer of complexity to the job as we had walls to tile around with half H cuts, lots of L cuts and lots of cut tile along the walls. The tiles were 18X18" so we had to use a 1/2" trowel and about 300 lbs of thinset, the motar used for tiling. Getting the thinset the right consistency is a challenge--if it's too thin, it's causes problems, and if it's too thick, you have other problems.

I think I was most surprised at how slow the tiling was, and how a huge bucket of thinset only allowed us to lay 10 to 12 tiles--and this is a bucket so full and heavy it was all my husband could do to bring it in from the garage! Each tile required the equivalent of a very large mixing bowl of thinset. We had to buy more at least 4 times, and they came in 50 lb bags.

The other thing that I guess I hadn't realized is that you have to make sure each tile is level, and it can take some doing to get it there--that's where a lot of the time was spent. If they aren't level and square, your floor [in our case] will look like an amateur did it.

Grouting is another thing that they make look very simple on TV, but there are things they aren't showing you. The biggest problem we had is that if you grout, and then clean immediately, your wet sponge pulls a lot of the grout out of the line, and you're left with very deep grout lines. We found it was best to use a wet soft clothe wrapped around your finger to carefully wipe the excess off near the lines, without going over them. Once it dries, you can scrub the tile good and get the excess off. I used a tile and grout cleaner I got at Home Depot along with various scrub brushes, and sponges in cleaning it. The other thing we found is that vinegar will take the thinset off the tiles.

Our floor looks absolutely WONDERFUL, but it was a long, slow process. Still, we're very happy we did it, and it actually gave us something to do together so now renovating the rest of our home is our new hobby! :)

If you decide to do this, go to youtube and look up tiling videos. My husband found several that he found very helpful.

Thanks, Hayley. Wow - I wouldn't even attempt the project you and your husband did - congratulations. I'll bet your house looks beautiful!

Hi! You certainly can DIY. Just make sure you understand how its done. Go on you tube and learn more. Choose the proper layout so your not stuck with a 1" pc of tile at the end. Talk with the people at the tile store & ask them what you will need. Have the proper tile cutting equipment. Good Luck!

For sure. My first DIY tile job I tried to make do without purchasing a tile saw. That was a mistake. Maybe someone you know has one that can lend it to you. But I have found if you prep properly, you are careful, and you don't cut corners it goes smooth. Yes it does take time to do properly. And some of the work is backbreaking for an amateur - like mixing mortar and carrying tiles around.

Best tile guy on the net: http://www.johnbridge.com/

You don't have to buy a tile saw; rent one. If you only have a few cuts, mark them and take them to a tile store. They'll usually charge you about 50 cents to make a cut.

Figure your layout first, then dry lay it to be sure. You don't want to end up with tiny slivers of tile on the ends.

Tiling a vertical surface is trickier than a floor. Make sure you have plenty of spacers and tape. The tiles want to slide down and you must have spacers to stop them.

When it's time to grout, after you've packed the grout into all the spaces, do ONE wash only over the top to make sure you've got grout in every little nook and the surface is even. Let it set for about 20 minutes before washing again. Rinse your sponge between every pass. Don't think you can get away with not rinsing; you'll just leave more grout all over the tiles.

Do your final wash with a big wad of cheesecloth. When the grout is set, polish the whole job with a dry cloth.